RUME 28
2026
Alexandria, Virginia
Can Prerequisites Be Predictors?
Page: 1446
Historically, research in mathematics education has explored how students’ prior knowledge and learning experiences shape outcomes in subsequent coursework. This poster explores differences between student outcomes, specifically final course grades on a 4.0 GPA scale, through their choice of prerequisite course. We compared the final course grades of students in Elementary Mathematics for Teachers (EMT) entering from two different prerequisite pathways, Quantitative Literacy (QL) and College Algebra (CA), using institutional course-tracking data from the past two academic years (Fall 2023 to Spring 2025). Descriptive and inferential analyses revealed a statistically significant difference in final course grades, suggesting a link between knowledge acquired in prerequisites and outcomes in subsequent mathematics courses. Future work will extend this analysis by incorporating additional contextual variables to identify potential sources of student performance variation.