Date of Award

January 2017

Degree Type

Open Access Dissertation

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

First Advisor

Charles S. Hausman

Department Affiliation

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

Second Advisor

Andrew W. Place

Department Affiliation

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

Third Advisor

Daniel J. Mundfrom

Department Affiliation

Mathematics and Statistics

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative quasi-experimental study is to determine the effectiveness of a corequisite delivery model for developmental math students at a 4-year public institution. Nationally, close to fifty percent of incoming college students are placed in non-credit bearing remedial courses (Complete College America, 2012). Students must pass the remedial course before they can take the gateway college-level course. Data show that the traditional delivery of a non-credit-bearing remedial course before taking a credit-bearing course appears to help only a small percentage of students (Complete College America, 2012). The low pass rate of remedial courses supports the current trend to redesign curriculum and delivery of these courses. One redesign model is the use of corequisite courses. Corequisite courses place students into credit-bearing courses with integrated remedial content and support. The corequisite courses have mixed results (Goudas, 2015).

In this study, four classes of developmental students were each randomly assigned to the pilot corequisite liberal arts math class which included embedded Algebraic content, three extra teacher-student contact hours per week, and earned students college credit. The study also included four control liberal arts math classes composed of students who met the prerequisite requirements to take the college-level course. The sample included N = 89 students in the standard mathematics courses and N = 68 students in the corequisite courses. This study assesses the effectiveness of the corequisite delivery model for a liberal arts mathematics course.

When final group course scores were compared there was no significant difference. The adjusted mean overall course grade for the corequisite developmental students was similar to the course grade for the students in the standard course. Students in the pilot course passed at the same rate as students in the standard course demonstrating the effectiveness of the corequisite model. Six covariates were examined including gender, race, income, first-generation in college, high school grade point average (GPA), and math ACT score. Only the covariates of high school GPA and math ACT scores were significantly correlated with the overall mathematics course scores. As there is a present movement to use corequisite mathematics courses with embedded algebraic content to save students time and money, it is important to explore what kinds of students are likely to succeed and what kinds of educational supports are effective.

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