Case Studies
Roosevelt University
Key Take-Away
By leveraging MyMathTest’s individualized study plans, students in Roosevelt University’s Math PReP program focused on the exact skills they needed to learn. As a result, the majority of students placed into higher-level courses and experienced success once there.
Course Implementation
Course Design
Math PReP is a fully online placement program designed to enable students to challenge their math placement scores. For a small fee, students who feel they have been placed incorrectly take an exit exam in MyMathTest and then, on their own time, follow an individualized
MyMathTest study plan. Upon completion of the study plan, students take a final test. All tests take place on campus, are proctored, and are completed before the onset of the next semester.
Roosevelt University used MyMathTest for the first time in summer 2009..
Assessments
Students must earn 75 percent or higher on their exit exam to register for the next-level math class. They are allowed three attempts at the exam.
Use of MyMathTest
Math PReP uses tests that are created from MyMathTest’s bank of problems. Students use the study plan and are encouraged to use the practice tests. MyMathTest is the only item used for determining whether the student will move to a higher-level math class.
Results and Data
Using data from MyMathTest’s Gradebook, instructors Mary Williams and Cathy Evins tracked and compared the MyMathTest-enabled Math PReP’s success across a variety of metrics. Table 1 cross-references the program from the first semester it was implemented on each of the
school’s two campuses with students’ placement gains and subsequent course grades. It is worthy to note that the Chicago campus comprises primarily traditional students, while the Schaumburg campus comprises primarily adult, returning students.
The data indicates that of those students who actively participate in Math PReP with MyMathTest, the majority both place into higher-level courses and do well in those courses. Table 2 illustrates that over the course of three semesters, an average of 63.7 percent of students successfully completed the program.
Table 3 breaks down the success rates in each of the three math courses and shows that Math PReP students succeed in the next math course whether they pass to a higher level or stay in the originally recommended course. Williams and Evins report that the program has had a positive impact on retention. “So far, most are continuing their math courses with success and staying in the university,” says Williams.
The Student Experience
Students who actively participate in the program move ahead in the math sequence with good grades and increased confidence in themselves and their ability to achieve—regardless of whether or not they advance to a higher-level course. In addition, students who successfully complete Math PReP save money by reducing the number of developmental math courses they must take.
Conclusions
Roosevelt University’s MyMathTest-enabled Math PReP empowers students by providing them with an interactive, user-friendly way to brush up on their math skills and more quickly advance through the developmental math sequence. MyMathTest’s individual student plans enable
students to focus solely on what they need to learn. No time is wasted on irrelevant lessons, and students are kept interested and engaged.
“By offering this program, we are helping students build their self-confidence, encouraging them to be accountable for their placement, and helping them discover that they really can learn math,” says Williams. --Submitted by Mary Willliams and Cathy Evins, Math Instructors, Roosevelt University
| Product Used: | MyMathTest |
| Course Name: | Math Placement Reassessment Program (PReP) |
| Credit Hours: | 0 |
