A recent report published by the California Acceleration Project, Up to the Challenge: Community Colleges Expand Access to College-Level Courses (March 2017), features stories of California community college students labeled “basic skills students” by a standardized assessment test who have entered accelerated alternatives to remedial writing courses and have experienced success. The mainstreaming approaches described in the report are endorsed by the American Association of Community Colleges, the Education Commission of the States, and the National Association of Developmental Education. Best practices recommended in the report include multiple measures for placement, directed self-placement, mainstreaming students and providing additional co-requisite support, eliminating non-credit bearing remedial courses, and learning communities focused on culturally-relevant support and peer mentorship.

The report can be found at:

http://accelerationproject.org/Portals/0/Documents/Cap_Up%20to%20the%20challenge_web_v4.pdf