ACADEMIC
DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
TENNESSEE TECHNOLOGICAL
UNIVERSITY
PROGRAM EVALUATION 2004
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Academic Development Program (ADP) is
§ to bridge the gap which exists between academically under-prepared students and the level of academic competency necessary for success in post-secondary studies by enhancing students’ skills in writing, reading, and mathematics at the pre-college (developmental) level, and
§ to provide academic support for College of Education students preparing to take the PPST/PRAXIS I exams for admission to upper-division education courses.
Faculty and staff provide a supportive environment through classroom, technology, learning laboratory, and counseling services and through individual and small-group tutorials, while maintaining the high standards of the university.
Litigation brought by Rita Sanders Geier, et al., in 1984 against the State of Tennessee [Geier vs Alexander] was settled with several stipulations (primarily Geier IIF and IIK), which specified that the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR)
§ “provide developmental education programs” and
§ “develop a plan designed to address retention, performance, and progression of students at all public institutions.”
Developmental Education is
a field of practice and
research within higher education with a theoretical foundation in developmental
psychology and learning theory. It promotes the cognitive and affective growth
of all postsecondary learners, at all levels of the learning continuum.
Developmental education is sensitive and responsive to individual differences
and special needs among learners.
Developmental education
programs and services commonly address academic preparedness, diagnostic
assessment and placement, development of general and discipline-specific
learning strategies, and affective barriers to learning.
Developmental
education includes, but is not limited to:
q all forms of learning assistance, such as tutoring, mentoring, and supplemental instruction
q personal, academic, and career counseling
q academic advisement, and
q coursework.[1]
Findings from major, statewide studies of the effectiveness of Remedial/Developmental (R/D) programs in Tennessee show that:
Ø R/D program completers were retained at a higher rate (82.6%) than their non-program counterparts (77.5%)
Ø The R/D program produced positive retention results for all students regardless of age, sex, race, or enrollment status. However, the most pronounced effect was with the students 21 years of age or older
Ø The 1991 Ad Hoc Committee reported that the “program had been effective in bringing about a higher than usual retention rate of initially high-risk students” (p. 3). The 4-year retention rate rose from a pre-R/D Program level of 24% for at-risk students to 34% by 1990 with the statewide program firmly in place.[2]
The TBR Operational Guidelines (A-100) specify assessment and placement procedures to identify students at risk academically and to place them in courses that provide opportunity for success and increased retention. Initially, the A-100 Guidelines mandated academic assessment and placement by AAPP [Academic Assessment Placement Program Test] and later by COMPASS™. Beginning with Spring Semester 2003, students with valid ACT scores (less than 3 years old by the first day of classes) are placed by ACT sub scores [English less than 19, Mathematics less than 19, and/or Reading less than 19]. Students who wish to challenge ACT Placement [and transfer students who lack credits in college-level English Composition or college-level Mathematics] may take the COMPASS™ Test.
The Basic levels (remedial or 0700 levels) of Developmental Studies (DSP) courses are no longer offered at TTU. Students whose ACTs place them into the basic level may be denied admission to TTU until completion of basic requirements.
In 1995, TTU mandated placement in UNIV1050 for freshmen who have below a 2.9 high school GPA and/or students placing in 2 or more developmental curriculum areas. As of 2003M, the 3-credit-hour UNIV1050 has been replaced by a 2-credit-hour UNIV1020, First-Year Connections. Completion of UNIV1050 or UNIV1020 completes the requirement for DSPS0800 Developmental Learning Strategies.
Based upon the TBR vision of developmental education’s role in addressing “the retention, performance, and progression of students,” TTU’s Academic Development Program provides services to enhance skills in math, reading, writing, and learning strategies. These services include
From the cohorts of RDS/ADP 1st-time freshman students enrolled at Tennessee Technological University from 1986 to the present, TTU has awarded over 2500 degrees ranging from AAS and AS (119) to BA, BFA, BM, BS, and BSI (2209) through EDS, MA, MBA, and MS (267). These figures do not take into account the students who began their academic careers at TTU and completed their degree(s) at another Tennessee higher education institution; nor does it take into account students who began as R/D students at other institutions and completed their degree(s) at TTU. Through 2004S [15 people from the 2000 Fall cohort have graduated], ADP has served 7966 students in one or more R/D classes. An additional 1278 [for 2001S-2004S] are approaching the point at which they will be included in the calculations for students who have graduated.
One of the major difficulties in providing irrefutable evidence of the enormous impact of Tennessee’s developmental education program on the State’s overall population is the fact that students who need academic assistance must often space out their education over a more lengthy period of time than the four to six years usually referred to as “normal” progression through the higher education system. Also, there is virtually no tracking of students between institutions, even though anecdotal information derived from transferring placement scores would indicate that some students attend as many as four other institutions in the State before finally completing a degree—usually not at the institution of initial enrollment. Of the 342 1st-time freshmen enrolled in TTU’s ADP classes during 2003F, 273 (79.82%) returned for 2004S. Only 19 (5.6%) of the 1st-time freshmen in TTU’s ADP classes came from outside Tennessee.
Of the TTU total of approximately 1137 incoming 1st-time freshmen in 2003F, 342 (30%) were enrolled in one or more DSP classes, of whom 273 (80%) returned to TTU for the following term (2004S). [70.2% (240) required only 1 DSP class.] Only about 5.6% (19) were not residents of Tennessee.
TTU’s total developmental population for 2003F included 342 1st-time freshmen, 134 continuing, 36 transfers from 2-year institutions, 4 transfers from 4-year institutions, and 30 others. Eight majors served 77.2% (264) of the 1st-time freshmen taking classes with the Academic Development Program: agriculture, business, general curriculum, human ecology, multi-disciplinary studies, nursing, psychology, and regulated admissions. [Regulated Admissions is being phased out at TTU and will no longer be a classification for incoming student beginning 2004F.] Only 19.9% (68) of the 342 1st-time freshmen taking developmental classes came from Putnam County schools. Only 13 (3.8%) of the 342 1st-time freshmen were married; 3 (.9%) listed disabilities; 152 (44.4%) lived on campus; 293 (85.7%) were full-time students; 160 (46.8%) are female/182 (53.2%) are male; 30 (8.8%) are African-American/282 (82.5%) are white.
The Academic Development Program, which is housed on the 4th floor of Foster Hall, typically serves approximately 34% of TTU’s 1st-time freshman population each academic year.
The specialized
instructional demands of developmental courses require that program faculty
have appropriate background, training, and experience. TTU’s Academic
Development Program is currently staffed by six full-time, tenured faculty,
each of whom is highly proficient in his/her academic area. The Academic
Development Program is a division of the College of Education at TTU. As such,
its members serve on various College of Education committees and are
representatives in several University-level committees. Faculty include:
Ø
Dr. Debra Bryant, who
holds the rank of Associate Professor, coordinates the mathematics division of
the program and teaches both levels of developmental mathematics. She has also
developed and teaches online sections of DSPM0800, DSPM0850, and DSPM0870 (the
DSPM0800/0850 combination course). She teaches a class for the Math Department
each semester and is also director of the Cumberland Plateau Regional Science
and Engineering Fair.
Ø
Mr. Steve Coble, who
holds the rank of Instructor and is certified as a Developmental Education
Specialist, teaches developmental mathematics. He is currently in the process
of completing his doctorate.
Ø
Mr. Hank Duvier, who
holds the rank of Instructor, teaches developmental mathematics and geometry
(for removal of A89 geometry deficiency).
He is a certified statistician, and he occasionally teaches courses with
the College of Engineering Industrial Technology Department.
Ø
Dr. Pam Harden, who
holds the rank of Assistant Professor, teaches both levels of developmental
mathematics as well as a class with the Math Department each semester.
Ø
Ms. Ann Lewald, who
holds the rank of Instructor, teaches developmental writing, developmental
reading, and, occasionally, English 1010 for the English Department. She is an
accomplished poet and co-author of Developing College Writing Skills.
Ø Ms. Carolyn Zolg, Assistant Professor and certified Developmental Education Specialist, taught Developmental Reading until her retirement at the end of Spring Semester 2004.
Support staff for TTU’s Academic Development Program include:
Ø Ms. Stella Bridgeman, who is Counselor/Advisor with Academic Support Services in the College of Education, serves as the Program Counselor.
Ø Dr. Elizabeth Ojo, Coordinator of the CRLA certified Academic Development Learning Center, oversees tutorial services in the ADLC Math Lab, the ADLC Writing/Reading Lab, and the ADLC Computer Lab, as well as coordinating PPST/Praxis I tutorials with Academic Support Services in the College of Education.
Ø Ms. Lydia Kendall, Secretary III, oversees and coordinates the day-to-day operations of the Program’s Main Office, maintains the Program budget, manages student workers, and provides clerical assistance and support for Program faculty and staff.
The Academic Development Learning Center (ADLC), a supportive unit of the Academic Development Program, has been in existence since Fall 1985. One full-time coordinator with faculty rank is employed to oversee the center’s equipment and tutorial services. The coordinator supervises the hiring, training, and work assignments of student assistants who work as tutors in the Learning Center. The coordinator reports to the College of Education’s Assistant Dean of Student Support Services rather than the Academic Development Program Leader.
The ADLC was created to facilitate learning for students in Academic Development Program course work. Students receive individualized assistance in mathematics, reading, writing, study skills and word processing. Besides tutoring, the center also offers reference books, computer tutorials, video and audiotapes, other instructional materials for student use, and a small reading library of novels. The ADLC also provides individualized tutoring for students preparing to take or retake the PPST/Praxis I test for admission to upper-level education courses.
The ADLC is located on the 4th floor of Foster Hall: Room 411 is the Math Learning Center; Room 409 is the Writing/Reading Center; and Room 414 houses the 30-station Computer Lab with access to the Internet and facilities for word processing and printing.
Tutors for the Learning Center are certified through the College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA) and operate under a Code of Ethics for Tutoring. The ADLC is evaluated by the Academic Development student body each fall and spring semester through a 10-question survey covering such areas as receiving needed assistance, clarity of explanations, availability of tutors, and likelihood of return visits.[3]
STATUS OF PLACEMENT, PROGRESSION, RETENTION, AND
TABLE 1 (PLACEMENT)
TABLE 1.1 Incoming Freshmen Tested And Placed
|
Year |
Incoming Freshmen |
Tested |
% Tested |
Enrolled |
% Tested Enrolled |
RADM |
1998F |
1071 |
485 |
45.28% |
368 |
75.88% |
121 |
|
1999S |
97 |
73 |
75.26% |
53 |
72.60% |
16 |
|
1999F |
1224 |
616 |
50.30% |
458 |
74.40% |
99 |
|
2000S |
99 |
78 |
78.795 |
52 |
66.67% |
14 |
|
2000F |
1140 |
574 |
50.35% |
385 |
67.07% |
75 |
|
2001S |
80 |
67 |
83.75% |
42 |
62.69% |
18 |
|
2001F |
1125 |
466 |
41.42% |
369 |
79.18% |
79 |
|
2002S |
74 |
33 |
44.59% |
46 |
139.39%* |
12 |
|
2002F |
1197 |
692 |
57.81% |
418 |
60.40% |
65 |
|
2003S |
85 |
97 |
114.18%* |
47 |
48.45% |
7 |
|
2003F |
1153 |
321 |
27.84% |
342 |
106.54%* |
39 |
|
2004S |
56 |
18 |
32.14% |
31 |
107.22%* |
7 |
|
2004F |
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Number of Enrolled Students includes students tested at
sites other than TTU
|
Term |
1 DSP / % |
2 DSP / % |
3 DSP / % |
4 DSP / % |
Total Cohort |
UNIV105/ 1050/1020 |
1998F
|
207 / 57.7% |
98 / 27.3% |
14 / 3.9% |
48 / 13.4% |
367 |
493 |
|
1999S |
31 / 58.5% |
18 / 34.0% |
3 / 5.6% |
1 / 1.9% |
53 |
150 |
|
1999F |
247 54.0% |
139 / 30.4% |
30 / 6.5% |
40 / 8.8% |
456 |
415 |
|
2000S |
29 / 55.8% |
14 / 26.9% |
5 / 11.6% |
4 / 7.7% |
52 |
219 |
|
2000F |
251 / 66.8% |
97 / 25.8% |
10 / 2.7% |
18 / 4.8% |
376 |
440 |
|
2001S |
27 / 64.3% |
10 / 23.8% |
2 / 4.8% |
3 / 7.1% |
42 |
261 |
|
2001F |
219 / 67.6% |
76 / 23.55 |
16 / 4.9% |
13 / 4.0% |
324 |
484 |
|
2002S |
22 / 47.8% |
24 / 52.2% |