2 JournAl of DeVeloPmentAl eDuCAtIon Abstract: Adult developmental mathematics

students often work under great pressure to complete the mathematics sequences designed to help them achieve success (Bryk & Treisman, 2010). Results of a teaching experiment demonstrate how the ability to reason can be impeded by flaws in students ’ mental representations of mathematics. The earnestness of the subject’s efforts and the frequent detours his learning took create a vivid portrait of what happens in the lives of students for whom “the dream stops” at developmental mathematics (Bryk & Treisman, 2010, p. 19). Results provide teachers with a clearer picture of what is needed to help their students build mathematical understanding. Step into a developmental mathematics classroom at any community college or university and yo