Presenters: Madeline Marcotte, Brian Goedde, Sarah Byker James
Audience: Faculty, Administrators

Learning Goals

Participants will:

• Analyze and interpret research supporting corequisite developmental structures
• Evaluate instructional plans for corequisite developmental English classes
• Develop the implications of both the research and CCP’s reform on their roles as faculty, advisors, and counselors

Seminar Description

Since the 1970s, institutions of higher learning have designed developmental English sequences to give underprepared students more time to master academic skills before they attempt college classes. The intent, of course, was to increase their chances of success in their college-level courses. However, research indicates that these sequences often become barriers–even for students who pass their developmental coursework. Therefore, many institutions are redesigning around co-requisite courses, placing students traditionally deemed underprepared directly into college-level courses with additional support. 

In this seminar, faculty and administrators will learn about such reform here at CCP. Presenters will discuss the best practices distilled from studies on corequisite reform in places like Houston County Community College and CUNY. They will explain how the corequisite model provides more opportunities for practice and collaboration than the traditional prerequisite developmental structure. Finally, presenters will address the issues of equity, inclusion, and student engagement raised by this reform.