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Motivate and Retain: Implementing an Effective Developmental Writing Curriculum

Motivate and Retain: Implementing an Effective Developmental Writing Curriculum. Janet Horninger, M.Ed. Kara VanDam, M.A. A Need for Developmental Courses. 75% of community college students never graduate 1

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Motivate and Retain: Implementing an Effective Developmental Writing Curriculum

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  1. Motivate and Retain:Implementing an Effective Developmental Writing Curriculum Janet Horninger, M.Ed. Kara VanDam, M.A.

  2. A Need for Developmental Courses • 75% of community college students never graduate1 • 53% of new college students lack basic reading, writing, or math skills and require remediation2 • This is up from 29% of students just ten years ago3

  3. Traditional Developmental Courses • Are often low-credit or no-credit courses • Set students behind in their degree plan • Isolate students by removing them from their cohorts • Stigmatize students by placing them in a “special” class • Label students as “developmental” or “remedial” which to students = “dumb”

  4. An approach to solve these issues • Our course is full-credit • Our course meets same outcomes as traditional Composition I course: standards are not lowered • Students stay in degree sequence with their cohorts • Our course and its students are not identified as “developmental”, “remedial” or other

  5. Best of all… • Students know they are in a “real” class! • In the words of one student, “I’m just so excited to be in a writing class that starts with a 100”

  6. How is all this accomplished? On the instructor’s side: • Instructors have strong experience in developmental pedagogy • Instructors meet to share best practices • Instructors perform a great deal of student outreach • Instructors interact with students at a high level • Instructors take the time to know their students

  7. Why? Online Education Requires Different Teaching Methods • A higher level of interaction: Students consider maintaining a high-level of interaction to be the “most important role of the instructor in on-line classes” (Kearsley, 2000) • An understanding of the sacrifices our students are making to attend college

  8. How is all this accomplished? On the student’s side: • Sections are limited to 16 students • Students are provided with a wide range of supplemental services which includes tutoring and reference material in our large Writing Center

  9. How is all this accomplished? In the curriculum: • Sentence-level issues receive a great deal of attention • Students work step-by-step through the entire writing process with every assignment • Students see many sample assignments

  10. Did it help? Yes! In first two terms: • Average failure rate decreased 20% • Failure rate in “regular” Composition I course exceeded the failure rate in the “developmental” course • The average grade point was .22 higher for these “developmental” students than their “regular” cohorts

  11. Students liked the course and the instructors better • First two terms’ teaching and course measures were significantly higher for the developmental version

  12. Did this Translate to Future Success? • 74% of passing students continued to the next term • The average next-term GPA of those students was a 2.7, a B- • 30% of students of these carried an A average in the next term • Only 4% carried an F average the next term • For those taking Comp II in the next term, the average course grade was a B

  13. Are We Helping All Who Need Help? • Recall from the introduction that nationally 53% of students require some remediation • Yet, less than 10% of our students were placing into this course • Option 1: Make cut-off on placement exam higher so more students are placed in • Option 2: Understand that perhaps the “norm” needs to change for what’s “regular”

  14. What Have We Done to Address This? • While we are currently changing the placement test, more significantly • We have incorporated much of what worked well in the “developmental” into the “regular” curriculum • Students have to show more of their work during the writing process • Students have more access to sample assignments

  15. What Has Been the Impact? • More data is needed, but signs are hopeful there has been some improvement

  16. What have we learned? • Many students needing additional support can be reached and retained. • Faculty can work closely with students and their fellow instructors to build a strong, supportive community in which all involved thrive.

  17. References • Boylan, H., Bonham, B., & Bliss, L. (1992). National study of developmental education: Students, programs and institutions of higher education--Summary report. Boone, NC: National Center for Developmental Education. • Tritelli, D. (2003, Winter). From the editor. Peer Review (Association of American Colleges and Universities). Retrieved August 23, 2005 from http://www.aacu-edu.org/peerreview/pr-wi03/pr-wi03editor.pdf • Gose, B. (1997). Tutoring companies take over remedial teaching at some colleges. The Chronicle. Retrieved August 23, 2005 from http://chronicle.com/colloquy/97/remedial/background.htm • Kearsley, G. (2000). Online education: Learning and teaching in cyberspace. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

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