Launching PLTL for MATH: Building on the Foundation of Supplemental Instruction

The paper describes the launch of Peer-Led Team Learning for Precalculus Engineering and Math at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) and the results that PLTL has had on pass rates. Historically, students placed into Precalculus, instead of being Calculus ready, have experienced higher failure rates than any other student grouping. While UTA has invested in many studies, programs and techniques that aid these underprepared students, a few strategies have emerged as being effective. These strategies have included the previous implementation of Supplemental Instruction (SI), with separate sections devoted specifically to Precalculus co-enrolled engineering-course students, peer-based instruction, and active learning activities as opposed to additional lectures. As a result of these findings, in the Fall 2020 semester, UTA combined all these strategies into a learning course integrating these best practices into a required PLTL learning lab with problem-based activities and studying practices for the engineering course and a self-selected PLTL option for the math course. The goal was to aid in increasing success rates in these classes. The students engaged in effective “study habits” and problem-based learning practices with a Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) leader. What we have found is the positive impact that PLTL has on pass rates for at-risk populations in addition to positive satisfaction surveys. This paper will show the effectiveness of PLTL by discussing success rates for the Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 semesters versus the other singular implementations from previous semesters, in this case Supplemental Instruction.

Does the Method of Acceleration Matter? Exploring the Likelihood of College Coursetaking Success Across Four Developmental Education Instructional Strategies

Background/Context: Accelerated instructional strategies for developmental education have been promoted as a way to help underprepared students to progress more quickly through college-level coursework. Yet, what remains unknown is whether certain accelerated strategies are more effective than others and whether this initial acceleration may lead to longer term success. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: We examine whether the likelihood of success varies for completion of mathematics and English requirements over 3 years among the Florida students enrolled in courses using one of four developmental instructional strategies: compressed, corequisite, modularized, or contextualized. Population/Participants/Subjects: Our sample includes all first-time-in-college students during the 2015–2016 year who enrolled in all 28 public state colleges and took any developmental education course during the first year. Research Design: We use inverse probability-weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA) to compare success rates in completion of mathematics and English requirements over 3 years for Florida college students in each of these strategies. Findings/Results: Overall, the results demonstrate variation in the likelihood of success for completion of mathematics and English courses over 3 years among students in different developmental instructional strategies, which suggests that the method of acceleration does matter. Corequisite courses tended to lead to greater long-term gains in math and, to an extent, in reading, while contextualized tended to be most effective in writing. Conclusions/Recommendations: Leaders can play an important role in strengthening institutional capacity to effectively implement developmental education reform by developing faculty buy-in, ensuring adequate resources to scale and sustain reform efforts, and using data to inform future decision-making.

Short, multi-modal, pre-commencement transition programs for a diverse STEM cohort

A ‘quantum leap’ (Kift, 2015) in our understanding of the transition to university studies has brought about a reimagining of the role of transition programs from attempting to remediate deficiencies in ‘underprepared’ students, to instead using engagement with the curriculum to instil success-oriented behaviours and attitudes in them. In particular commencers from non-traditional backgrounds are confronted by greater sociocultural incongruities when starting higher education (Devlin, 2013), and face greater challenges in developing their new student identity. While affective change of this kind may necessarily be long-term in nature, semester or year-long ‘foundation’ or ‘bridging’ programs create barriers themselves in terms of time, cost, and stigma. This study provides evidence that significant results can be achieved with short, accessible, manageable, pre-commencement transition programs, that are situated in the curriculum, but also focussed on nurturing those behaviours and attitudes in at-risk students that are associated with greater likelihood of success and retention.

A Pedagogy of Preparation: Helping Underprepared Students Succeed in College-Level Coursework in Community Colleges

This paper presents an overall educational philosophy of working with students underprepared for college-level work, which we term “a pedagogy of preparation.” We consider how instructors scaffolded instruction to foster college readiness in students who were now able to enroll in college-level work regardless of academic preparation after state-level legislation (SB 1720) that dramatically altered the delivery of developmental education in the Florida College System (FCS). We also consider how collaboration increased among campus personnel after the legislation to foster college readiness in students underprepared for college-level work.

Insular/Integration

Higher education often implements tightly controlled group interventions to help support struggling student groups succeed in college. Insulation of underprepared students for “academic benefit” is prevalent and isolates students until they fulfill a defined curriculum. Evidence for invasive, targeted, and culturally relevant interventions in student learning certainly exists. However, colleges need a balanced approach to student academic progress. Insular/Integration outlines the strength in identifying and implementing strategies that support student needs, insulating at-risk students from the shocks and strains of entering college underprepared, while deliberately integrating students into college resources for success and engagement. This chapter focuses on using the insular/integration framework to develop network maps, success contracts, and policy additions/revisions for a purposeful retention configuration that strategically supports students and improves interdependence.

Corequisite mathematics education at Missouri community colleges

In an effort to raise graduation rates, the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development directed public institutions to establish policies and create corequisite support structures to allow some underprepared students to take entry-level mathematics courses without first completing non-credit remedial courses. The present study explored the variety and effectiveness of corequisite structures implemented at 12 independent public community colleges in Missouri. Using a pragmatic parallel mixed method research design, this study used highly structured interviews and data from the Enhanced Missouri Student Achievement Study to address the research question: Which corequisite structures and policies have produced significant increases in persistence rates and completion rates of entry-level mathematics courses at community colleges in Missouri? This study described the unique structures and policies implemented at the colleges and using a chi-square test for homogeneity, compared the statewide and college persistence rates and completion rates of entry-level mathematics courses for students beginning in Fall 2014 and Fall 2018. The findings indicated that the statewide persistence rates increased but the increase was neither widespread nor consistent amongst the 12 individual colleges in the study; however, the increase in completion rates of entry-level mathematics courses was widespread and consistent with 11 of the 12 colleges seeing statistically significant increases. The study identified four conceptualizations of corequisite supports and noted that colleges allowing underprepared students greater access to non-STEM pathway courses with corequisite support saw the highest completion rates of entry-level mathematics courses.