ERIC Number: ED559730
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2015-Jun
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Reforming Developmental Education to Better Support Students' Postsecondary Success in the Common Core Era. Core to College Evaluation. Policy Brief
Bracco, Kathy Reeves; Austin, Kim; Bugler, Daniel; Finkelstein, Neal
WestEd
When students first enroll in college, they are required to demonstrate readiness for college-level work. Course placement depends on standardized assessments, and students who do not attain a satisfactory score are typically assigned to developmental (e.g. remedial) education courses. The theory behind this approach has been that remedial education will help these students succeed in credit-bearing courses at a later date. However, these courses may not always be effective in helping students achieve success. For example, college completion rates are particularly low among students who are required to take developmental coursework. Accordingly, policymakers and practitioners have begun questioning the effectiveness of current developmental education systems, the process for assessing students and placing them in developmental courses based on the assessments, and the design and makeup of the courses themselves. This brief, written by Kathy Reeves Bracco and WestEd's Kim Austin, Daniel Bugler, and Neal Finkelstein, examines two states' recent efforts to redesign their developmental education programs to support student success. A bibliography is provided. [Core to College: Preparing Students for College Readiness and Success is a three-year initiative funded by the Lumina Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.]
Descriptors: Developmental Studies Programs, Remedial Programs, College Readiness, Student Placement, State Standards, Academic Standards, Educational Change, Community Colleges, Curriculum Development, Two Year College Students
WestEd. 730 Harrison Street, San Francisco, CA 94107-1242. Tel: 877-493-7833; Tel: 415-565-3000; Fax: 415-565-3012; Web site: http://www.wested.org
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Two Year Colleges; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: Administrators; Policymakers; Researchers; Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: WestEd
Identifiers - Location: Colorado; Maryland; North Carolina
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A