Transcript Document

Designing a State-Level Response to
the Developmental Education Challenge
Presentation for Southern Regional Education Board
June 27, 2011
Abby Parcell, MDC
Accelerating Achievement
First Things First: Definitions
 Developmental education: comprehensive instruction that prepares students for
success in academic coursework
 Assessment: standardized tests and other diagnostic activities to determine level of
academic preparedness
 Placement: the process by which students are assigned to particular courses, based
on the assessment process
 Modular instruction: developmental course content that is organized according to
specific skill competencies
 Self-paced instruction: a delivery mechanism that allows individual students enrolled
in the same developmental course to progress through course content at their own
rate
 Accelerated learning: the compression of developmental course work; pairing
multiple developmental courses or completing developmental and curriculum courses
at the same time
Accelerating Achievement
Developmental Education Initiative
Overview
 DEI builds on the most promising institutional and state
policy work of Achieving the Dream
 Fifteen ATD community colleges and six states
participating in a three-year initiative
 Colleges taking promising developmental education
practices to scale
 MDC serves as managing partner and funding intermediary
with support from The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and
Lumina Foundation
Accelerating Achievement
Promising Approaches
 Acceleration:
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Placement-test preparation
Compressed courses
Paired remedial and college-level courses
 Contextualization
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ABE-to-college models
I-BEST designs
 Student Supports
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Supplemental instruction
Intensive advising
Accelerating Achievement
Policy Supports
 Preventative strategies: reducing the need for
developmental education
 Assessment and placement: creating systems that are
consistent, flexible, and relevant to a student’s chosen
credential program
 Performance Funding: designing funding formulas that
support completion, not just enrollment
Accelerating Achievement
Preventative Strategies
El Paso Community College
El Paso Texas
 PREP program: Pre-testing Retesting Educational Preparation
 Have served over 3000 students; on track to add 500 + students each
semester
 Paired with case management that tracks dev ed students through
the attainment of their first 30 college credits
 2009-2010 Results: PREP students who advanced at least one level:
65% math, 65% reading, 47% writing
Accelerating Achievement
Preventative Strategies
North Central State College
Mansfield, Ohio
 Solutions, an adult transition program: self-paced, computer-based
course, paired with individual tutoring
 Includes a student success workshop that is credit-bearing
 Solutions students’ performance on developmental course/sequence
completion, English gateway course completion and persistence
exceeds averages of a group of comparable FTIC students.
 The college calculated almost $20,000 in savings to students from
acceleration through at least one level of developmental course work.
Accelerating Achievement
Assessment/Placement Strategies
Florida Department of Education
Division of Florida Colleges
 The Florida Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (P.E.R.T.) was
released in October 2010.
 Twenty-four of Florida’s 28 colleges have implemented the P.E.R.T.
 Two diagnostic assessments for each discipline are in development
 Colleges will begin offering new courses with corresponding
competencies and implementing the diagnostic assessments in the
fall 2011 or spring 2012 terms.
Accelerating Achievement
Assessment/Placement Strategies
Virginia Community College System
 System-wide redesign of developmental math completed
 Taskforce comprised of high school, community college, and
university faculty, along with administration
 New placement system that includes customized placement
instruments for the new developmental education structures
 Curriculum design for English courses is underway
Accelerating Achievement
Performance Funding Strategies
Texas
 In 2009, the state legislature appropriated $5 million to the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board for Developmental Education
Demonstration Projects
 Five grants of $750K per year for two years; 10 grants of $100K
 Colleges required to meet best practice requirements in assessment
& placement, student support, innovative curriculum, and data quality
Accelerating Achievement
Performance Funding Strategies
Ohio
 Ohio Legislature approved performance funding for community
colleges in their 2010-11 budget
 Ohio Board of Regents and state community colleges charged with
developing the new formula
 Recommendation from OH Association of Community Colleges:
allocate 5% of FY 2011 state funding based on “success points”;
proportion allocated according to these factors would increase to 20%
by 2015
Accelerating Achievement
Contact Information
 Abby Parcell
[email protected]
 DEI Website
http://www.deionline.org
 May 2011 Jobs for the Future brief:
Driving Innovation: How Six States Are
Organizing to Improve Outcomes in
Developmental Education
http://www.jff.org
Accelerating Achievement