In the fall semester of 2000, Southwest Virginia Community College’s math division implemented the Virginia Community College System Developmental Studies Implementation Task Force recommendations.  One of these recommendations was to ensure that the approved algebra content items were included in our MTH 03 (Basic Algebra I) and MTH 04 (Basic Algebra II) courses.  Accordingly, these two course syllabi were reviewed and reorganized to meet these guidelines. 

We also revised our in-house readiness tests for MTH 03 and MTH 04 – which had been used since the mid 1990’s as a follow-up placement tool to the COMPASS and ASSET tests – to make them consistent with the content actually covered in these courses.  However, no changes or reorganization of content items were performed on the COMPASS or ASSET placement tests. 

Consequently, our recent comparison of the MTH 03 and MTH 04 syllabi with the corresponding COMPASS and ASSET placement tests has revealed major inconsistencies in content coverage.  These differences suggest that students may not be properly placed into developmental algebra courses.  Thus, the purpose of this study was to assess how well the ASSET, COMPASS, and in-house readiness tests actually do in their placement of students into the algebra developmental courses.  Specifically, we collected and analyzed student data from these placement tools and the core final exams for MTH 03 and MTH 04 to determine how well these placement tools predict success in our developmental algebra courses.

Descriptive Statistics 

Descriptive statistics in Table 1 reveal characteristics of the developmental algebra classes.  First, on-campus students account for two-thirds of the students in developmental algebra classes, and female students outnumber male students 2 to 1.  Students for this study were enrolled in Fall 2001, Spring 2002, or Summer 2002 classes.  The fall semester enrolled the largest number (195 or 54%) of the 364 students in the study, whereas spring semester enrolled more that half that many students (133 or 37%), leaving summer semester to enroll only 36 (or 10%) of the total students.  The breakdown by math courses reveals that 261 of the 364 students (or 72%) enrolled in MTH 03, with only 103 students (or 28%) enrolled in MTH 04.

 

Table 1

SwVCC Math Students Categorized According to
Site, Gender, School, Term, and Math Course

 

          Variable Category                                  n                                                           Percent

Site
On-Campus	239	65.7
Off-Campus	125	34.3
Total	364	100.0
Gender
Male	123	33.8
Female	241	66.2
Total	364	100.0
School Term
Fall, 2001	195	53.6
Spring, 2002	133	36.5
Summer, 2002	36	9.9
Total	364	100.0
Course
Math 03	261	71.7
Math 04	103	28.3
Total	364	100.0

 

Although completion of all needed developmental mathematics courses is a prerequisite to enrolling in college-level math courses, these data suggest that many of the developmental students who successfully complete MTH 03 do not go on to take MTH 04. 

What is happening to these students?  Are they bypassing the prerequisite MTH 04 course and enrolling in MTH 151 or MTH 163?  With the implementation of People Soft in Spring 2004, students should not be able to bypass prerequisite courses.  Does this mean that we will see more comparable numbers of students completing both MTH 03 and MTH 04 in future semesters?  We hope that will be the case but, of course, a certain percentage of attrition will still exist from semester to semester.  Regardless, students who remain enrolled and need the developmental math courses should complete the entire MTH 03-04 sequence.

Comparing developmental students by site – on campus and off campus – provides more valuable information.   Table 2 lists the mean scores for the core final exam, with COMPASS, ASSET, age, and GPA shown separately by site for on- and off-campus students in MTH 03 and MTH 04.

 

Table 2

Descriptive Statistics on the Variables—
Core Final, COMPASS, ASSET, Age, and GPA—by Site

 

Variables                                                                 On-Campus                                        Off-Campus

Core Final
N	239	125
Mean	79.2	67.9
SD	11.01	18.67
Range	56	91
COMPASS
N	239	125
Mean	35.6	38.5
SD	7.95	6.93
Range	69	53
ASSET
N	239	125
Mean	37.1	37.8
SD	4.05	3.95
Range	23	21
Age
N	239	125
Mean	24.8	30.2
SD	7.68	9.42
Range	35	48
GPA
N	239	125
Mean	2.6	2.9
SD	.91	.75
Range	3.86	3.43

 

In comparing these means, we find that the most noticeable difference exists with the core final exam.  The on-campus mean of 79.2 is more than 10 percentage points higher than the off-campus mean of 67.9.  This sizeable difference in means on the core final exam prompted a run of t-tests for differences in the means for all these same variables in Math 03 and Math 04. 

First, for MTH 03, Table 3 shows the means for these same five variables, by site, and then   presents the t-values and levels of significance for differences between these means.

 

Table 3

Mean Scores on Math 03
Variables by Site—On Campus vs. Off Campus

 

  Variables                      Mean Score                          SD                                 t                                p

Core Final
On Campus n=168	80.7	11.05	5.16	<.0001
Off Campus n=93	68.7	20.82
COMPASS
On Campus n=168	36.2	8.49	-2.33	.020
Off Campus n=93	38.7	7.11
ASSET
On Campus n=168	36.6	3.43	-2.79	.006
Off Campus n=93	37.9	3.87
Age
On Campus n=168	25.0	7.64	-5.51	<.0001
Off Campus n=93	30.9	9.37
GPA
On Campus n=168	2.52	.92	-4.11	<.0001
Off Campus n=93	2.97	.73

  

Students in MTH 03 on-campus classes outperformed off-campus students on the core final exam at the <.0001 level of significance, even though off-campus students had significantly higher scores on the COMPASS (.02 level) and ASSET (.006 level) tests and higher GPA scores (<.0001 level) overall. 

Table 4 reveals consistent findings for on- and off-campus students in MTH 04.  MTH 04 on- campus students outperformed off-campus students on the core final exam at the <.0001 level also.  This better performance by on-campus MTH 04 students was achieved even when off-campus students had significantly higher (.004 level) COMPASS scores.  However, there were no significant differences in ASSET and GPA between on- and off-campus students in MTH 04.

 

Table 4

Mean Scores on Math 04

Variables by Site—On-Campus vs. Off-Campus

                       

     Variables                   Mean Score           SD                                 t                                  p

Core Final
On-Campus n=71	75.7	10.17	4.73	<.0001
Off-Campus n=32	65.6	10.03
COMPASS
On-Campus n=71	34.1	6.27	-2.921	.004
Off-Campus n=32	38.0	6.46
ASSET
On-Campus n=71	38.1	5.12	.471	.639
Off-Campus n=32	37.6	4.22
Age