This article interprets two frameworks for how institutions and individuals can grow in "tech-knowledge." Technology growth opportunities for developmental educators are also reviewed. In the knowledge-based environment that is postsecondary education, professional development in technology must be ongoing as technology changes. Fortunately, a…

Truly a pioneer in the field of learning assistance and developmental education, Martha Maxwell has mentored hundreds, if not thousands, of professionals and students as well as authored a variety of reference shelf publications. Her career spanned 50 years. In her classic, Improving Student Learning Skills, she says there are seven persons named…

The "Critical Thinking and the Art of Close Reading" series (which includes this column and three others) focuses on some of the most basic understandings necessary for close reading (Paul & Elder, 2003). To read well, in addition to having these understandings, students must be able to identify the big picture within a text, to determine the key…

The purpose of this article is to discuss the problem of illusion in research, especially in program evaluation. Currently, there are multiple research traditions in program evaluation. Nevertheless, all research orientations are concerned with the role of researchers, for example, how they interpret their data and what evidence they offer for…

Finding practical ideas about college reading and learning strategy programs that have been drawn from theory and research is difficult for most veteran instructors but is even more difficult for those instructors new to the field. Over a decade ago the authors reviewed the literature and generated a list of their own "best ideas" as a way of…

This paper investigates which students delay taking a required developmental mathematics course and the impact of delay on student performance in introductory microeconomics. Analysis of a sample of 1462 students at a large Midwestern university revealed that, although developmental-level mathematics students did not reach the same level of…

The typical college student is unable to deeply comprehend what he or she reads. Most students have few, if any, intellectual tools that would enable them to read deeply, and then apply what they have read. The "Critical Thinking and the Art of Close Reading" series (which includes this column and the past three columns) focuses on some of the…

A theme for this year's Techtalk is keeping up with technology, emphasizing both professional development and new technology. This first column will look at the how and why of professional development. A second column will highlight wireless technology. The National Association for Developmental Education's Executive Board (NADE, 2001) resolved…

Most colleges and universities emphasize identifying smartness much more than developing smartness. This value is made explicit in the many influential rankings of colleges and universities, in which elitist schools who recruit students with high SAT scores, grade point averages, and class rankings are declared "better" than other schools. The…

Dissatisfaction with student success has caused a crisis in developmental education. Critics from both inside and outside the field question whether remedial courses really prepare students for future college work or even if they are properly part of the college mission. In this article, we review research and present information that suggests…

Recently, the popularity of timed-essay exams has increased, becoming part of the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) in the late 1990s and now being incorporated into The College Board Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) in Spring of 2005 and ACT (American College Testing) test in Fall of 2004. This research evaluates the "value added" of an…

Four years of data on the academic performance of 256 students who self-selected online developmental writing rather than a face-to-face section (about 10% of the 2,275 students enrolled in the course overall) are examined in this empirical study. The research controls for self-selection effects related to demographic variables, student status,…

Despite its widespread use in evaluation data analysis, statistical testing has come under persistent criticism resulting in calls for its rethinking, and even possible elimination (Carver, 1978, 1993). Saxon and Boylan issue a call "to strengthen developmental education research and to make it more accessible" (2003, p. 2). Among the types of…

This article seeks to initiate discussion of the contours of a multicultural developmental curricula. It first discusses the need for multiculturalism in developmental education and offers an understanding of access to higher education that integrates key strengths of several, currently popular, conceptions of multiculturalism. Then, it presents a…

Research findings indicate that many students fail to benefit from academic support services and courses. The paper discusses reasons why some students resist changing their academic behaviors and links the reasons to learning and motivation variables. The explanations for failure to change include: (1) students believe they can't change; (2)…