Completion and Success of Community College Developmental Students Enrolled in Online Mathematics Coursework

Completion and Success of Community College Developmental Students Enrolled in Online Mathematics Coursework PDF Author: Mary Monica Ryder
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
As online education gains popularity among both learners and postsecondary institutions, there is a movement toward identifying ways to promote student success. Over half of all higher education institutions offer online classes, due in part to the ease of offering and scheduling (Hoffman, 2006); educators seek ways to identify any demographic or academic characteristics that lead to success (Jaggars & Bailey, 2010). With the growth and popularity of online learning, postsecondary institutions must continue to develop best practices in the areas of online teaching pedagogies to promote student success. Within community colleges there is a growing acceptance of online courses and given that over 60% of incoming students test into developmental math coursework (Chen, 2016), answers must be sought to assist these developmental math learners toward online success. This study investigated the role of various student characteristics concerning student success in online developmental math course completion. The sample was students enrolled in a specific identified gateway mathematic course offered fully online in at a large suburban, public community college located in the northeastern part of the United States. Utilizing a mixed methods explanatory sequential design, explored course completion rates of developmental students enrolled in online college-level mathematics courses, the study analyzed the role of demographic and academic characteristics for developmental students enrolled in a college-level mathematics course offered fully online from the fall 2017 through fall 2019 academic year. A second phase of semi-structured interviews was conducted to explore aspects of student success from individuals identified in the first phase. As the success of developmental college students is at the forefront of postsecondary institutions in their mission for student success online, the ability to identify characteristics that could lead to student success may assist in recommendations for online instructors and assessment of developmental math student college-level mathematics course completion.

Completion and Success of Community College Developmental Students Enrolled in Online Mathematics Coursework

Completion and Success of Community College Developmental Students Enrolled in Online Mathematics Coursework PDF Author: Mary Monica Ryder
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
As online education gains popularity among both learners and postsecondary institutions, there is a movement toward identifying ways to promote student success. Over half of all higher education institutions offer online classes, due in part to the ease of offering and scheduling (Hoffman, 2006); educators seek ways to identify any demographic or academic characteristics that lead to success (Jaggars & Bailey, 2010). With the growth and popularity of online learning, postsecondary institutions must continue to develop best practices in the areas of online teaching pedagogies to promote student success. Within community colleges there is a growing acceptance of online courses and given that over 60% of incoming students test into developmental math coursework (Chen, 2016), answers must be sought to assist these developmental math learners toward online success. This study investigated the role of various student characteristics concerning student success in online developmental math course completion. The sample was students enrolled in a specific identified gateway mathematic course offered fully online in at a large suburban, public community college located in the northeastern part of the United States. Utilizing a mixed methods explanatory sequential design, explored course completion rates of developmental students enrolled in online college-level mathematics courses, the study analyzed the role of demographic and academic characteristics for developmental students enrolled in a college-level mathematics course offered fully online from the fall 2017 through fall 2019 academic year. A second phase of semi-structured interviews was conducted to explore aspects of student success from individuals identified in the first phase. As the success of developmental college students is at the forefront of postsecondary institutions in their mission for student success online, the ability to identify characteristics that could lead to student success may assist in recommendations for online instructors and assessment of developmental math student college-level mathematics course completion.

Increasing Student Success in Developmental Mathematics

Increasing Student Success in Developmental Mathematics PDF Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309496624
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 123

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Book Description
The Board on Science Education and the Board on Mathematical Sciences and Analytics of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened the Workshop on Increasing Student Success in Developmental Mathematics on March 18-19, 2019. The Workshop explored how to best support all students in postsecondary mathematics, with particular attention to students who are unsuccessful in developmental mathematics and with an eye toward issues of access to promising reforms and equitable learning environments. The two-day workshop was designed to bring together a variety of stakeholders, including experts who have developed and/or implemented new initiatives to improve the mathematics education experience for students. The overarching goal of the workshop was to take stock of the mathematics education community's progress in this domain. Participants examined the data on students who are well-served by new reform structures in developmental mathematics and discussed various cohorts of students who are not currently well served - those who even with access to reforms do not succeed and those who do not have access to a reform due to differential access constraints. Throughout the workshop, participants also explored promising approaches to bolstering student outcomes in mathematics, focusing especially on research and data that demonstrate the success of these approaches; deliberated and discussed barriers and opportunities for effectively serving all students; and outlined some key directions of inquiry intended to address the prevailing research and data needs in the field. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussion of the workshop.

Programmatic Practices that Promote Student Success in Community College Math Developmental Education

Programmatic Practices that Promote Student Success in Community College Math Developmental Education PDF Author: Elizabeth J. Meza
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 167

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Book Description
Almost half of all college students in the U.S. attend community colleges; almost sixty percent of these students are referred to remedial English, reading or math through means of a standardized placement exam, with math being a the greatest area of need. While these courses, often as many as four in a sequence, are meant to be a boost for students unprepared for college-level coursework, they have low success rates and few students make it through the entire sequence to succeed in a first college-level math course, leaving them far short of graduation or a meaningful credential. While developmental (aka remedial) education, those courses or sequences of courses below the college-level, has received a lot of attention recently due to its high costs and low student success rates, current research has largely failed to document, examine, or classify programmatic approaches to developmental education. This lack of information that would facilitate analysis is due in part to the relatively recent recognition of the problem, but it is also because of the difficulty accessing reliable information about large numbers of programs and the range of definitions, student populations, and perceived quickly shifting innovations (some may go as far as to say educational fads) that developmental education programs encompass. Unfortunately, this lack of a comprehensive picture of developmental education programs has led to either the complete elimination of the programs as unnecessary and perhaps counterproductive for students, or to a focus on a number of disparate approaches with little underlying theory behind them or even agreement as to the problem. This research is centered in 28 Washington state community college campuses and examines a mixed methods approach to answer three main questions: 1) To what extent and in what ways do math developmental program elements vary across institutions? Developmental education may vary widely even within one relatively homogenous state system of community colleges, such as the system in Washington. Programs have differing resources devoted to them, as well as differing pedagogy, intervention strategies and approaches, student referral and advancement policies, etc., and this variation has not even been fully described in previous research. 2) To what extent do student outcomes, as measured by completion of the developmental sequence, completion of a first college-level math course, and highest education reached, vary across the different math developmental education programs, after controlling for student characteristics, among the 28 community colleges in Washington State? What proportion of overall variance is contributed by student characteristics vs. programmatic factors? Wide institutional variation has been found in previous outcomes studies of professional-technical programs leading to terminal associate degrees in Washington, suggesting that institutional or programmatic variables may be contributing significantly to student success or lack of it (Scott-Clayton & Weiss, 2011). 3) What program policies and practices seem to be associated with positive outcomes for developmental education students? Can developmental education programs be categorized in some meaningful way? Is there a "typology" or categorization of programs that identifies characteristics that seem to be associated with either positive or negative results? For example, do schools with better (or worse) results, net of student characteristics, share identifiable programmatic characteristics in terms of policy and practice variables that are positively or negatively associated with student outcomes? I find from this research that strategies such as reducing the total number of courses in developmental education pathways, implementing alternatives to placement in developmental math via standardized tests, and better preparing students for assessment, are associated with greater student success in completing the developmental math sequence and in completing a first college level course. I also find that colleges with these more innovative features are significantly more successful than their more traditional institutional peers in terms of student outcomes. However, I also find no variation between colleges in the outcome of highest education reached, after controlling for student background characteristics. It seems that, at least for this sample, college did not have a significant association with ultimate educational attainment. Diving deeper to examine colleges' policies, practices, and the perspectives of students, faculty, and administrators, I find wide variation in pathways, program structure, assessment policies, connection to advising, tutoring, and institutional research departments, and day-to-day concerns and operations. One commonality is the conviction that teaching that addresses student motivation and confidence in their ability to learn math and peaks their interest, factors not usually examined systematically in higher education policy research, is central to developmental education student success. This research informs strategies for increased college completion for underprepared students. College completion has emerged as of paramount importance in fostering U.S. economic development and global competitiveness, yet if half of college students are unprepared for college work and thus are unlikely to persist to degree completion despite their motivation to attend college, serious attention should be paid to what can be done to increase their odds of success.

Developmental Mathematics in Two-year Community Colleges and Student Success

Developmental Mathematics in Two-year Community Colleges and Student Success PDF Author: Brenda Catherine Frame
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic dissertations
Languages : en
Pages : 127

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Book Description
Poor success rates of developmental mathematics courses at community colleges have currently received nationwide attention. Efforts to remedy the situation include complete course redesigns and intervention strategies. A recent intervention strategy in use is the implementation of success courses that are aimed at changing the learning perspectives of developmental students. The purpose of this mixed-method comparative study was to closely examine this strategy as it relates specifically to students studying developmental mathematics at the lowest level at one community college. Students taking the lowest level developmental mathematics course at the participating community college were designated into one of two groups: those taking mathematics with the success course and those taking mathematics without a success course. The study explored students' perceptions and belief structures regarding the study of developmental mathematics and focused on identifying any changes in student belief structures over the course of one semester. Descriptive statistics regarding grade achievement of the population with the student success course provide insight into the possible benefits of the success course for developmental mathematics students. Participants in the study, starting out in the lowest mathematics course offered at the community college, need more mathematics in order to obtain a degree or certificate from the college. Rate of registration for the subsequent mathematics courses were also analyzed in the study. Findings showed that the offering of a success course to students who are at-risk in developmental mathematics has made some improvements in the percentage of students who were able to satisfactorily complete the first level developmental mathematics course at one community college. It also showed that for students who did not pass the success course, there was a nearly one-to-one relationship with unsuccessful completion of a low-level mathematics course. Qualitative data helps explain how the two groups were quite different and also helps to explain findings.

The Impact of Learning Environment on Student Success in Developmental Math

The Impact of Learning Environment on Student Success in Developmental Math PDF Author: Jean M. Ashby
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 145

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Book Description
Increasing enrollments in community colleges has led to an increase in distance education courses. The developmental coursework necessary for many community college students is being offered both in online and hybrid environments. These students face challenges with the content and now find themselves needing to learn in a virtual classroom. Current research (Chernish, DeFranco, Lindner, & Dooley, 2005; Frederickson, Reed, & Clifford, 2005; Herman & Banister, 2007; Kromrey & Purdom, 1995; Scheetz & Guntner, 2004) shows that there is no difference in student success based on the learning environment, but this was completed primarily with upper-class and graduate students. This study investigated student success in a developmental math course taught in the face-to-face, hybrid, and online environments at a mid-Atlantic community college. Cognitive Load Theory was used during the design of the course and its principles were maintained in all of the learning environments. The sample was 167 students with an average age of 25 years, 58% were female, 49% were Caucasian and 43% were African-American. The focus was on student success, but the impact attrition had on the results of the study is discussed. The study also investigated student characteristics and their relationship to success. Age, gender, race, student status, placement scores, financial aid, learning style, locus of control, and technology skills are all compared between successful and unsuccessful students to determine if specific traits were more beneficial within a particular environment.

Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Math

Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Math PDF Author: Evan Weissman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 20

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Book Description
For students in developmental math, a primary short-term goal of learning communities is to accelerate students' progression through the math sequence and into college-level coursework. A longer-term goal is that enrolling in developmental math learning communities will increase students' ultimate likelihood of earning a credential or transferring to a four-year institution. Queensborough Community College and Houston Community College are two large, urban institutions that have implemented developmental math learning communities with these goals in mind. At each school, cohorts of 20 to 25 students co-enrolled in developmental math and a linked course; at Queensborough, all levels of developmental math were linked primarily with college-level courses, and at Houston, the learning communities linked the lowest level of developmental math with the college's student success course, which is designed to prepare students for the demands of college. These colleges are two of the six participating in the National Center for Postsecondary Research's (NCPR) Learning Communities Demonstration. The demonstration at these colleges was designed to determine whether the programs succeeded in boosting their students' success. A total of 1,034 students at Queensborough and 1,273 students at Houston entered the study between 2007 and 2009. Based on a longer report of the same title, this Brief presents impact findings for Queensborough and Houston's developmental math learning communities. [This brief was written with Rashida Welbeck. For related reports, see "Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Math: Impact Studies at Queensborough and Houston Community Colleges" (ED516646); and "Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Math: Impact Studies at Queensborough and Houston Community Colleges. Executive Summary" (ED516652).].

DOES MANDATORY SUPPLEMENTAL INSTRUCTION WORK IN DEVELOPMENTAL MATH EDUCATION? A STUDY OF STUDENTS ENROLLED IN DEVELOPMENTAL MATH COURSES AT A SUBURBAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE IN THE NORTHEAST

DOES MANDATORY SUPPLEMENTAL INSTRUCTION WORK IN DEVELOPMENTAL MATH EDUCATION? A STUDY OF STUDENTS ENROLLED IN DEVELOPMENTAL MATH COURSES AT A SUBURBAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE IN THE NORTHEAST PDF Author: Kristina Corey Legge
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 98

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Book Description
The number of students entering the community college in need of developmental math has not changed, remaining at a steady 60% over the past seven years. This study compared the success rate of Mandatory Supplemental Instruction (MSI) sessions within four sections of a developmental math course compared with the success rates of students enrolled in both the Traditional Classroom setting and the Individualized format at Suburban Community College (SCC) during the Fall 2009 semester. These MSI format courses were compared with both the Individualized format of MAT 060 and the Traditional Classroom format of the same course. The students included in these sections were a combination of students who were: 1) suggested by advisors to enroll in this developmental math course after receiving a low score on the college's Accuplacer placement test for algebra or continuing the progression of developmental math from the lower level arithmetic class; 2) mandated to attend MSI after successful completion of the Jump Start Math Program, or 3) self-selected into the MSI group anticipating the need for additional help in the course. The two primary data sets available for this study are student math final grades and student participation/attendance records. Secondary sets of data include informal focus group notes, final exam scores, student attendance records for both class lectures and MSI sessions, and Supplemental Instruction Leader anecdotal records. The findings of this study conclude that success rates of students enrolled in the MSI sections of developmental math do not differ significantly from those enrolled in the Traditional Classroom format of developmental math; however, both groups did differ significantly from the Individualized format of developmental math, in that the students enrolled in the Individualized format succeeded at a lesser rate and withdrew at a greater rate than their MSI or Traditional Classroom counterparts. This study also concluded that female, full-time students succeeded at a greater rate across the board, which is consistent with the literature. These findings were significant for a number of reasons. Although the difference between the treatment group and the Traditional Classroom group was not significant, there are a variety of reasons at the program level as to why this may have been so and there are many future constructs that SCC can put in place to strengthen and reassess the MSI program. Although this study was focused on the MSI treatment, the data revealed a greater issue existing in the Individualized format of developmental math at SCC. Future considerations can be made in this particular delivery method to improve success rates of students involved in this program. Future research on MSI in the form of persistence and retention rates, graduation rates, transfer rates, subsequent math course grades and success in other college-level classes can be explored to provide the MSI program with more data to determine if particular groups of students are benefiting from this format.

Directed Self-placement

Directed Self-placement PDF Author: Daniel Royer
Publisher: Hampton Press (NJ)
ISBN:
Category : Advanced placement programs (Education)
Languages : en
Pages : 280

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Book Description
This guide offers updated shopping tips to people visiting China. It explains what to buy (from porcelain, jade and pearls to silk, antiques, carpets and custom-tailored clothing), how to deal with local merchants and get the best prices, and where to find the best stores, markets and shopping districts - all in a handy pocket-sized format. It also provides tips on finding airfare, hotel and dining bargains.

Developmental Mathematics Instruction in a Community College

Developmental Mathematics Instruction in a Community College PDF Author: Billy Wayne Adams
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Community colleges
Languages : en
Pages : 162

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Book Description
The purpose of the study was to compare face-to-face and online developmental mathematics instruction. The study centered on a comparison of online and face-to-face instructional delivery methods, in a mid-level developmental mathematics course. The online format was delivered through Blackboard Developmental Education, the course lecture component was delivered through both synchronous and asynchronous methods. The lab portion for the online course was delivered through MyMathLab software developed by Pearson Education. The face to face lecture component was delivered in a traditional lecture classroom setting and the face-to-face lab component was delivered through the MyMathLab software. The need to accelerate the developmental education sequence and also allow online student to have the ability to enroll in a developmental mathematics course without a face-to-face component was a focus of this study. Many students enrolled in face to face developmental coursework but were enrolled in an online and/or hybrid format for all the additional courses in which they took. Some students were enrolled in only one course, while others took a full course load. The THECB required that if a student was enrolled in credit coursework but were deficient in one or more areas of the TSI, they were required to be concurrently enrolled in a developmental course. With the growing number of students who choose to enroll in online courses, this places an enormous burden upon developmental education programs, to provide a viable alternative to the traditional developmental coursework delivered solely in a face-to-face classroom setting. The study found no significant difference in the comparison of success rates between the face-to-face and the online course delivery formats. The study implies that students must be provided the necessary tools which will allow them to succeed and persist through developmental mathematics and allow them to carry that success into credit bearing mathematics courses.

The Prime Number Conspiracy

The Prime Number Conspiracy PDF Author: Thomas Lin
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262536358
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 331

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Book Description
The Pulitzer Prize–winning magazine’s stories of mathematical explorations show that inspiration strikes haphazardly, revealing surprising solutions and exciting discoveries—with a foreword by James Gleick These stories from Quanta Magazine map the routes of mathematical exploration, showing readers how cutting-edge research is done, while illuminating the productive tension between conjecture and proof, theory and intuition. The stories show that, as James Gleick puts it in the foreword, “inspiration strikes willy-nilly.” One researcher thinks of quantum chaotic systems at a bus stop; another suddenly realizes a path to proving a theorem of number theory while in a friend's backyard; a statistician has a “bathroom sink epiphany” and discovers the key to solving the Gaussian correlation inequality. Readers of The Prime Number Conspiracy, says Quanta editor-in-chief Thomas Lin, are headed on “breathtaking intellectual journeys to the bleeding edge of discovery strapped to the narrative rocket of humanity's never-ending pursuit of knowledge.” Winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting, Quanta is the only popular publication that offers in-depth coverage of the latest breakthroughs in understanding our mathematical universe. It communicates mathematics by taking it seriously, wrestling with difficult concepts and clearly explaining them in a way that speaks to our innate curiosity about our world and ourselves. Readers of this volume will learn that prime numbers have decided preferences about the final digits of the primes that immediately follow them (the “conspiracy” of the title); consider whether math is the universal language of nature (allowing for “a unified theory of randomness”); discover surprising solutions (including a pentagon tiling proof that solves a century-old math problem); ponder the limits of computation; measure infinity; and explore the eternal question “Is mathematics good for you?” Contributors Ariel Bleicher, Robbert Dijkgraaf, Kevin Hartnett, Erica Klarreich, Thomas Lin, John Pavlus, Siobhan Roberts, Natalie Wolchover Copublished with Quanta Magazine