State community college systems and their two-year colleges have spent the 2010s reexamining and redesigning decades-old developmental education tracks to ensure students get what they need--and only what they need--with an eye toward moving them more quickly into college-level courses and, eventually, the degree or certificate they want.…

Since Breneman and Haarlow (1998) first estimated the national cost of developmental education to be approximately $1 billion dollars, the developmental education landscape has shifted in numerous ways. This paper provides an update to their estimate in light of both these changes and improved data that disaggregates the cost to community colleges…

The developmental program at Los Angeles City College, designed six years ago for those with low likelihood of success, has been regularly up-dated as needed. For the past two years, counselor assistants and student tutors have helped the regular faculty. In 1968, student tutors were assigned to help students, both regular and developmental, in…

The PACE (Personalized Approach to College Education) program at Community College of the Finger Lakes was designed to provide basic academic skill development in reading, English, and mathematics for students with academic records in the bottom quartile of the entering freshman class. The program emphasizes student responsibility for learning and…

Developmental education, also termed remedial education, refers to curricula intended to improve the academic skills and knowledge of students who are underprepared for undergraduate coursework, particularly in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing. Many practitioners and researchers agree that developmental education should be improved,…

A significant challenge in higher education is to narrow the educational attainment gap between academically prepared and unprepared students. To this end, developmental or remedial education is intended to improve the academic skills and knowledge of students who are unprepared for undergraduate coursework, particularly in the areas of…

Because of the current trend toward further education for all high school graduates, there is need to prepare low-achieving students for college-level work. A developmental program was designed for Puerto Rico Junior College to improve the performance of high school graduates with low academic averages and entrance examination scores. After a year…

This survey of remedial or developmental mathematics programs is based on useable responses from 98 community-junior colleges during the fall and winter of 1969. Of the 185 schools originally contacted, 42 specifically indicated no such program, and only six questioned their appropriateness. The most often indicated reasons for the existance of…

This article discusses the successful use of technology, rather than lectures, by Tennessee's community colleges to teach developmental reading and math. The redesign occurred with the support of the National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT). In fall 2007, the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) staff convened meetings to familiarize its…

This publication is intended to be used as a sourcebook and reference by practitioners interested in postsecondary developmental programs, with a particular focus on occupational students. The information presented was derived from a statewide survey of staff members involved in the operation of developmental programs in 51 two-year colleges and…

A cost analysis of the developmental education program on the North Campus of Florida Junior College at Jacksonville revealed that in the 1972/1973 fiscal year the special credit courses offered for remedial students cost over 80 percent more than regular credit courses. Among the developmental courses offered (English, reading, mathematics, and…

Students entering Harrisburg Area Community College (H.A.C.C.), Pennsylvania, who are identified as being inadequately prepared for regular coursework are assigned to appropriate developmental courses, to prepare them for subsequent entry into the regular career or transfer curricula. A recent analysis of the program outlines such factors as…

This survey examines the extent and nature of certain special educational and support services for educationally disadvantaged community college students. The data are based on responses from 76 per cent of 180 public 2-year colleges in the Midwest. The findings were: (1) one out of nine Midwestern community college students is involved in…

Reviews developmental education programs stressing the need for institutional research to determine the viable parts of such curricula in view of cutbacks being made of costly programs. Discusses factors causing insufficient skills in students, considers program evaluation, and reviews six established developmental programs. (MB)

Highlights documents in the ERIC collection pertaining to remedial and developmental programs in two-year colleges. (DC)