Dissatisfaction with student success has caused a crisis in developmental education. Critics from both inside and outside the field question whether remedial courses really prepare students for future college work or even if they are properly part of the college mission. In this article, we review research and present information that suggests…

Although vocabulary instruction is a pressing need for postsecondary reading instructors, a minimal amount of current postsecondary scholarship addresses this need, and almost no current scholarship addresses the textbook tradition of morphemic analysis (MA). The present article reviews the literature on MA instruction and argues for teaching MA…

Over the past decade, policymakers, educators, and administrators in community colleges and other broad-access postsecondary institutions have focused on reforming developmental education practices, including how students are assessed as needing additional academic support. Concurrent with widespread changes in practice, researchers have engaged…

This article reports a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that use regression discontinuity to examine the effects of placement into developmental education. Results suggest that placement into developmental education is associated with effects that are negative, statistically significant, and substantively large for three outcomes:…

One of the greatest challenges that community colleges face in their efforts to increase graduation rates is improving the success of students in their developmental, or remedial, education programs. This literature review seeks to examine research on developmental education strategies and reforms and identify the most promising approaches for…

Most college students are seeking a college education to increase their money-making skills. In turn, they want to have money to buy better leisure activities. For this reason, leisure counseling should be included in college career counseling services. From a psychological perspective, leisure facilitates identification with various concepts,…

Introduces the practitioner to psychometric issues related to developmental assessment and makes recommendations for the assessment refinements needed in the field. (Author/BH)

During recent decades, there has been an influx of underprepared students in America's colleges and universities. At many institutions, programs have been created to assist these high risk students through special classes and/or support services. Through application of student development theory these programs can shed the negative connotations of…

Describes the cognitive pattern of perfectionist thinking and discusses its development. The stages and strategies of group intervention for this pattern are presented. Goals and a general orientation are outlined which include developing self-awareness, recognizing secondary gains, and disrupting the maladaptive cognitive system. (JAC)

This paper discusses an investigation that compared college students' reading gains when using general or specific diagnosis. It reports that significant gains were made on many subskills of the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test by the group that had the prescriptions developed as a result of a differential (specific) diagnosis and that there were…

Offers a review of research conducted on reading comprehension, focusing on studies of the cognitive processes involved in the comprehension of the meaning of the microstructures and macrostructures of a text. (DMM)

Reviews four types of student retention models identified in the literature (i.e., psychological, economic, organizational, and interactional). Describes and offers examples of four levels of developmental education programs, and identifies eight critical pedagogical components of developmental education. (DMM)

Suggests using principles of instruction grounded in prose learning research to develop successful college developmental skills programs. (AEA)

States that faculty often attribute developmental students' academic difficulties to poor motivation. Investigates motivational differences between 60 developmental students and 74 regular-admission students enrolled in either a community college or a residential university. Results of t-test on motivational levels measured by the self-report…

This study was commissioned by the California Community Colleges System Office to identify effective practices in basic skills programs. The Center for Student Success (CSS), which is affiliated with the Research and Planning (RP) Group for California Community Colleges, was selected to conduct the study. There are three major components of the…