Accreditation is a process by which programs demonstrate their academic quality; that is, they demonstrate that they are making decisions for programmatic changes based on: (1) a sound theoretical foundation; (2) clearly stated mission, goals, and objectives; (3) a comprehensive self-study and thoughtful use of best practices; and (4) consistent,…

The "NADE Self-Evaluation Guides" are a compendium of best practices in four areas: (1) Tutoring Services; (2) Course-based Learning Assistance; (3) the Teaching & Learning Process; and (4) Developmental Coursework, also recently known as transitional, co-requisite, accelerated, or bridge programs, all of which are…

This article begins by thinking about the process of accreditation in general and examining whether it is a transactional or value-added activity. The overall systems of U.S accreditation and National Association for Developmental Education (NADE) accreditation are reviewed.

The National Association for Developmental Education (NADE) Accreditation process is more relevant and important than ever to the discussion of students' success and completion of meaningful credentials. In the current politically-charged climate, NADE Accreditation helps programs demonstrate not only to themselves and their administrations, but…

Creating a culture of assessment is an essential practice and mindset for postsecondary institutions as well as the units and departments embedded within respective campuses. Although it may sound daunting at first glance, simply put, assessment is "a set of processes designed to improve, demonstrate, and inquire about student learning"…

The author examines the process for applying for National Association for Development Education (NADE) accreditation. The multi-year process began when the English faculty of the community college she works at reviewed data from the National Community College Benchmark Project. The data showed low success rates and poor persistence from…

For over a decade at the University of Minnesota, I have used social media tools in my introductory global history course to improve engagement and final grades. Students and I work as partners in using the tools to engage them more in the class, prepare for exams, and develop these skills for other courses. Our approach is guided by principles of…

With the increasing adoption of accelerated models of learning comes the necessary step of adapting these models to fit the unique needs of the student population at each individual institution. One such college adapted the ALP (Accelerated Learning Program) model and made specific changes to the target population, structure and scheduling, and…

Research suggests that student enrollment in developmental level courses at the postsecondary education level increases annually. This is occurring because underprepared and/or nontraditional students' reading, writing, or math skills are inadequate to meet the challenges of college-level work. This article focuses on self-explanations as an…

Students derive more benefits from attending developmental reading courses that are an integral part of the academic curricula (Maxwell, 1997). Colleges that pair their developmental reading courses with content courses achieve the objective of integrating the developmental courses into the academic curricula. This article describes the model and…

Using quantitative assessment, Montana State University-Billings substantially improved and expanded its developmental education program and learning center during the past five years. Student-centered questions drove the research efforts. By gathering, analyzing and sharing hard data, the department identified unmet student needs, discovered…