Introduction

The strength of the community college has always been its open door mission, its promise of access to an affordable education. And for the first 100 years, its track record of success has been impressive. However, with the arrival of the 21st Century, an increasing number of students are arriving at its open doors ill-prepared both academically and socially to perform at college level. The 2006 Spellings Report called for “urgent reform” within higher education, suggesting that a disquieting racial and ethnic gap exists in student achievement. Especially ubiquitous is an alarming lack of proficiency in college-level math and sciences among recent high school graduates. Harmston and Pliska (2002) observed:
If student achievement in mathematics and science does not noticeably improve, today’s high school students may enter college or the workforce with limited mathematics- or science-related skills. As a result, their chances of success in college coursework or in the world of work, as well as their contributions to the U.S. labor market, might also be limited. (para. 2)

To respond effectively, research has been conducted and data collected on a variety of strategies that help close the gap in science and math completion, particularly for at-risk students. Those of us who work for community colleges understand the role engagement plays in ensuring student persistence and success, specifically for those populations that are underserved.

Recognizing the challenges that community college faculty and administrators face in engaging these students, ensuring their successful completion of math and science courses, this article highlights the success of one community college program, The Pathway Project, (The Pathway Project name was created for the purpose of this article.) that has demonstrated positive results in closing the gap for these students. The Project, a TRIO-funded program, has successfully implemented the Treisman Model, finding it to be an effective means for closing the gap and creating a pathway to successful completion of math and science through collaborative learning. Although the model has been implemented primarily at four-year institutions, this article presents research related to its effectiveness at the two-year level.

The Treisman Model

In the 1970’s Philip Uri Treisman, a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, initiated an investigation into the high failure rate of African-American students in college calculus courses. Treisman’s research led to the creation of a collaborative model, the implementation of which reduced attrition and increased the success rate of targeted student populations. During his research investigations Uri Treisman observed distinct differences between African-American students, who were unsuccessful in their college level calculus courses, and their Asian counterparts whose achievement levels were consistently higher. Treisman noted that the African-American students studied alone while the Asian ones sought out fellow students with whom they could work together in a collaborative intellectual effort. This “collaboration” created an academic community based upon the study of mathematics or science, where the students socialized with one another, shared ideas, impressions, and problem solving techniques leading to successful completion of class assignments and exams. These students worked in groups, checked each others work, and assisted each other on homework problems and mathematical solutions.

This Model has several significant applications to current teaching and learning methodology and it has many documented effects on mathematics and science performances at colleges which have adapted the methodology and established collaborative learning groups. At The University of Texas at Austin (UT) more than 85 percent of Treisman workshop enrolled students consistently earn grades of “A” or “B”. In 1988 there were less than 10 minority
Mathematics majors at UT. In the spring of 1992, there were 113 minority mathematics majors, many of whom were Treisman Model participants. Treisman’s research investigations have drawn several conclusions. Among these, collaborative workshops for math and science increase student retention rates and provide participants the skills to become successful learners and problem solvers.

Confluence of Treisman and Pathway Project

Students enrolled in the Project participated in focus groups, providing critical feedback concerning their experiences in the collaborative learning community. Because the Treisman model is based on the foundation of collaborative learning, additional research included a review of literature relevant to the analysis of collaborative and team-based learning methods for community college math and science courses, and data collected within a two-year period on TRIO students who participated in the model.

Participants

The Pathway Projects distribution contained students from non-traditional college age groups and a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. Some of the students had either previously failed or withdrawn from the math course they were taking. Representing a variety of ages, most of the students were first generation, representing the first members of their families to ever attend college. Other members came from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Pathway Project participants’ assessment scores placed them below college level which resulted in time spent working their way through developmental courses.

Application

The Pathway Project deviates from traditional individual tutoring techniques and instead concentrates on building collaborative groups focused on gaining mastery of math and science skills. The Project uses the workshop/seminar model which introduces the concept of “team” into the learning environment, where members set and share high, but achievable goals related to their specific math or science course. Each member of the group plays a role in formulating questions, making observations and achieving solutions.
During the initial stages of the workshops, Pathway Project students are divided into teams of four or five students of varying abilities. Each group is then assigned a team leader. This team leader’s responsibility is to act as a facilitator in the group. Team leaders are typically high achieving math students who have successfully completed advanced math or science classes or have tutored courses associated with the targeted class. Team leaders attend daily classroom lecture sessions with the workshop students and participate in class activities. The success of the project is dependant on faculty support. Course instructors work in association with the team leaders and supply challenging weekly exercises and problems to assist workshop participants with problem solving skill development.

In traditional math and science pedagogy, instructors deliver classroom lectures on one technique to solve a specific problem or equation. The Treisman method is flexible and focused on learning; thus, instruction can be delivered in a lab, a library, or even a small office. For the Pathway Project, the focus of the model is to teach students to think collectively. It is a model designed to encourage students to be articulate and to share their individual experiences, knowledge, and problem solving skills—learned in other diverse educational environments or cultures—to their team or group. The entire group benefits from a free exchange and sharing of information as group members are introduced to alternative problem solving methods or techniques that they were previously unaware of or possibly lacking skill in. Ultimately, the group evolves into a synchronized, strong and cohesive unit, where each person is equally contributing to the groups overall success. Additionally, the intellectual knowledge and abilities of the individual students contribute to each member of the team, thus achieving the goal outlined for the targeted math or science course.

Another benefit of the Treisman Model is its ability to incorporate elements of Supplemental Instruction (SI). Students develop practical academic skills such as note-taking, text reading, test preparation strategies and time management skills. The implementation of SI techniques develops skills which allow the students to become active learners, ultimately leading to increased learning capacity and retention of course information.

Initial Results

With the introduction of the Treisman Model, complimented by other services provided by the Pathway Project, students are persisting and succeeding at a higher rate than the college’s general population. In fact, 74% of students who participated in Human Development 175, the workshop that implements the Treisman Model, passed Math 90. An analysis of grades of students who completed the workshop indicates that 74% received a grade of “C” or better, while 93% received a passing grade. The overall completion rate for the workshop was 73%.

Feedback received from focus group sessions suggests that Pathway Project participants are more likely to use campus resources such as the college tutoring centers, math labs, and learning centers. Additionally, since the implementation of this initiative, the number of students using these services has increased. If a difficulty should occur in any of their courses, participating students are more likely to seek out supplemental assistance to resolve any issues which they encounter. Their confidence level also increases as a result of being in the project.

Final Thoughts

In addition to the strategies mentioned above, because the Pathway Project is limited to just two years of data associated with the successful implementation of the Treisman Model, additional data need to be collected over a extended period of time. Finally, additional research is needed to further explore strategies commensurate to student success in math and science, specifically research related to the alignment of high school completion with the assessment and placement of students into math and science courses. However, in tight budgetary times the successful retention and completion of high risk students in math and science courses requires the attention of all college leaders aiming to maximize diminishing resources dollars.

REFERENCES

Community College Survey of Student Engagement (2005). 2005 CCSE report findings. Retrieved May 15, 2007 from: www.ccsse.org.

Dick, T., Stone, T., Firor, K., & Cavinato, A. Excel: Peer Teaching in Collaborative Groups. Retrieved November 10, 2007 from http://k12s.phast.umass.edu/stemtec/pathways/Proceedings/Papers/Dick-p.doc.)

Harmston, M.T. and Pliska, A.M. (2002). Mathematics and science achievement and course- taking for college-bound high school students. Information Brief for ACT. Retrieved on June 5, 2007 from: http://www.act.org/research/briefs/2002-2.html

FIPSE Project II (1993). Lessons Learned from FIPSE Project II, University of California- Berkeley: The Professional Development Program, retrieved November 8, 2007 from http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/fipse/lessons2/cal-berk.html)

Princeton University Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs (1989). Higher education for science and engineering (Part 7 of 11). Retrieved April 16, 2006 from
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Spellings, M. (2006). A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U.S. Higher Education. U.S. Department of Education: http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/hiedfuture/index.html.

Treisman, Uri (1985). A study of the mathematics performance of black students at the University of California, Berkeley. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, Berkeley.

Treisman, Uri (1992). Studying students studying calculus: A look at the lives of minority mathematics students in college. College Mathematics Journal 23(5), 362-372.

United States Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education (1993). Lessons learned from FIPSE Projects II – September 1993: University of California-Berkeley: The professional development program. Retrieved April 16, 2006 from http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/fipse/lessons2/cal-berk.html.

The Winston Group (2006). Math and science education and United States competitiveness: Does the public care? Summary Report for American Council on Education. Retrieved April 26, 2007 from: www.solutionsforourfuture.org.

About the Authors

Dr. Barbara Jones-Kavalier is Vice President for Student Services at San Diego Mesa College.

Mr. Paul Goetzinger is the Assistant Director for the Center for Academic Support and Achievement at Tacoma Community College.