Using teacher judgment for placement in college mathematics courses: An ethnographic case study at one Midwestern institution

The purpose of this ethnographic case study was to understand the process of making student placements into the mathematics curriculum at one Midwestern university. Historically, the department chair has used an expert teacher's intuitive-based judgment process to assess multiple academic documentations, rather than a more structured method for evaluating multi-faceted evidence of student ability. These measures include, but are not limited to, the ACT Mathematics sub-score (ACT-M), mathematics background, high school transcript, and high school grade point average (HSGPA). Though somewhat archaic, the process was highly individualized, flexible, and highly accurate for this particular institution. As many institutions collect similar information, the impact of using a flexible hierarchy of multiple measures may be applicable to other university's mathematics programs.