Who Benefits More From the Developmental Education Reform in Florida? The Role of Exempt Status

• In Event: Policy Innovation and Future Trends

Abstract

In 2013, Florida passed Senate Bill 1720 (SB 1720) that dramatically redesigned the developmental education system across the 28 state and community colleges. Under SB 1720, a large proportion of students became exempt from placement tests and developmental education whereas the rest of students were still required to take placement tests and enroll in developmental courses if they scored below the college-ready cut score on the placement test. Drawing on data from students at Florida’s 28 state colleges who enrolled three years prior to SB 1720 and three years after SB 1720, this study investigated the potential differential impacts of SB 1720 on exempt and non-exempt students. Findings suggest that non-exempt students experienced greater gains than exempt students.

Authors

• Kai Zhao, Florida State University

• Toby Park-Gaghan, Florida State University

• Christine Mokher, Florida State University

• Shouping Hu, Florida State University