At least one finding shows strong evidence of effectiveness
At least one statistically significant positive finding
Meets WWC standards without reservations
Rating:
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Meets WWC standards without reservations
because it is a randomized controlled trial with low attrition.
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.
Academic achievement outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure
|
Comparison
|
Period
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Sample
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Intervention mean
|
Comparison mean
|
Significant?
|
Improvement index
|
Evidence tier
|
Passed course
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
0.48
|
0.36
|
Yes
|
|
|
Passed course
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
0.48
|
0.31
|
Yes
|
|
|
Number of Non-STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
2.19
|
1.67
|
No
|
--
|
|
Passed course
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
0 Days
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
0.36
|
0.31
|
No
|
--
|
|
Number of STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
0.40
|
0.33
|
No
|
--
|
|
Number of Non-STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
2.19
|
2.00
|
No
|
--
|
|
Number of STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
0.40
|
0.44
|
No
|
--
|
|
Number of STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
0.33
|
0.44
|
No
|
--
|
|
Number of Non-STEM Courses Passed
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
1.67
|
2.00
|
No
|
--
|
|
Credit accumulation and persistence outcomes—Statistically significant positive effect found for the domain
Outcome measure
|
Comparison
|
Period
|
Sample
|
Intervention mean
|
Comparison mean
|
Significant?
|
Improvement index
|
Evidence tier
|
Total credits
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: Stat-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
20.04
|
14.66
|
Yes
|
|
|
Fall-to-Fall Enrollment Persistence
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
9 Months
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
0.60
|
0.51
|
Yes
|
|
|
Total credits
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
19.93
|
15.53
|
Yes
|
|
|
Total Number of College Credits Earned, Excluding Statistics
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA-WS;
610 students
|
18.54
|
14.66
|
Yes
|
|
|
Total Number of College Credits Earned, Excluding Statistics
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
18.40
|
15.53
|
Yes
|
|
|
Fall-to-Fall Enrollment Persistence
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
9 Months
|
Full sample: STAT-WS v. EA;
594 students
|
0.60
|
0.55
|
No
|
--
|
|
Total credits
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
14.66
|
15.53
|
No
|
--
|
|
Total Number of College Credits Earned, Excluding Statistics
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
1 Year
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
14.66
|
15.53
|
No
|
--
|
|
Fall-to-Fall Enrollment Persistence
|
Mainstreaming vs.
Business as usual
|
9 Months
|
Full sample: EA-WS v. EA;
610 students
|
0.51
|
0.55
|
No
|
--
|
|
Evidence Tier rating based solely on this study. This intervention may achieve a higher tier when combined with the full body of evidence.
Characteristics of study sample as reported by study author.
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Female: 55%
Male: 45%
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New York
Setting
The study was conducted at three City University of New York (CUNY) community colleges, one in each of three NYC boroughs: the Bronx, Queens and Manhattan.
Study sample
Across all three groups, 55% of students were female (55% in Stat-WS, 58% in EA-WS, and 51% in EA), and 86% of students were underrepresented minorities (84% in Stat-WS, 88% in EA-WS, and 87% in EA). In each of the three groups, the majority of students (56%) reported that their first language was English. The average age of study participants was 21 years old.
Intervention Group
The intervention (Stat-WS) was a mainstream, credit-bearing, college-level introductory statistics course (Stat-WS), delivered in the fall of 2013. Course topics included probability, binomial probability distributions, normal distributions, confidence intervals, and hypothesis testing. The course was held over one semester and lasted between 3 and 6 hours per week, depending on the college. The course required students to attend a two-hour workshop every week for supplemental instruction on statistical concepts and problems. The workshops had three components: (1) 10-15 minutes of reflection on concepts learned so far and what was difficult; (2) about 100 minutes of individual and group work on difficult topics and problems, and (3) a final five minutes of reflection on whether the difficult issues were addressed or not. The 24 class sections that included workshops were taught by 21 workshop leaders, who were either advanced undergraduates or recent graduates of CUNY.
Comparison Group
The primary comparison group was a traditional non-credit-bearing remedial algebra course that included supplemental weekly workshops (EA-WS). The course covered topics such as linear equations, exponents, polynomials, and quadratic equations. Students in both comparison groups took the mandatory CUNY-wide elementary final and received their grade based on a CUNY-wide elementary algebra-grading rubric. The weekly workshops delivered to the EA-WS group followed the same three-component structure implemented for the workshops in the intervention group.
Support for implementation
Instructors attended a six-hour orientation workshop, met monthly with researchers, and met weekly with the workshop leaders assigned to their two sections (Stat-WS and EA-WS). The study’s 21 workshop leaders completed 10 hours of training focused on the details of the study as well as methods for conducting the workshops. Workshop leaders also met monthly with the researchers to discuss concerns and other issues as needed.
In the case of multiple manuscripts that report on one study, the WWC selects one manuscript as the primary citation and lists other manuscripts that describe the study as additional sources.
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Logue, A. W., Watanabe-Rose, M., & Douglas, D. (2015, April). Elementary algebra or statistics: A randomized controlled trial with students assessed as needing remedial mathematics. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.