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Effectiveness Of Contextual Approaches To Developmental Math In California Community Colleges
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Book Synopsis Effectiveness of Contextual Approaches to Developmental Math in California Community Colleges by : Walter Charles Wiseley
Download or read book Effectiveness of Contextual Approaches to Developmental Math in California Community Colleges written by Walter Charles Wiseley and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Book Synopsis Advancing the STEM Agenda by : Cindy P. Veenstra
Download or read book Advancing the STEM Agenda written by Cindy P. Veenstra and published by Quality Press. This book was released on 2012-05-15 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In July 2011, the ASQ Education Division held its first Advancing the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Agenda in Education, the Workplace, and Society Conference at the University of Wisconsin–Stout. This publication is a selection of papers and workshops from this groundbreaking conference. The ideas presented here will help other educators and policy makers to develop their own innovative high-impact ideas for inspiring student interest in STEM careers, improving the delivery of STEM education at their schools and colleges, and helping STEM college graduates transition to the workplace. The chapters in this book reflect research and best practices, integrating the ideas of continuous improvement in combination with a can-do attitude, to provide a valuable resource that will lead others to consider similar innovative and collaborative educational structures that will drive more interest in STEM majors in college, and provide for our next generation of scientists, technicians, and engineers. ”Prior to reviewing Advancing the STEM Agenda I had a list in my mind of topics that I hoped would be addressed. I’m very pleased with how many are covered—and covered well. This project succeeds at the challenge of providing not only beneficial breadth but also important depth. Because our public-private partnership has been committed explicitly to continuous improvement for more than a decade, I couldn’t help but notice (as the editors also point out in their conclusion) the extent to which continuous improvement is a ‘common thread’ throughout the book. That speaks to the book’s practical utility in many settings, and on a long-term basis. No less valuable is the discussion of student motivation by many of the authors, which STEM teachers in our area have identified as a major issue of interest to them in recent surveys." Richard Bogovich Executive Director Rochester Area Math Science Partnership, Minnesota. "Veenstra, Padró, and Furst-Bowe provide a huge contribution to the field of STEM education. We all know the statistics and of the huge need in the area of STEM students and education, but what has been missing are application and success stories backed by research and modeling. The editors have successfully contributed to our need by focusing on collaborative models, building the K-12 pipeline, showing what works at the collegiate level, connecting across gender issues, and illustrating workforce and innovative ideas." John J. Jasinski President Northwest Missouri State University "Advancing the STEM Agenda provides a broad set of current perspectives that will contribute in many ways to advancing the understanding and enhancement of education in science, education, and engineering. This work is packed with insights and perspectives from experienced educators and bridges the transition from education to workplace." John Dew Senior Vice Chancellor Troy University
Book Synopsis Actions Faculty Experts Recommend for California Community Colleges to Ensure Maximum Effectiveness of Instructional Strategies and Related Academic Support Programs in Developmental Mathematics by the Year 2020 by : Elizabeth Estrella
Download or read book Actions Faculty Experts Recommend for California Community Colleges to Ensure Maximum Effectiveness of Instructional Strategies and Related Academic Support Programs in Developmental Mathematics by the Year 2020 written by Elizabeth Estrella and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Book Synopsis A Mixed Methods Approach to the Effectiveness of Corequisite Developmental Mathematics Classes by : John Hamman
Download or read book A Mixed Methods Approach to the Effectiveness of Corequisite Developmental Mathematics Classes written by John Hamman and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this mixed method study is to determine the effectiveness of the corequisite model on collegiate mathematics developmental education. Corequisite models are designed to allow students who place into pre-college level courses to complete the prerequisite material and college-level coursework simultaneously in their first semester. Traditionally, especially at open-access institutions like many of our nation's community colleges, students placed into developmental courses, are often charged full tuition to repeat coursework already completed in high school, wasting both time and money for the student. In this accelerated model, students who need remediation receive "just-in-time" delivery of remedial content, often from the same instructor as the college-level class they are enrolled in. This saves the student from having to face a long sequence of developmental courses and the challenges of re-enrolling in multiple semesters. The primary research question to compare how corequisite students' feelings about the subject matter differ from their peers who took a traditional developmental math sequence and if this approach helps close the achievement gaps between racial groups in mathematics. Developmental classes, which were originally designed to help underprepared students succeed in college, have become a substantial academic and financial barrier for students, especially those from historically underrepresented categories and corequisite course can hopefully fulfill that original purpose with more equitable and favorable results.
Book Synopsis Innovations in Developmental Math by : Cecilia Le
Download or read book Innovations in Developmental Math written by Cecilia Le and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 20 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nearly 60 percent of incoming community college students are unprepared for college-level work and must take at least one pre-college, "developmental" course, usually in math or English, before enrolling in any credit-bearing classes toward a degree. Within developmental education, students are most likely to need help with mathematics, and students who enter community college needing to take developmental math fare the worst in terms of outcomes making this an issue that deeply affects students. Lack of readiness for college math is as damaging as it is widespread. Students are more likely to fail developmental mathematics than any other course in higher education, according to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Thus, it is not surprising that many students referred to developmental math choose to bypass such courses and services, without knowing the detrimental consequences of this decision on their overall educational goals. This brief looks at three community colleges that have made significant investments in programs to improve student success in developmental math. These colleges are spotlighted for their implementation of the varied approaches to developmental math described above and for their ability to demonstrate outcomes for their students. The community colleges featured in this brief are: (1) Florence-Darlington Technical College in South Carolina; (2) Delaware County Community College in Pennsylvania; and (3) Chaffey College in California. (Contains 4 tables and 11 endnotes.).
Book Synopsis Improving Adult Literacy Instruction by : National Research Council
Download or read book Improving Adult Literacy Instruction written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2012-04-26 with total page 504 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A high level of literacy in both print and digital media is required for negotiating most aspects of 21st-century life, including supporting a family, education, health, civic participation, and competitiveness in the global economy. Yet, more than 90 million U.S. adults lack adequate literacy. Furthermore, only 38 percent of U.S. 12th graders are at or above proficient in reading. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction synthesizes the research on literacy and learning to improve literacy instruction in the United States and to recommend a more systemic approach to research, practice, and policy. The book focuses on individuals ages 16 and older who are not in K-12 education. It identifies factors that affect literacy development in adolescence and adulthood in general, and examines their implications for strengthening literacy instruction for this population. It also discusses technologies for learning that can assist with multiple aspects of teaching, assessment,and accommodations for learning. There is inadequate knowledge about effective instructional practices and a need for better assessment and ongoing monitoring of adult students' proficiencies, weaknesses, instructional environments, and progress, which might guide instructional planning. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction recommends a program of research and innovation to validate, identify the boundaries of, and extend current knowledge to improve instruction for adults and adolescents outside school. The book is a valuable resource for curriculum developers, federal agencies such as the Department of Education, administrators, educators, and funding agencies.
Book Synopsis Analyzing Change in Community College Pre-statistics Developmental Mathematics Curriculum by : Brian Kenneth Sanders
Download or read book Analyzing Change in Community College Pre-statistics Developmental Mathematics Curriculum written by Brian Kenneth Sanders and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Community colleges serve as an open door and a critical access point to higher education for millions of students across our nation. In California alone, over two million students are enrolled across over one hundred community colleges (Sengupta & Jepsen, 2006), open access institutions with no entry requirements. A large majority of students beginning their educational path at a community college are placed into a remedial mathematics sequence that few will ever finish (Bailey, Jeong, & Cho, 2010a). These remedial pathways were designed to replicate the usual sequence of high school algebra courses (Brint & Karabel, 1989; Tucker, 2013), yet research demonstrates that these courses require algebraic skills beyond what is needed for success in most non-calculus-track transferable courses (NCEE, 2013). The result is that millions of community college students are being filtered out of their educational programs because of their inability to master algebra skills that they will not need in either future coursework or in their chosen careers. Researchers with the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement for Teaching developed a new approach called Statway designed to address this concern. The two-term program begins with students who assess into elementary algebra, focusing on statistical concepts while utilizing a just-in-time approach in which algebraic skills are introduced as needed, providing context and relevance for students. By the conclusion of the second term of the program, students have learned the content of typical freshman statistics as well as developed sufficient algebra skills to succeed in that material. Introduced via training hosted by Carnegie and reinforced by an ongoing community of practice, alternative pedagogy is employed to maximize student engagement and success. The purpose of this project was to study three community colleges that have adopted the Statway program and seek to understand the underlying conditions and processes by which they were able to do so. Further, the project examined the alignment between the colleges' processes and models of change theory discussed in the literature. Lastly, I examined how data was utilized in the adoption process and thereafter. The study utilized a qualitative case study approach based on transcripts from nineteen interviews and documents gathered at each of the three institutions visited. Transcripts and documents were coded by themes and analyzed using software. Conclusions were based on the most prominent and consistent themes identified across institutions. Findings included (a) the departments that adopted the program were supportive of experimentation, (b) at each institution a faculty champion was instrumental in carrying the program forward to implementation, (c) the departments did not deliberately follow models of change theory from the literature, but their processes aligned well with the models, (d) because I studied pilot programs, only national data was utilized initially, and (e) there was a relationship between the difficulty of the adoption process and the department's decision-making approach along the individualist-collectivist spectrum. Results of this study provide insight into ways mathematics departments approached and carried out significant curriculum change, insight into departmental characteristics most conducive to change, and recommendations gleaned from interviews as to how to maximize transferability and viability of alternative mathematics programs such as Statway.
Book Synopsis Effectiveness of Online and Classroom-based Instructional Methods in Developmental Mathematics Courses at a Small Public Community College by : Andrew Lenzen
Download or read book Effectiveness of Online and Classroom-based Instructional Methods in Developmental Mathematics Courses at a Small Public Community College written by Andrew Lenzen and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Book Synopsis Program Evaluation of Developmental Math Instruction at the Community College Level by : John Martin McHugh
Download or read book Program Evaluation of Developmental Math Instruction at the Community College Level written by John Martin McHugh and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This program evaluation case study examined the academic effectiveness of a developmental math program in a North Carolina community college (p. 5). Developmental or remedial college mathematics as used here includes courses for college students who were not ready for college-level math (p. 1). The CIPP evaluation model (context, input, process, product (p. 44): cf. Fitzpatrick, Sanders, and Worthen 2004, Program Evaluation: Alternative Approaches and Guidelines, 3rd ed.) was used as the framework for this program evaluation. (1) The research questions used to guide the research were (i) what are the conditions which make a developmental mathematics program at the college level necessary? (ii) what other attempts have been made to solve the problem? (iii) how does the implementation of the developmental program at this college align with recommendations for appropriate instruction of developmental math students? (iv) how is the developmental math program at the college being implemented? and (v) how effective is the developmental math program at the college? (2) Data collection consisted of qualitative and quantitative methods including interviews, surveys, a pretest and posttest of math achievement, and documentation review. The information from the surveys and documentation review was coded and then entered into an Excel spreadsheet and analyzed for frequency of occurrence by code. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, then coded. These data, along with the data from pretests and posttests, were then entered into SPSS software for analysis, and t-tests and analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were conducted. (3) The research questions were answered as follows: (i) Without the help of developmental courses, many admitted students would not succeed at the college level (p. 110). (ii) The history of the developmental and remedial program at the college under study is sketched (p. 111). (iii) The researcher recommended that professional development be added for those working with underprepared students (p. 113). (iv) The majority of the current developmental math students (69%) and former developmental students (59%) who completed the surveys indicated they felt they had been placed correctly based on their placement scores (p. 114). Recommendations are made for revising the developmental math placement test rules. (v) According to the data collected and analyzed, the program is improving the arithmetic test scores of students (p. 117), and appears to be doing what it was designed to do.
Book Synopsis Accelerating Developmental Math Students in California Community Colleges by : Arturo F. Martinez
Download or read book Accelerating Developmental Math Students in California Community Colleges written by Arturo F. Martinez and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These findings inform the college administrators on the potential of sequential accelerated programs. The implications of these results contribute to redesigning academic programs and support current developmental policy reforms. Community colleges are encouraged to consider the recommendations in this study, such as integrating course redesign in California Assembly Bill 705 and California Community College Guided Pathways, to help non-traditional students who are most often placed into the lowest levels of remediation.
Book Synopsis Programmatic Practices that Promote Student Success in Community College Math Developmental Education by : Elizabeth J. Meza
Download or read book Programmatic Practices that Promote Student Success in Community College Math Developmental Education written by Elizabeth J. Meza and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.
Book Synopsis Determining Developmental Education Effectiveness in Math by : Joseph E. May
Download or read book Determining Developmental Education Effectiveness in Math written by Joseph E. May and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 119 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the most problematic issues facing community colleges is developmental education. In the last decade, more research has been conducted examining developmental education. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of developmental math in a rural community college setting. Is developmental math an effective intervention? This study consisted of first time college students who took the COMPASS placement exam and scored 18-48. Students who scored 18-33 were placed in Math 098 (N=241) and received the developmental intervention. Math 098 is a semester-long course designed to prepare students for college-level math coursework, and it served as the intervention. Students who scored 34-48 were placed in Math 100 (N=469) and did not receive the developmental intervention. Because this represents a bandwidth close to a cut-score, these 2 groups are viewed as equivalent (Trochim, 2008). The initial intent of the study was to implement a regression-discontinuity design, but this failed to meet two necessary conditions. The researcher then executed an ANOVA, a series of chi-square goodnes-of-fit procedures, and 2 binary logistic regressions in order to determine if any significant differences and/or relationship existed between treatment and control groups. Data were collected for this retrospective, quantitative research study from the Office of Institutional Effectiveness at the selected site. The selected site represents a medium-sized, rural community college located in the South. The findings in this study illustrate that those students who received the develomental intervention reported a statistically significant higher cummulative college GPAs than those who did not. The findings also illustrated that a statistically significant difference existed in regards to grades. Therefore, there was a statistically significant difference in grade distribution between both groups. When withdrawals and grades were evaluated together, no statistically significant distribution was observed. Two binary logisitic regressions were also conducted. No relationships were statistically significant between groups regarding Math 100 pass/fail rates or Math 100 completion rates. The researcher concluded that the findings suggest that Math 098 is an effective treatment for student achievement. The researcher recommended execution of more studies that replicate this model and examine rural populations.
Book Synopsis Redesigning Developmental Math to Improve Community College Retention Rates and Student Success by : Brittany Ann Schiano
Download or read book Redesigning Developmental Math to Improve Community College Retention Rates and Student Success written by Brittany Ann Schiano and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When looking at today's Community College graduation rates, dropout rates and time to completion of degrees, it is abundantly clear that a problem exists. This study examined the characteristics of community colleges in New Jersey and student experiences that contribute to the dismal statistics. Mathematics curriculum in P-12 falls short on preparing students for the gatekeeper community college courses, creating barriers that make it difficult for students to meet their degree requirements to graduate. The study explored the potential benefits of completely eliminating the developmental mathematics requirement and offering students the opportunity to earn credits in their first semester. The researcher used a qualitative approach consisting of interviews with 11 community college developmental mathematics professors. After reflecting upon questions regarding the need to or not need to remediate certain topics and how to incorporate that refresher in the constructs of a credit earning algebra course, as well as the overall effectiveness of current developmental programs across the state, they agreed that a redesign incorporating a Just-in-Time scaffolding approach would benefit both the students and schools as a whole. In addition, creating a statewide network with a uniform mathematics program would allow schools to work together and be more efficient in attempting to mitigate the issue. Finally, courses made to reflect the student's major would increase buy-in, focus, and the perception of equity for the student later in their educational career and beyond. Once this occurs, students of community colleges will meet with a higher success rate, finish their Associate's Degree in the prescribed two years, and transition seamlessly into a four-year institution or career upon graduating from community college. (ProQuest abstract).
Book Synopsis Developmental Math Programs in California Community College by : Torence J. Powell
Download or read book Developmental Math Programs in California Community College written by Torence J. Powell and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The California Community College system, as an open access institution, is tasked with helping students who possess math skills far below college-level complete math course requirements for obtaining an associate degree or transfer to a university. Colleges have created various developmental math programs to achieve this mission; this paper examines student participation in one such program, Math Boot Camp at Cosumnes River College, to garner a better understanding of the relationship between student participation in a voluntary skills building remediation program and their performance in math courses. Utilizing matriculation data from a sample of 2,534 students, I employ a two-sample comparison of group means to identify factors that are predictive of student enrollment in Math Boot Camp. I also conduct a series of bivariate and multivariable linear regressions to determine the nature of the relationship between participation in Math Boot Camp and continued enrollment in developmental math sequences over a one-year and two-year period. I find that African American students, older students and students assessed at the lowest levels of developmental math were more likely to enroll in Math Boot Camp. I also find that Math Boot Camp participation was not significantly correlated with student enrollment and successful completion of a developmental math course within two academic semesters, but that participation was strongly correlated with sustained student persistence in their developmental math sequence within four academic semesters.
Book Synopsis Organizing Higher Education for Collaboration by : Kezar
Download or read book Organizing Higher Education for Collaboration written by Kezar and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-02-03 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides needed guidance and advice for how colleges and universities can reorganize to foster more collaborative work. In a time of declining resources, financial challenges, changing demographics, and staff overturn, institutions are looking for ways to maximize their resources and still be effective. This book is based on a study of campuses that have been successful in recreating their environments to support collaborative work.
Book Synopsis Tailoring Math Curricula for Community Colleges by : Ira Lindsay McFarland Kinard
Download or read book Tailoring Math Curricula for Community Colleges written by Ira Lindsay McFarland Kinard and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 73 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Community college instructors continue to search for effective instructional methods that promote student success in developmental mathematics courses such as intermediate algebra. According to research, mathematics is a major obstacle for students succeeding, persisting, and completing community college programs. Each student enrolled in intermediate algebra has an ACT sub-score of 16 to 18 or an ACCUPLACER sub-score of 57 to 75. Most community colleges in Mississippi use placement testing to determine the strengths and needs of students. However, students approach math with high anxiety, more than any other areas, which interferes with their learning. Research indicates that to improve students’ success and retention in developmental mathematics, instructors must successfully promote active learning, which utilizes a variety of teaching techniques to incorporate various learning styles, methods, and initiatives. The purpose of this study is to determine which instructional method (traditional lecture, traditional lecture with lab, or online instruction) best tailors or supports student performance in intermediate algebra. Final letter grades for the semesters from fall 2014 to spring 2016 and beginning and ending enrollments for each intermediate algebra class at 2 community colleges in the state of Mississippi were analyzed, yielding for a quantitative research study. According to the study, 80% of the students completed intermediate algebra with a grade C or higher in the traditional lecture with lab courses, while 64% of the students completed intermediate algebra with a C or higher in the traditional lecture courses, and 50% of the students completed intermediate algebra with a C or higher in the online courses. However, more students were retained in the traditional lecture courses (retention rate of 83%). Therefore, this study supports and recommends the importance of instructional lecture courses in developmental algebra classrooms. Developmental algebra courses need to be “instructor-taught” courses. Instructors need to demonstrate and explain the mathematical process for solving problems while implementing active learning.
Book Synopsis Exploring Best Practices in Developmental Mathematics by : Brian V. Cafarella
Download or read book Exploring Best Practices in Developmental Mathematics written by Brian V. Cafarella and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Currently, many community colleges are struggling with poor student success rates in developmental math. Therefore, this qualitative study focused on employing best practices in developmental mathematics at an urban community college in Dayton, Ohio. Guiding the study were the following research questions: What are the best practices utilized by a group of developmental mathematics instructors at an urban community college? How do these instructors employ such practices to enhance student learning? Participants consisted of 20 developmental mathematics instructors from Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio who had taught at least six developmental math classes over a two-year period and who self-reported success rates of at least 60% during that time. This study employed a pre-interview document and a face-to-face interview as the primary research instruments. Using the constant comparison method (Merriam, 2002a), the researcher constructed findings from both approaches regarding best practices in developmental math. Such practices included communication with students, the art of organization, collaborative learning, frequent low stake assessments, technology supplements, the use of mnemonics and memorable wording, and manipulatives, visuals and real-life applications. When addressing the topic of acceleration, the participants reported that this strategy is a proper fit for some students but not all. The following conclusions were based on the findings from this study. Effective communication should be established between developmental math instructors and students as well as among developmental math instructors. Developmental math faculty ought to work with their students in developing their organizational skills. Developmental math instructors should couple the implementation of frequent low stake assessments with student outreach. Collaborative learning can be beneficial to some developmental math students, but instructors must take into account the composition of the class as well their own comfort level with collaborative learning. It is also important for developmental math instructors to employ some creativity in their classes. Accelerated instruction should be reserved for higher ability developmental math students with a strong work ethic. Lastly, college administrators must recognize and respect instructor comfort level. The findings from this dissertation will assist both new and veteran developmental math instructors with implementing practices that will enhance student success in their classes. The findings are also intended to aid community college leaders in gaining an understanding of the culture of developmental math and assist these leaders in the implementation of policy and practice regarding developmental math.
