Do not treat a placement result as a fixed ability

Here, developmental education means academic coursework or support intended to prepare students for college-level classes. Developmental placement can shape later coursework, but one placement score cannot fully describe a student’s academic potential or support needs. Colleges can examine pathways that allow students to enter credit-bearing courses with appropriate academic support. Available options depend on institutional policy and current requirements, which should be checked locally.

Put coursework and support on the same schedule

Advisers can review prerequisites, course sequence, tutoring, and advising availability with each student. Ask whether work hours, fees, caregiving, or transportation make the proposed schedule usable. For example, if a student anticipates difficulty in an initial course, the plan can identify when advising or tutoring is available before and after classes instead of waiting until the next registration period. This is an illustrative planning example, not an observed result at a particular college.

Review the full pathway, not one pass rate

Track first-term credits, entry into the next course, repeat enrollment, and persistence into the next term alongside gateway-course completion. Where data allow, examine group differences to assess access to support without using background characteristics to label or explain an individual. Changes to placement or course design should be judged across the pathway students experience; results from one institution do not automatically transfer to another college or population.

Questions for implementation

Is support available at times students can use? Do the measures show credit accumulation and next-term persistence in addition to a single gateway pass rate?

Sources: WWC: Strategies for Postsecondary Students in Developmental Education · Gloria Crisp and Chryssa Delgado, “The Impact of Developmental Education on Community College Persistence and Vertical Transfer” (2014)