Statewide Developmental Education Reform in California: Lessons From A Five-Year Mixed-Methods Study

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

California’s landmark developmental education reform, Assembly Bill (AB) 705, required colleges to use multiple measures placement to maximize the likelihood that students would enroll in and complete transfer-level English and math coursework within one year. Colleges were expected to eliminate developmental education (DE) offerings and create cocurricular supports, such as corequisites, to promote student success in transfer-level courses. Researchers from RFA and UT Austin have engaged in a five-year study of the implementation, impact, and cost-effectiveness of reforms at the state’s community colleges. This session highlights findings that illustrate dramatic increases in transfer-level course enrollment, completion, and vertical transfer; lingering implementation issues with faculty buy-in and incorporating corequisite remediation; and evidence from a cost study comparing cocurricular support models.

Sub Unit

• Division J - Postsecondary Education / Division J - Section 5: Policy, Law, Finance, and Economics

Chair

• Taylor Stenley, Research for Action

Papers

• Developmental Education Reform and Student Outcomes at California Community Colleges - Lauren Schudde, University of Texas at Austin; Wonsun Ryu, University of Texas at Austin; Dae Y. Kim, Research for Action; Taylor Stenley, Research for Action

• Comparing California Community College Faculty Perceptions of Student Success with Trends in Administrative Data - Kri Burkander, Research for Action; Taylor Stenley, Research for Action

• Comparing Costs and Impacts of Various Cocurricular Support Models - Xinhe Liu, Teachers College, Columbia University; Dae Y. Kim, Research for Action

• Everybody Else is Doing it, So Why Can’t We? Challenges and Variations of Corequisite Remediation - Mark Duffy, Research for Action; Kri Burkander, Research for Action; Molly Pileggi, Research for Action

Session Organizer

• Kri Burkander, Research for Action

Discussants

• Federick Ngo, University of Nevada - Las Vegas

• Valerie Lundy-Wagner, California Community Colleges