Amidst the growing diverse student population, community colleges are enrolling an increasing number of adult immigrant-background students. However, recent research trends tend to focus on students who enter community colleges from the U.S. K-12 system (Generation 1.5 learners), leaving a significant gap in the research and a lack of cohesion in…

Despite evidence suggesting that standardized tests are an imperfect measure of academic readiness, many community colleges across the country rely on them alone to determine student course placement. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced campuses to transition to remote operations in spring 2020, proctoring in-person placement tests became…

This qualitative study investigated co-requisite courses which pair a developmental course with a college-level course and offer insight into how co-requisite instructors adjusted their curriculum and pedagogy for English language learners. Specifically, it examined faculty experiences teaching a co-requisite course combining a critical thinking…

This paper discusses the result of a statewide research effort in California to improve the accuracy of student placement in math and English in the California Community College system. We apply decision tree methods to high school and college transcript data to identify key measures of high school achievement that predict success in ten levels of…

Research conducted by the Community College Research Center (CCRC) and others was criticized in an article by Alexandros M. Goudas and Hunter R. Boylan (2012) published in the "Journal of Developmental Education," Volume 36, Issue 1. They raise specific contentions related to the methodology applied in the CCRC studies, the review of…

Improving college completion is a shared objective of higher education. It is the focus of colleges, foundations, state governments, and the White House. Students have gotten the message--their aspirations are on the rise. But the nation's collective ambition far exceeds today's outcomes. Many students are not attaining their goals. College…

This study hypothesizes that course passing rates in remedial mathematics classes can be improved through early identification of at-risk students using a department-wide midterm, followed by a mandated set of online intervention assignments incorporating immediate and elaborate feedback for all students identified as "at-risk" by their…

The community colleges in the state of New Jersey went through a process of establishing statewide cut-off scores for English and mathematics placement tests. The colleges wanted to communicate to secondary schools a consistent preparation that would be necessary for enrolling in Freshman Composition and College Algebra at the community college…

Mathematics, in general, and algebra courses, in particular, have been categorized as "gatekeepers" for higher education, better jobs, and even citizenship. For many low-income and working adults, community college is the institution where they choose to develop their mathematics understanding so they can pursue their dreams.…

For many students entering community colleges, the first stop on campus is to an assessment center. More than half of these students will be placed into developmental education as a result of their scores on reading, writing, and mathematics entry assessments, yet there is little evidence that this improves student outcomes. We examine alternative…

As colleges increasingly understand the importance of intentionally engaging students, the field must turn to the game-changing challenge: "bringing high-impact practices to scale as part of a concerted effort to increase college completion rates." In an era of growing demand, shrinking budgets, and greater accountability, meeting this…

Developmental education is designed to provide students with weak academic skills the opportunity to strengthen those skills enough to prepare them for college-level coursework. The concept is simple enough--students who arrive unprepared for college are provided instruction to bring them up to an adequate level. In practice, developmental…

The purpose of this study, funded by Jobs for the Future through a grant to the Massachusetts Community Colleges Executive Office, was to: (1) provide an update on the status of developmental education within Massachusetts community colleges; (2) shed light on the alignment between research-based best practices to advance success among…

This paper presents an examination of community college students enrolled in developmental mathematics courses, and their subsequent academic performance in college-level coursework. The study was undertaken to obtain an historical perspective of remedial education in American community colleges and to review the research related to developmental…

This article reports research involving collaboration between a developmental studies department and a mathematics department in an effort to increase the academic success of developmental students who transition into college-level math. Three separate projects were conducted with former developmental math students currently enrolled in an…