Citation
Emmerson, J. (2009). Leading them to water: A study of the efficacy of a Mandatory Placement Project in first-year academic courses at a community college. Graduate Theses and Dissertations, paper 10661. Retrieved from http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/10661
Highlights
- This study’s objective was to examine the effects of Des Moines Area Community College’s Mandatory Placement Project on credit completion and fall-to-spring semester persistence. The intervention included intensive counseling and developmental courses for first-time, full-time community college students whose late registration suggested a high risk of not persisting.
- The study used administrative records to compare outcomes of a group of 270 students who were required to meet with an advisor and strongly encouraged to participate in one of six developmental courses with those of a comparison group of 174 students who received no counseling and were not advised to take developmental courses.
- The study found that participation in one of the six developmental courses was significantly and positively associated with fall-to-spring semester persistence.
- The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the author did not adequately account for existing differences between the treatment and comparison groups. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Mandatory Placement Project. Other factors are likely to have contributed.
Intervention Examined
The Mandatory Placement Project
Features of the Intervention
Des Moines Area Community College began a pilot of the Mandatory Placement Project in fall 2006 to improve students’ grades, credit completion, and persistence. The Mandatory Placement Project was piloted among students registering during the two-week period before classes started; a 2004 study at the college had identified such students as being at a particularly high risk for low levels of academic success and persistence. Additional eligibility criteria included being a full-time student who had never enrolled at Des Moines Area Community College before. Mandatory Placement students were required to meet with an advisor who strongly advised that students enroll in at least one developmental course. Mandatory Placement students could choose among six developmental course options: (1) The College Experience, (2) Study Strategies, (3) Learning Communities, (4) College Preparatory Reading, (5) College Preparatory Writing, or (6) College Preparatory Math. In addition to taking developmental courses, students were required to meet with an advisor to modify their course schedules or reenroll for the following semester.
Features of the Study
The study used administrative records to compare credit completion and fall-to-spring semester persistence of students in treatment and comparison groups at Des Moines Area Community College, Ankeny Campus. During the two-week period before courses began, 278 eligible students who registered made up the treatment group and were required to meet with an advisor and strongly encouraged to participate in one of six developmental courses. The comparison group consisted of 174 eligible students who registered during the first week of classes. These students received no counseling and were not advised to take developmental courses. The authors used statistical techniques to estimate the effect of the program.
Findings
- The study found that participation in one of the six developmental courses was significantly and positively associated with fall-to-spring semester persistence.
Considerations for Interpreting the Findings
The author did not control for the previous academic achievement of students in the treatment group and students in the comparison group. Moreover, students registering before courses begin (who were included in the treatment group) are likely to differ systematically from students registering later (who were included in the comparison group) in unobservable ways, such as motivation. Therefore, the estimated relationship between participating in a developmental course and persistence may reflect underlying differences between the students being compared and not the effect of participating in a developmental course. For this reason, the study is not eligible for a moderate causal evidence rating.
Causal Evidence Rating
The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the author did not adequately account for existing differences between the treatment and comparison groups. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Mandatory Placement Project. Other factors are likely to have contributed.