Patel, Reshma; Valenzuela, Ireri (2013). MDRC. Retrieved from: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED545467
Reviewed: June 2021
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
Evidence tier |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Cumulative GPA (3.0-4.0) through 2 semesters |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
30.00 |
31.60 |
No |
-- | ||
| Show Supplemental Findings | |||||||||
|
Grade of C or better in 12+ credits_second semester |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
28.30 |
16.90 |
Yes |
|
||
|
Cumulative GPA (2.0-2.9) through 2 semesters |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
34.90 |
32.10 |
No |
-- | ||
|
second semester term GPA 2.0 or higher |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
34.90 |
32.10 |
No |
-- | ||
|
first semester term GPA 3.0 or higher |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
1 Semester |
Full sample;
|
34.80 |
35.40 |
No |
-- | ||
|
second semester term GPA 3.0 or higher |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
26.10 |
28.70 |
No |
-- | ||
|
Outcome measure |
Comparison | Period | Sample |
Intervention mean |
Comparison mean |
Significant? |
Improvement index |
Evidence tier |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
cumulative_number of semesters registered |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
1.80 |
1.70 |
Yes |
|
|
|
|
cumulative average number of college-level credits earned |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
13.70 |
12.10 |
Yes |
|
|
|
|
second semester registered for any course |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
78.60 |
74.00 |
No |
-- | ||
| Show Supplemental Findings | |||||||||
|
Second semester average number of college-level credits earned |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
2 Semesters |
Full sample;
|
8.30 |
7.30 |
Yes |
|
||
|
First semester average number of college-level credits earned |
Student Support Services paired with performance-based scholarship vs. Business as usual |
1 Semester |
Full sample;
|
6.90 |
6.50 |
No |
-- | ||
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
| Hispanic | 100% | |
| Not Hispanic or Latino | 0% |
The study took place on six campuses of Pima Community College, a two-year, Hispanic-serving institution with locations throughout the greater Tucson Metropolitan Area in Southern Arizona.
All study participants were Latino males with an average age of 24.3 years old. Among them, 36.7% were first-generation college students. About 59% of the students spoke a language other than English at home. About 37.5% of the families received some government benefits, such as food stamps, cash assistance, or welfare.
The Adelante program was a performance-based scholarship (demonstration) project in which students received scholarships (up to $4500 over three semesters) and other support contingent upon academic progress and achievement in college. There were five main components to the program: 1) An initial program orientation; 2) Advising - each student was assigned to an adviser at the start of his first semester. Advisers used a checklist of topics to cover over their advising sessions and were encouraged to use Spanish appropriately as needed; 3) Tutoring and academic workshops - Students were encouraged to take advantage of tutoring and academic workshops (which they feel were required); 4) Platicas were presentation, discussion, and guest speaker sessions featuring topics and guests of interest to the Adelante students; and 5) the award structure itself in which students were recognized (monetarily) for the level of their participation in events and their academic achievement.
The comparison condition was business as usual. Students had access to the typical services offered and financial aid available to them at Pima.
Pima hired three full-time staff members to oversee the day-to-day operations of Adelante: a program coordinator, a full-time adviser, and a support specialist. The program’s advising capacity was augmented by Pima’s general advisers, who volunteered to advise students in Adelante. These advisers had caseloads of up to 35 program group students on top of their regular, full-time advising responsibilities. In addition, the program had oversight from a high-level administrator and support from the college’s leadership.
Reviewed: November 2016
Strategies for Postsecondary Students in Developmental Education–A Practice Guide for College and University Administrators, Advisors, and Faculty Practice Guide
(findings for Strategies for Postsecondary Students in Developmental Education)
This review may not reflect the full body of research evidence for this intervention.
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
An indicator of the effect of the intervention, the improvement index can be interpreted as the expected change in percentile rank for an average comparison group student if that student had received the intervention.
For more, please see the WWC Glossary entry for improvement index.
An outcome is the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are attained as a result of an activity. An outcome measures is an instrument, device, or method that provides data on the outcome.
A finding that is included in the effectiveness rating. Excluded findings may include subgroups and subscales.
The sample on which the analysis was conducted.
The group to which the intervention group is compared, which may include a different intervention, business as usual, or no services.
The timing of the post-intervention outcome measure.
The number of students included in the analysis.
The mean score of students in the intervention group.
The mean score of students in the comparison group.
The WWC considers a finding to be statistically significant if the likelihood that the finding is due to chance alone, rather than a real difference, is less than five percent.
The WWC reviews studies for WWC products, Department of Education grant competitions, and IES performance measures.
The name and version of the document used to guide the review of the study.
The version of the WWC design standards used to guide the review of the study.
The result of the WWC assessment of the study. The rating is based on the strength of evidence of the effectiveness of the intervention. Studies are given a rating of Meets WWC Design Standards without Reservations, Meets WWC Design Standards with Reservations, or >Does Not Meet WWC Design Standards.
A related publication that was reviewed alongside the main study of interest.
Study findings for this report.
Based on the direction, magnitude, and statistical significance of the findings within a domain, the WWC characterizes the findings from a study as one of the following: statistically significant positive effects, substantively important positive effects, indeterminate effects, substantively important negative effects, and statistically significant negative effects. For more, please see the WWC Handbook.
The WWC may review studies for multiple purposes, including different reports and re-reviews using updated standards. Each WWC review of this study is listed in the dropdown. Details on any review may be accessed by making a selection from the drop down list.
Evidence Tier
The Department of Education’s evidence tiers. For more information, please see the WWC Glossary entry for evidence tiers.
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