COMMENTARY: Characterizing the Effectiveness of Developmental Education: A Response to Recent Criticism

Research conducted by the Community College Research Center (CCRC) and others was criticized in an article by Alexandros M. Goudas and Hunter R. Boylan (2012) published in the Journal of Developmental Education, Volume 36, Issue 1. They raise specific contentions related to the methodology applied in the CCRC studies, the review of related literature, and stated findings. Their article claims that we and others have overgeneralized, misinterpreted, and misapplied the data andresearch to advance a reform agenda that involves replacing prerequisite with corequisite developmental education. In this commentary we show that their key claims do not stand up to scrutiny. Moreover, we point out that, although we think research so far suggests that corequisite models have potential as part of a comprehensive reform of developmental education, we have never called for the elimination of prerequisite remediation. We conclude with some general suggestions—based on our research findings—for strengthening the services that community colleges provide to students with weak academic skills.