Offers examples of research efforts undertaken at Miami-Dade Community College to analyze the college preparatory program, considering early research using placement test scores, research using college-preparatory course enrollment data, and most recent research using a longitudinal database. Argues that the research process must proceed with…

Assessment programs, which have recently been implemented in colleges around the country, have indirectly affected the quality of education in ways that are both researchable and measurable. Admissions and placement testing affect educational quality by separating high and low achievers, and making it possible for high-level texts to be used and…

Argues that rigorous assessment in the classroom is the only way to reduce outside interference in the assessment process. Sees instructors as poorly prepared to assume assessment roles, recommending an increased reliance on common examinations written by subject discipline experts. (DMM)

In recent years, the Florida State Legislature has mandated that all students who enter colleges and universities must write one of four test batteries for the purpose of placement and that all students are required to pass an exit exam, the College Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST), at the end of the sophomore year. This paper examines the…

This paper briefly examines the key contexts of developmental education as it has evolved in the United States, focusing on historical perspectives; demographics of student diversity; evolving definitions; and the philosophical, political, and financial contexts of developmental education. The first section traces the evolution of developmental…