Increase postsecondary graduation rates by aligning college math courses to student goals
Why This Matters
A major challenge facing many college students is the lack of academic preparedness, especially in college-level math.
Entering postsecondary unprepared not only poses an obstacle for math success, but failure can impact prerequisite requirements for subsequent courses and completion. E3 Alliance research affirms the problem.
Students completing one year of math beyond Algebra II in high school were twice as likely to achieve a college degree or certificate.
The Promising Practice
Huston-Tillotson University (HT) recognized that the last course a student completed prior to enrollment was a key predictor of persistence and completion. Given this impact, HT strategically made innovative changes.
Rather than advising most freshmen into College Algebra, they now intentionally target math selection to students’ major and career aspirations.
“HT looks very closely at the math preparation of incoming students and places students onto one of three tracks for College Algebra. Students with weak math skills go into Introduction to Algebra. Those with intermediate skills shift into a co-requisite model, and stronger students move directly into College Algebra or a higher-level math.
Our goal is to match students’ skills with a learning path to maximize success and matriculation. For social science and humanities majors we direct most students to Math for Liberal Arts as opposed to College Algebra. This meets their professional needs and removes Introduction to Algebra as a pre-req.”
– Dr.Michael L.Hirsch, Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences
HT transformed the way math curriculum and faculty align across the institution. They meet students where they are while providing support and resources necessary for graduation.
