Quantitative Literacy: Alternative Pathway for College Developmental Mathematics Students

• Main Authors: Michael George, Yevgeniy Milman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Columbia University Libraries 2019-12-01
• Series: Journal of Mathematics Education at Teachers College
• Subjects: corequisite mathematics; developmental mathematics; innovative pedagogy; quantitative literacy
• Online Access: https://journals-test.library.columbia.edu/index.php/jmetc/article/view/4193

Low passing rates in developmental mathematics have been a serious concern for community colleges for many years. A course in Quantitative Literacy (QL) offers non-STEM students an alternative option to introductory algebra as a path to a degree. This paper describes the implementation and evolution of QL at the Borough of Manhattan Community College. Students enrolled in the 17 sections of QL were compared to a matched sample of students from Elementary Algebra. The students enrolled in QL in the Spring of 2013 were 175% more likely to have passed a credit-bearing mathematics course one year later, indicating that QL represents a valuable alternative for non-STEM college students placed into algebra level remediation. Further, the implementation and preliminary results of a corequisite course combining QL with college level Quantitative Reasoning (QR) are presented.