2016 Annual Conference

This qualitative analysis of college developmental math instructors’ perceptions of success is a rich and contextually significant description of student success. Instructors interviewed made little reference to course completion in terms of success. They experience success, know what success is, and routinely promote success of students according to their perceptions.

Educational practitioners and researchers interested in the success of developmental math students are the primary audience. Developmental math instructors will also find value in the research’s implications for practice and for their own professional development and growth. Additionally, psychologists interested in student self-efficacy’s influence on subject performance are an appropriate audience.

The session will start with an introduction to the research’s topic, problem, purpose, and questions through a power point and supporting handouts. Developmental math courses are considered “gatekeeper” courses to higher education, and can highly prolong students’ timeline to college graduation. Success of students in these courses impact college career paths and overall college experiences of students. The research presented here, acknowledges a different concept of student success, as described by instructors, that is not previously recognized as significant within the context of college math courses. Developmental math courses in community colleges are currently receiving attention and experiencing program changes to promote students’ success, and this information is crucial to guiding those changes. Next thee will be an open facilitated discussion on success in developmental math contexts. The session will conclude with further discussion of why faculty views success differently, and in what contexts those views could or should potentially change.