Impact of Learning Communities in Developmental English on Community College Student Retention and Persistence

Abstract

This investigation was a case study to measure the retention and persistence effects of a learning community in developmental English at an urban community college. The study used student demographic and course outcome data to quantify the extent to which learning community participation could contribute toward remedying the historically low retention and persistence rates among a diverse student population in community colleges. The learning communities in this study consisted of developmental reading and writing courses linked in pairs at the same level, considered to be either one or two levels below college level English. Findings revealed a relationship between learning communities and improved retention in developmental writing courses for all ethnic groups. In addition, retention and persistence was improved for Latino students. The study also revealed that learning communities were most effective when utilized at the higher developmental English level courses compared to the lower level courses.