Attendance
Pilot Project for Developmental Math
During
the Spring 2008 semester, weekly attendance was monitored in developmental math
classes taught by Darrin Clark; these classes included two sections of MT 055,
two sections of MT 065 and one section of MT 120. The weekly reports were turned in to the
Academic Dean, Dr. Wheeler Conover, Chair of Natural Sciences, Patricia Scopa, Dean
of Student Affairs, Karin Gibson, and Financial Aid Director, Charlotte
Lockaby. Darrin Clark reported poor
attendance in developmental math classes. Robin Haggerty reported similar
results for the Middlesboro campus. A
solution to poor attendance has been developed by the Financial Aid Department to
hold students’ financial aid checks until they make-up
academic delinquencies and work in their classes to obtain a completion note
from the instructor. Student progress
report letters were also sent out at the instructor's request to students
advising students of their current academic progress.
Dr.
Rick Mason, Director of
Institutional Effectiveness computed a correlation between final grades
and attendance using Darrin Clark’s classes and the attendance records that he
kept during the semester. Dr. Mason found that the correlation – using the Pearson r – was
quite strong at -.61. With 65 total students, this is significant even at
the .001 level. The result is negative
because as the number of absences rise, the resulting grades decline. Dr. Mason explained that the
two variables, attendance and grades, are definitely related, and that
attendance appears to be a strong predictor of success in the course. We
know, however, that there are other contributing factors as well, such as the
skill levels of students when they enter a course and their ability to perform
well on tests.
As
a solution, the QEP committee will continue to work with Student Services in order to increase attendance
for developmental math classes as well as all other Southeast classes. The committee will continue follow-up for
increased attendance and grade comparison data during the next two semesters.