Prerequisites as a Pathway to Student Success

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Prerequisites as a Pathway to Student Success

• Mark Wade Lieu, ASCCC President
• Jane Patton, ASCCC Vice President
• Janet Fulks, ASCCC Curriculum Chair

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Current Status with prerequistes

• Take a quiz

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True or False

• Most institutions of higher education in the US
  create prerequisites based upon faculty expertise
  and content review, without statistical
  validation.
• a. True
• b. False

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True or False

• The MALDEF case resulted in a verdict requiring
  CCCs to justify and validate prerequisites
  through content review, statistical analysis and
  comparability with other similar courses and
  those requirements.
• a. True
• b. False

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True or False

• It is difficult to find data that suggest that
  having college level reading or writing increases
  student success in transferable general education
  courses.
• a. True
• b. False

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True or False

• CSUs and UCs do not require basic skills
  prerequisites.
• a. True
• b. False

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True or False

• Students are not in support of applying
  prerequisites to courses.
• a. True
• b. False

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A Little Context

• RP Letter
• Basic Skills Initiative
• Board of Governors Motion on Assessment Task
  Force
• Assessment Action Planning Group (APG)
• Legislative Interest

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A Little Background

• Prerequisites Pre-1990
• The Role of MALDEF
• The Revisionist 90s
• Where we are today

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Definitions
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Pre requisite

• . . . a condition of enrollment that a student
  is required to meet in order to demonstrate
  current readiness for enrollment in a course or
  educational program.

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Co requisite

• . . . a condition of enrollment consisting of a
  course that a student is required to
  simultaneously take in order to enroll in another
  course.

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Advisory

• . . . a condition of enrollment that a student
  is advised, but not required, to meet before or
  in conjunction with enrollment in a course or
  educational program.

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Statistical Validation

• Standard research methods
• 1)a correlation coefficient such as the Pearson r
• 2)a matrix or four-cell table and accompanying
  chi-square
• 3)a matrix or four-cell analysis showing net
  increase in accuracy
• Goals 1) minimize students who pass without the
  prerequisite
• 2) significant chi-square, typically gt 3.84 (here
  P2 60, significant at the 0.05 level,
• 3) maximize right/wrong ratio, typically 21
  (here 9010 91), 4) maximize incremental gain
  in success, typically by 10 (here before
  applying the prerequisite 67/100 67, after
  applying the prerequisite 66/75 88 21 gain).
• From Good Practice for the Implementation of
  Prerequisites p.5

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Content Review

• Content review including, at a minimum, all of
  the following
•  i. involvement of faculty with appropriate
  expertise
•  ii. consideration of course objectives set by
  relevant department(s)
• iii. be based on a detailed course syllabus and
  outline of record, tests, related instructional
  materials, course format, type and number of
  examinations, and grading criteria
•  iv. specification of the body of knowledge
  and/or skills deemed necessary
•  v. identification and review of knowledge and/or
  measures skills identified under iv.
• vi. matching of the knowledge and skills in the
  targeted course and those developed or measured
  by the prerequisite or corequisite (i.e., the
  course or assessment identified under v.) and
•  vii. maintain documentation that the above steps
  were taken.
• From The Model District Policy on Prerequisites,
  Corequisites, and Advisories on Recommended
  Preparation
• page 5 Board of Governors September 1993

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Name That Level of Scrutiny!
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Levels of Scrutiny

• Content Review
• Plus data collection and analysis
• Plus assessment instrument (approved by the
  Chancellors Office)
• Plus validated cut-off scores
• Plus multiple measures
• Plus disproportionate impact study

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Type of Requisite

• Courses in communication or computational skills
  outside discipline. . .

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Level of Scrutiny

• Content Review
• Plus data collection and analysis
• Example
• Math 4A as a Prerequisite for Physics 2A

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Type of Requisite

• Assessment for Placement (for use within the same
  discipline). . .

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Level of Scrutiny

• Content Review
• Plus assessment instrument (approved by the
  Chancellors Office)
• Plus validated cut-off scores
• Plus multiple measures
• Plus disproportionate impact study
• Example
• Score on placement or ESL 63 as prerequisite for
  ESL 64

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Type of Requisite

• Limitation on Enrollment Performance courses. .
  .

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Level of Scrutiny

• Other courses are available to meet
  degree/certificate requirements
• Plus disproportionate impact study
• Example
• Audition for Dance 22

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Why prerequisites?

• General Principles
• assessment of student proficiencies benefits
  colleges and students success
• absence of clear minimum expectations does a
  disservice to students, our institutions, and the
  state
• establishment of prerequisites should be fair and
  just with appeals processes per Title 5

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Why prerequisites?

• General Principles
• 4. faculty have an obligation to establish a
  learning environment that is conducive to the
  success of all students
• 5. validation processes that are dependent upon
  student failure are contrary to aiding their
  students to achieve their academic goals
• 6. college-level courses should expect and
  require students to use and further develop
  college-level skills

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Why prerequisites?

• General Principles
• 7. prerequisites decisions should be made based
  on academic considerations, not programmatic or
  enrollment/apportionment impact
• 8. there should be easily identifiable course
  options for all students regardless of their
  skill level

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Why Prerequisites?

• Psychology Success Rates
• 75.2 with college level reading
• Only 49.0 without
• DATA from Bakersfield College
• Total2523
• Fall 2001-Summer 2003

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Why Prerequisites?

• Economics Success Rates
• 87 with Intermediate Algebra
• 47 with Elementary Algebra
• 22 with Pre-algebra
• DATA from Foothill College
• total303
• Fall 2008 only

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Why Prerequisites?

• Two reading possibilities for transfer level
  History were explored
• Successful completion of reading graduation
  requirement
• One level below
• The results.
• DATA from Chaffey College

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Why arent prerequisites implemented in
California Colleges? Tweak?

• Validation
• MALDEF Lawsuit
• Fears
• Concerns for Our Students

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Options to consider

• Use the worksheet
• Option 1 Content Review
• Option 2 Statewide Prerequisites
• Across topics
• Content Review

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Next Steps

• Academic Senate Spring Plenary Session
  Resolutions
• Assessment APG Recommendations
• Share with local faculty

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Thank You