A Call for Change
With a shift in focus from access to completion of degrees, it is now more critical than ever to address the issue of students showing up to college academically unprepared, especially when the national data shows the majority of students who begin in remedial courses never complete their college degrees. Watch the video or continue reading below to hear about the steps Berkshire Community College (BCC) is taking—and piloting—to make a change.
Pass Rates Increased
In the fall of 2014 before the pilot was introduced, 41% of students passed the remedial reading course at BCC. Through the combined efforts of the Disability Resource Center and faculty at BCC, and support from k3000, 94% of students passed the remedial reading course. Watch the video to get the details.
"What I found in this pilot program is that the students who really need the software are using it, and benefitting from it. - Pamela Farron, Coordinator of the Disability Resource Center at BCC"
The Statistics Are Staggering
Students who struggle with reading, writing and/or math are increasing at community colleges nationwide. At the same time, the pressure is on to raise graduation rates, meet workforce needs, and close achievement gaps. What's more, in some states, like Massachusetts for example, college funding is now tied to its ability to meet these performance standards.
After learning about the number of students who place in remedial courses at Berkshire Community College (BCC), Pamela Farron, Coordinator of the Disability Resource Center at BCC, proposed a pilot study utilizing
k3000 Web Access (firefly), a web-based literacy tool, in their developmental reading courses. Her hypothesis was that utilization of this program would enable students to be more engaged in the learning process, improve their reading placement scores, and minimize time spent in remedial reading.