Where in the News is Developmental Education?

1. Last month, MDRC released a report that analyzes the current research available on developmental education. In Unlocking the Gate: What We Know About Improving Developmental Education, MDRC “identifies the most promising approaches for revising the structure, curriculum, or delivery of developmental education and suggests areas for future innovations in developmental education practice and research.” 
2. A recent Hechinger Report article, “Two years after Obama’s college graduation initiative, major obstacles remain,” examines progress made towards the American Graduation Initiative’s goal of drastically improving the proportion of young people with college degrees.
3. Mark your calendars! On August 4th, Jobs for the Future and Getting Past Go are hosting an online jam. The title and topic of the real-time, online discussion will be “Ending the Failure of Severely Under-Prepared Adults in Higher Education in a Time of Fiscal Restraint.” 
4. Over at Completion Matters, you can view a video of Steven Johnson, president of one of our DEI institutions, Sinclair Community College. President Johnson discusses the role of student supports in developmental education and student success.
5. Yesterday, Inside Higher Ed ran an article from Bruce Vandal and Jane Wellman on the “5 Myths of Remedial Ed.” The authors effectively debunk five insidious, but surprisingly common, myths about developmental education:
• Myth 1: Remedial Education is K-12’s problem;
• Myth 2: Remedial Education is a Short-Term Problem;
• Myth 3: Colleges Effectively Determine College Readiness;
• Myth 4: Remedial Education is Bankrupting the System;
• Myth 5: Maybe Some Students are Just Not College Material