PowerPoint Presentation

Redefine and Reform:Remedial Mathematics Education at CUNYPanel at the CUNY Mathematics Conference:Effective Instructional StrategiesMay 2014

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A College Completion CrisisIn the United States the need for employees with higher education credentials is growing faster than the supply.Yet in urban, public, community colleges, only 15% of students graduate within three years.At CUNY, only 30% of new community college students get either an associates or bachelors degree at CUNY within six years.At CUNY only 65% of community college new students are retained after the first year.

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A Mathematics Remediation CrisisIn the United States, about 60% of new college freshmen are assessed as needing remediation.Less than 50% of students assigned to remediation complete the whole sequence.Remedial students are less likely to graduate, perhaps due to the extra time and money needed for them to complete college, and/or due to the stigma associated with being a remedial student.

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A Mathematics Remediation CrisisCompleting the mathematics/quantitative requirement is the biggest block to college students success.At CUNY, 69% of fall 2012 new community college freshmen needed mathematics remediation, and that same semester only 38% of students who started remedial elementary algebra completed it successfully.

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This panel will present three methods that CUNY has been using to address these issues:BMCCs implementation of Quantway (Michael George and Eugene Milman)Queensboroughs streamlining of remedial mathematics education (Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri)Placement of remedial mathematics students into introductory statistics (Lexa Logue and Mari Watanabe-Rose)

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Suggest changing opening line to:This panel will present three methods that CUNY has been using to address these issues:

Suggest using closed or open circles or numbers instead of the check marks. Decrease text next to those marks and remove first person, such as like this:BMCCs implementation of Quantway (Eugene Milman and Michael George)Queensboroughs streamlining of remedial mathematics education (Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri)Placement of remedial mathematics students into introductory statistics (Lexa Logue and Mari Watanabe-Rose)

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QuantwayA Quantitative Reasoning Alternative for Developmental Mathematics

By Dr. Michael George Prof. Eugene Milman BMCC- Mathematics DepartmentMay 9th, 2014CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference7Quantway at BMCChttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTtaBIgFDSk 8The problem with remedial algebra9 Many students will never use it in their future coursework.

Many students will never use it in their careers

Many students will never use it in real life We need mathematics for the developmental student whose major is:10Behavioral Sciences (child development, psychology)Biological SciencesCareer TechnicalCommunications/JournalismCriminal Justice StudiesEnglish and Foreign LanguagesEnvironmental StudiesFine and Performing ArtsGeneral StudiesGeography/GeologyHealth Sciences (dental, medical, x-ray)

HumanitiesHospitality/Tourism/CulinaryHumanitiesKinesiology / AthleticsLiberal Arts Nutritional ScienceNursingOccupational TherapySocial Sciences (anthropology, history, poli sci, sociology)Social WorkUndecided

Quantway opens doors for studentsQuantway I CourseDesigned to replace traditional Beginning Algebra developmental math courseHas a strong focus on proportional reasoning and also covers algebraic topics such as linear and exponential equations Algebra is presented through a "quantitative literacy lens" with an emphasis on using and interpreting mathematics with less emphasis on algebraic manipulation of equations.Big emphasis on contexts: Citizenship, Personal Finance, and Medical FluencyAppropriate for students in programs that require a general education math course such as Math for Liberal Arts or program-specific math courses

11Quantway:Learning OutcomesNumerical SkillsProportional ReasoningMathematical ModelingAlgebraic ReasoningStatistical Thinking

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Traditional vs. QuantwayTM ApproachPoint to learning outcomes matrix in their packet13

Innovative Pedagogy 14Collaborative Learning

Productive Struggle

Comparative ConceptsLinear EquationsFind the equation of the line passing through the points (2,-4) and (-3,7).Write the equation in slope-intercept form.Quantway LinearYou want to have your own phone and need to decide which option costs less. Note that the descriptions of these options are examples of verbal representations of the mathematical relationships.Per-Minute Pricing: There is a monthly fee of $15.99 plus $0.13 per minute. Unlimited Plan: The plan costs $39.99 per month. The phone is free and unlimited minutes of talk time are included, but a two-year contract is required.Find linear models to help you decide.

15Origin of the Quantway CourseSponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of TeachingRepresentatives from eight community colleges from GA, NY, and OH involved in revision, development and piloting the original materialQuantway launched in Spring 2012 semester

16Quantway Network Improvement Community (NIC)1721 Community Colleges

10 States (CT, GA, HA, MA, MN, NJ, NY, OH, WV, WI)

Performance Analysis18Students Performance in Elementary Algebra and Quantitative Literacy courses, Spring 2012 Fall 2013 GROUPSPassedFailedElementary AlgebraN=10265 (405 sections) 38% 3901 62%6364Quantitative LiteracyN=1099 (44 sections) 60%654 40%445Performance AnalysisSpring 2012Fall 2012Spring 2013Fall 2013***CourseEAQLEAQLEAQLEAQLNumber of Sections1073977971710417Number of Students270072244717824434182675431Passed48%64%31%60%33%53%40%61%Did Not Pass**52%36%69%40%67%47%60%39%Students Performance (Expanded) in Elementary Algebra (EA) and Quantitative Literacy (QL) courses, Spring 2012 Fall 2013 19Propensity MatchingQL (N=418)EA Matched (N=418)All EA students(N=2433)Passed53%29%*33%** Fishers exact test shows these differences between QL and EA pass rates to be significant at a level of p = .000.Quantitative Literacy and Elementary Algebra, Spring 2013 pass ratesQuantitative Literacy N=418Elementary Algebra(Matched)N=418Pass:53%29%Fail:29%51%Withdrew Officially8%9%Withdrew Unofficially 8%9%Never attended2%2%Quantitative Literacy and Elementary Algebra, Spring 2013 Pass Rates20Quantitative Literacy and Elementary Algebra, Spring 2013 Pass RatesQL GroupEA Matched GroupEnrolled in next Level Math Course15987Passed11044% Passed69%51%QL and EA restricted matched cohort groups passing rates by the end of Fall 2013QL GroupEA Matched GroupEnrolled in credit-bearing math course15967Passed11040% Passed69%60%Propensity Matching21Future of the Quantway ProjectCurriculum still a work-in-progressFaculty training is essentialPromotion of Quantway Project in NY and beyond 22Elimination of the Remedial Arithmetic Course at QCC Jonathan Cornick and Karan PuriDepartment of Mathematics and Computer ScienceQueensborough Community College

24Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticElimination24Fall 2011 (QCC): Placement cut scores M1/M2 from 30/38 to 35/40Intuition: Students stronger with extra preparationReality: Students harmed by lengthened sequence/more exit pointsHigher Standards students (M1:30-34) shifted from elementary algebra to arithmetic do worse in completing first credit course 40% to 12% (Guy, Puri, Cornick 2013)

25Intuition about remediationJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationIn 2009:Redesigned ArithmeticSame curricular content.Shorter, 4 week, 20 hour course.More intensive. More engaging pedagogy.Problem solving oriented.Significantly higher passing rate 70% to 40%

26The OriginsJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticElimination26Students did no better in Elementary Algebra (Guy, Cornick, Holt, Russell 2013)Local and National: 20% of students who PASS a remedial class never register for the next class (Bailey, Jeong & Cho - 2010)Idea: Shorten Pipeline/Remove Exit Points27But.Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationG. Michael Guys 2012 talk at CUNY Mathematics Conference Success and Opportunity: Curricular and Structural Implications from Scaling Arithmetic WARM UPS 28Previous Conference

Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticElimination28Spring 2012: CEAFE exit from remediation. Common measure for data analysis across CUNYSpring 2013: Arithmetic course at QCC eliminatedArithmetic contextualized within elementary algebra

29Lets see what happens..Jonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationOverview of prerequisite scores: Prior to Spring 2013, 35 on the COMPASS M1 (Pre-algebra/Arithmetic subtest) and 40 on the COMPASS M2 (Elementary Algebra subtest). Groups studied: Those who placed into Arithmetic in Spring 2012 (Separate Arithmetic) against those who would have placed into Arithmetic in Spring 2013, had it existed (Contextualized Arithmetic).

30The affected groupsJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationContextualized Arithmetic Group success rate 27% (68/252), Separate Arithmetic Group success rate 19% (54/285).Spring 2012 success rates: Arithmetic students 17% (212/1251), Elementary Algebra students 35% (273/784). Total: 24% (490/2035).Spring 2013 success rates: Arithmetic students 26% (504/1938), Elementary Algebra students 44% (448/1010). Total 32% (952/2948).

31Elementary Algebra CompletionJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationThe increase in success rate (27% against 19%) for students in the Contextualized Group was statistically significant.The overall numbers show increased success in Spring 2013.Raw numbers successful increasing steadily every semester (200 to 300 per semester).Puri, K., Cornick, J. and Guy, G. M. (2014), An analysis of the impact of course elimination via contextualization in developmental mathematics. MathAMATYC Educator, 5(2), 4-10. 32The AnalysisJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationArithmetic of course still a concernContextualize arithmetic into elementary algebra textbook MyMathGPS (Cornick, Guy, Puri)Contextualization example - Fractions: linear equations, proportions and percentages, slopesAnalyze data for performance in credit-bearing courses33Moving ForwardJonathan Cornick and Karan Puri. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Queensborough Community College. CUNY 2014 Mathematics Conference: Effective Instructional Strategies. May 9, 2014ArithmeticEliminationMainstreaming Remedial Mathematics Students:Comparison of Performance in Elementary Algebra andIntroductory Statistics With Additional Support

Alexandra W. LogueMari Watanabe-RoseThe City University of New York

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AcknowledgementsThis research is being supported by the Spencer Foundation and CUNY.

We greatly appreciate the assistance of the following people at CUNY in conducting this research:

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Acknowledgements37

BMCCHOSTOS CCLAGUARDIA CCWORKSHOP LEADERSCENTRAL and GCMohammad AlamCarmen Coballes-VegaPaul ArcarioAna AlasDrew AllenAnupam BhatnagarAlice CunninghamAbderrazak BelkharrazJalven AlmeidaPaul AttewellSadie BraggOlen DiazBarbara CarsonVictoria ChanQudsia ChaughtaiHelena Darwin-ZimmerJames KennisReginald EzeJenny CheungColin ChellmanJane DelgadoJose La LuzKamal HajallieTheirno Diallo David CrookTodd GauglerElvis Lockward Jacky LeongAbdoulaye DialloGary DineJoseph M. GineseChristine ManginoFrantz LouisCarlo FervilDaniel DouglasAnnie HanFlix V. Matos RodrguezMahdi Majidi-ZolbaninDru GrossbergJingyun JianJae Ki LeeDaniel MaysonetRudy MeangruLuis HernandezKaren KappChristina LevKaitlin MooreGail O. MellowPatrycja KrawczukCurtis KendrickRobert MessinaLoreto PorteMarina NechayevaIvan LeeLauren LambertEdwin MossAngela RiosMuath ObaidatStephen LinDonna LindermanAntonio PrezBernard PolnarievRomina MoyanoRobert MarucaLucio PradoShayla PruittWagner RamosJohn MogulescuJean RichardBurhan Siddiqui Jonathan RogersRonald SpalterClaire WladisStephen SilvaJuan RosarioZun TangYibao XuGalina SagnoGordon TaylorMarcos ZymanXavier SantanaJulia WrigleyStephanie WijayaJustin WilliamsBagnikim YakadjenePossible Mainstreaming TechniquesIt has been argued that one way to address the blockages due to mathematics remediation would be to place remedial math students directly into college-level quantitative courses.Quasi-experimental analysis of the success of math remedial students taking college-level quantitative courses has yielded conflicting results.In related approaches, remedial math students have been placed into college-level math courses with extra support. The results have been encouraging, but controlled experiments have not been conducted.

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Last word should be conducted instead of used.38Current ExperimentPurposeTo use a randomized controlled trial to determine whether students, assessed by their community colleges as needing elementary algebra (a remedial math course), could instead succeed at least as well in a college-level, credit-bearing introductory statistics course with extra support (a weekly workshop) 39

Underlining is good.39Current ExperimentRandom Assignment721 participants at BMCC, Hostos, and LaGuardia to:Group 1) Traditional remedial elementary algebraGroup 2) Traditional remedial elementary algebra with a weekly workshopGroup 3) Introductory, college-level, statistics with a weekly workshopWorkshopsLed by advanced, trained, supervised undergraduates40

Table 1Pass Rates in the Three Course Types__________________________________________ Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Elementary Algebra Elementary Algebra Intro to Stats + Weekly Workshop + Weekly Workshop

Number % Number % Number %of Students Passing of Students Passingof Students Passing 245 38.0% 230 44.8% 246 55.7%_______________________________________________________________________

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Can you add a very brief explanation of the group under the Group title in each column above, similar to what doing on the graph slide?41ResultsThere is a trend for the addition of the workshop to traditional remedial mathematics (elementary algebra) to increase pass rates (p = .131). The pass rate for statistics was significantly greater than that for elementary algebra with workshop (p = .017).

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42ResultsVariables significantly positively correlated with passing statistics: Compass scores and high school GPA (overall and in math).Variable significantly negatively correlated with passing statistics: the date at which the student agreed to participate in the experiment and registered for the class (i.e., students who agreed to participate earlier did better in statistics).

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44ConclusionsAdding a weekly workshop seems to improve students performance in elementary algebraStudents placed into statistics (with a weekly workshop) had the highest pass rate.Certain student characteristics are associated with a greater probability of passing statistics.

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ConclusionsIntroductory statistics (with extra support) may be a viable alternative for students who would otherwise have been placed into elementary algebra and who do not need college algebra for their programs.Mainstreaming remedial math students may save them time and money and reduce stigma, and thereby increase college completion rates.We are continuing to follow these students to determine the long-term effects of this intervention

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Thank you.47