Nontraditional female students enrolled in developmental English courses at Roane State Community College

The first purpose of this study was to understand the experiences and needs of nontraditional female students enrolled in Developmental English courses at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The second purpose of this study was to learn from current students how to help future students overcome the barriers they will face and thus enable them to be more successful in their college coursework. In order to collect data regarding nontraditional female students enrolled in Developmental English courses at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, two different types of data collection were used. First, surveys were administered to the population being studied. Then, in an attempt to gain additional knowledge, one-on-one interviews were conducted with participants who were willing to do so from the population being studied. The barriers faced by nontraditional female students enrolled in Developmental English courses at Roane State Community College include home responsibilities (including husbands and children), emotional issues, age related problems, other responsibilities, a previous bad experience with school, problems interacting with others, job responsibilities, financial difficulties, transportation problems, institutional barriers, and race. The strengths possessed by nontraditional female students enrolled in Developmental English courses at Roane State Community College include motivation, personality characteristics, maturity, commitment, interaction with others, work experience, family support, patience, and religion. Ways Roane State Community College as an institution could help nontraditional female students enrolled in Developmental English courses include hiring more qualified personnel, providing assistance with childcare, offering financial help, offering special programs for these students, forming support groups, adopting different teaching methods, offering alternative class schedules, providing transportation, and increasing resources.