Multiple Measures: Scaling and Developing Evidence for the Corequisite Context

January 2023 – December 2025

Building on earlier CAPR work, this project will scale multiple measures assessment (MMA) as a more effective alternative to standard placement tests for college students in at least one higher education system. It will also build new evidence about implementing MMA in a corequisite environment, in which students enroll directly into college-level courses while receiving academic support alongside their regular classes.

This project will accomplish three goals:

Scaling MMA to systems and colleges not yet using it for placement into college-level courses.

Building evidence about using MMA to assign students to corequisite courses. Some systems and colleges have transitioned to corequisites but are not yet using MMA to assign students to corequisite versus college-level courses. This means many students could be misassigned. Some students are likely taking corequisites unnecessarily, using precious time and resources, while others may be thrust into college level courses without the support they need. This project will evaluate the effectiveness of MMA in helping more students succeed in college level courses to inform further adoption and scaling.

Developing evidence about the effectiveness of corequisites compared with college-level courses alone. Research on MMA has proven that many students previously assigned to developmental education could succeed if placed directly into college-level courses. While research has also demonstrated that corequisites can be effective, it is not clear how important the remediation component is to these results, or whether the effects may be due primarily to placing more students into college level courses. This project provides an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of corequisites compared with stand-alone college courses, providing critical evidence to inform the adoption of MMA and corequisites.

Project Design

Through a national outreach effort, CAPR will recruit at least one new system to receive support for scaling MMA, to be designed by the systems and colleges with CAPR input. In addition, by administering a brief survey on the use of MMA and corequisite courses to a random selection of about 100 colleges through the country, we will supplement the first CAPR survey and identify candidate colleges for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to study placement into corequisites or gatekeeper courses. These RCTs will include implementation research (including cost data and interviews with faculty, staff, and administrators) about colleges’ MMA and corequisite models.

What We’ve Learned

The survey, conducted in 2023, showed that both corequisite and MMA practices grew since the 2016 CAPR survey. A brief released in November 2023 details the findings from the surveys and introduces the study, which will include a randomized controlled trial at up to 10 colleges and will provide high-quality estimates of the effect of MMA in a corequisite context on academic outcomes.

This project is funded by Ascendium Education Group.