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ERIC Number: ED609226
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Nov
Pages: 38
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Improving Developmental and College-Level Mathematics: Prominent Reforms and the Need to Address Equity. CCRC Working Paper No. 124
Brathwaite, Jessica; Fay, Maggie P.; Moussa, Adnan
Community College Research Center, Teachers College, Columbia University
In recent years, there has been a growing recognition that the traditional system of college mathematics remediation that relies on high-stakes placement tests and prerequisite, multi-level course sequences is associated with lowered chances of students completing developmental requirements and increased rates of student attrition. This recognition has led to nationwide reform efforts that strive to alter the structure and curricula of remedial math courses. However, these broad-based reforms have been insufficient in eliminating inequities in developmental placement and completion between students of color and other underserved students and their more advantaged peers. Informed by relevant research literature, this paper argues that the majority of reforms to developmental math education seek to remedy general barriers to student progress but are not typically designed to address equity gaps and, perhaps unsurprisingly, do little to reduce them. We examine issues of concern present in traditional developmental math education and how existing reforms--including assessment and placement reforms, acceleration reforms, contextualization reforms, and curricular and pedagogic reforms--aim to address these issues, noting if they are associated with reductions in equity gaps. Lastly, we explore the potential for targeted reforms in developmental math to more effectively address the factors that contribute to inequities in student outcomes, factors such as stereotype threat, math anxiety, instructor bias, and tracking.
Community College Research Center. Available from: CCRC Publications. Teachers College, Columbia University, 525 West 120th Street Box 174, New York, NY 10027. Tel: 212-678-3091; Fax: 212-678-3699; e-mail: ccrc@columbia.edu; Web site: http://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: University of Texas at Austin, Charles A. Dana Center
Authoring Institution: Columbia University, Community College Research Center
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A