Theses and Dissertations

Issuing Body

Mississippi State University

Advisor

Stumpf, Arthur D.

Committee Member

Davis, James E.

Committee Member

King, Stephanie B.

Committee Member

Wiseman, William M.

Date of Degree

5-6-2017

Document Type

Dissertation - Open Access

Major

Community College Leadership

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

College

College of Education

Department

Department of Educational Leadership

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the accelerated course learning format on student achievement in developmental English and math courses offered at a rural community college. Due to a rise in the number of underprepared students who enroll in community college, some college officials implemented the accelerated course learning format to allow students to complete developmental coursework in a shorter timeframe. Research on the utilization of the accelerated learning format in developmental education has been conducted in urban areas, and this study provides research and findings from a rural perspective. Historical enrollment data were used to find out if the accelerated course learning format method of instruction increased a student’s developmental course success and college-level persistence. The enrollment of students enrolled in at least 1 developmental English or math course offered in an accelerated or traditional format during the fall 2010 through fall 2015 enrollment period was tracked to evaluate success and persistence. A non-experimental, comparative research design was used to evaluate the relationship between 1 independent variable (method of instruction: traditional or accelerated) and 2 dependent variables (success: grade of A, B, or C and persistence: proceeded to and successfully completed the college level course: English Composition I and College Algebra). The data collected were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 24.0. Descriptive statistics were also used to analyze the data, and Chi Square tests were used to determine how well the experiential distribution of data fits with the distribution that was anticipated with the independent variables. In reviewing the findings, results were consistent for each developmental course, in English and math. Students enrolled in 8-week courses consistently outperformed students enrolled in 16-week courses. Recommendations for future research include a review of students who withdrew and a discussion of demographics to determine if students withdrew because it was too fast. Another recommendation is to evaluate students who repeated courses and changed formats.

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11668/17579

Comments

developmental education||student achievement||accelerated learning

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