Improving Developmental and College-Level Mathematics: Prominent Reforms and the Need to Address Equity (original) (raw)
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International Journal of Studies in Education and Science (IJSES), 2024
Around fifty-five and twenty-three percent of US students entering two-year community colleges and four-year higher education institutions, respectively, are not ready for college courses. This process is quite costly, costing up to an estimated $7.5 billion a year. This retrospective research project will focus on Developmental Mathematics Education at Texas Woman’s University, the largest university system focused on women as well as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. A decade-long developmental mathematics education data set is used to decipher the baseline rates such as pass rates (with grades A, B, C), fail (F) and withdrawal rates (W). Statistical analyses such as exploratory data analysis and trend analysis will be employed. Equity-minded and inclusive institutional practices are presented. This paper reports a few equity-minded research-based practices that had a tremendous positive influence to increase the success of almost all DME students at TWU.
Numeracy
Courses in developmental and introductory mathematics are changing. Because nearly all students need mathematics coursework to graduate from a postsecondary institution, yet institutions consistently struggle to ensure that students of all demographics succeed in credit-bearing mathematics courses, student success in such courses may be viewed as an issue of social justice. In particular, there is a need for institutions to provide pathways through college-level mathematics courses that meet the needs of students with a wide array of incoming mathematical knowledge and skills. In light of questions about pedagogy, pass rates, and effects on degree completion time, some institutions have moved away from requiring students to enroll in non-creditbearing developmental mathematics courses. At Michigan State University, college-level courses in both Quantitative Literacy and College Algebra now directly enroll students who previously would have placed into Intermediate Algebra. Accompanying this shift in access are changes in course structure and content; during the 2017-2018 academic year, some course sections included an extra class meeting to help students bridge gaps in their requisite skills. While the corequisite model is an intuitive approach to supporting student learning, essentially increasing time on task and identifying needed requisite skills "just in time," these quantitative analyses show little evidence for these course sections improving students' course grades. In this context, the role and type of corequisite, supplemental instruction that best supports learning for a diverse group of students in introductory undergraduate mathematics courses remains in question. We discuss potential reasons for these results in light of existing reports on corequisite models and situate the results in the context of what social justice and equity might look like for corequisite models of introductory mathematics coursework.
Community College Journal of Research and Practice
The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand how educational scaffolding may explain changing patterns of student success in mathematics in the era of developmental education (DE or remediation) reform in Florida College System (FCS) institutions. Specifically, we apply the concept of scaffolding to underprepared FCS students who are at risk of dropping out or failing gateway courses (the first credit-bearing college-level class in a course sequence) because they lack the academic skills necessary to succeed in college-level coursework, particularly in mathematics. We present data from focus groups conducted at 10 FCS institutions, suggesting that a reduction of scaffolding in math remediation occurred in the areas of course sequencing, instruction, and coordination with academic support services following state-level policy changes. In light of these findings, we offer a discussion of practical recommendations for college administrators related to academic advising, instructional strategies in DE courses, coordination between developmental and college-level instructors, student success courses, and the integration of DE instruction with academic support. We also suggest directions for continued research on the effects of policy changes in the FCS and DE reform efforts across the country. President Obama's proposal to provide free tuition for the first 2 years of community college was closely linked to his ambitious goal that the United States would again have the highest proportion of college graduates of any nation by 2020. This policy proposal acknowledges that in order to increase the proportion of college graduates in the United States, policy makers and institutional decision makers alike must find ways to increase persistence and graduation rates at community colleges, particularly for academically at-risk students and others who can benefit most from college degrees (The White House President Barack Obama, 2016). With open admissions policies and diverse student populations, community colleges have traditionally been regarded as agents of social mobility, especially for at-risk students (Cohen, Brawer, & Kisker, 2003; Rosenbaum, Deil-Amen, & Person, 2007; Skidmore et al., 2014). The designation "at-risk" originates in the K-12 literature (Bulger & Watson, 2006) and is typically used to indicate students who "are poorly equipped to perform up to academic standards" (Quinnan, 1997, p. 31). In this study, we define at-risk community college students as those who are at risk of dropping out or failing gateway courses (the first for-credit college-level class in a course sequence) because they lack the academic skills or crucial knowledge necessary to succeed in college-level coursework, particularly in mathematics.
Journal of Mathematics Education at Teachers College, 2020
Developmental mathematics, which is designed to prepare students for college-level mathematics courses, can be a barrier to students’ success. In the United States, the majority of students placed into developmental mathematics courses fail to complete the developmental sequence. Alternative mathematics pathways offer some benefits when integrated with “just-in-time support” or expedited instruction on specific prerequisite concepts needed solely for the current lesson. This study compares two statistics courses taught at a public community college: a complete course taught in one semester and a two-semester version with just-in-time developmental content integrated into the course. The study found that students placed into the one-semester statistics course accumulated significantly more credits after one and two years of college. These students also completed an associate’s degree within two years at a significantly higher rate than students placed into the two-semester statistics course. The study also found students deemed non-proficient by the college’s placement exam, who also had a strong high school average were significantly more likely to earn a grade of A- or higher or a grade of B- or higher compared to students originally deemed proficient.
Racial-ethnic differences at the intersection of math course-taking and achievement
2010
Despite increases in the representation of African American and Hispanic youth in advanced math courses in high school over the past two decades, recent national reports indicate that substantial inequality in achievement remains. These inequalities can temper one's optimism about the degree to which the United States has made real progress toward educational equity. Using data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS), the authors find that the math achievement gap is most pronounced among those students who take the most demanding high school math classes, such as precalculus and calculus. The authors explore the roles of family socioeconomic status and school composition in explaining this pattern. Findings suggest that among those students reaching the advanced math high school stratum, Hispanic youth from lowincome families and African American youth from segregated schools fare the worst in terms of closing the achievement gap with their white peers. The authors discuss potential explanations for the achievement differences observed and stress the need for more research that focuses explicitly on the factors that inhibit minority/majority parity at the top of the secondary curricular structure.
2019
California school districts have long struggled to help their students reach high levels of skill and understanding in mathematics. Yet outcomes on both state and national assessments continue to reveal a combination of low overall performance, slow growth over time, and persistently large achievement gaps among student groups. A push for improved achievement and greater equity has prompted districts to enact a variety of changes in policy and practice to counteract historical obstacles to access. These approaches have yielded varying levels of success, and educators continue to seek solutions with the potential to produce dramatic improvements in student outcomes.
Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 2014
The majority of community college students today are academically unprepared for college (Bailey, 2009; Cohen & Brawer, 2008). To meet the needs of these underprepared students, colleges offer developmental education to bring the academic level of the student up to the collegiate level (Johnson & Kuennen, 2004; Virginia Community College System [VCCS], 2009). Offering developmental education to underprepared students is one of the key tasks which have largely fallen to community colleges (Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, 2008; Provasnik & Planty, 2008). Developmental education courses were offered in 98% of all two-year colleges in 2000 and 42% of community college first-year students enrolled in at least one developmental course with 35% of students enrolled in developmental mathematics (Parsad, Lewis, & Greene, 2003). Individual institutions and organizations at the state and national level have realized the success of developmental students is critical in reaching national, state, and institutional goals on student success (Oklahoma State