ERIC Number: ED588832
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 34
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Reforming English Pathways at California's Community Colleges
Mejia, Marisol Cuellar; Rodriguez, Olga; Johnson, Hans; Brooks, Bonnie
Public Policy Institute of California
California's community colleges are in the midst of numerous reforms to improve developmental (also known as remedial or basic skills) education. Developmental education is supposed to help prepare students for college work, but it has long been an obstacle to student success: most students in developmental courses never go on to complete a college-level course in English or math. In this report, the authors focus on reforms to developmental English pathways at California's community colleges. They examine different approaches to reform and their prevalence, and present new evidence on the effectiveness of one of the most common reforms, one-semester acceleration. They find that: (1) The structure and length of developmental English pathways vary considerably; (2) One-semester acceleration substantially shortens the typical developmental pathway; (3) Students who take one-semester acceleration have better outcomes; (4) Despite improvements, most students in accelerated courses do not complete college composition; and (5) Equity gaps remain large for underrepresented students.
Descriptors: Community Colleges, Educational Change, Developmental Studies Programs, English Instruction, Program Effectiveness, Acceleration (Education), Equal Education, At Risk Students, Two Year College Students, Student Placement, State Legislation, Remedial Reading, Remedial Instruction, Reading Instruction, Writing Instruction
Public Policy Institute of California. 500 Washington Street Suite 800, San Francisco, CA 94111. Tel: 415-291-4400; Fax: 415-291-4401; Web site: http://www.ppic.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Two Year Colleges; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; College Futures Foundation; Sutton Family Fund
Authoring Institution: Public Policy Institute of California
Identifiers - Location: California
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A