Developmental Mathematics Combined

Course Description

MAT0022C – Developmental Mathematics Combined is a 5-credit developmental mathematics course combining the content of Developmental Mathematics I and II into a single accelerated sequence. It prepares students for MAT1033 Intermediate Algebra and, through it, for college-level mathematics.

The 0-level course number is the critical fact: this is developmental (college preparatory) coursework. The credits are institutional credits. They do not count toward a degree, do not transfer, and are not calculated in the grade point average or in total hours earned. Students pay for the course and invest a term in it without moving closer to graduation — which is precisely why Florida restructured developmental education.

Content covers the arithmetic and algebra a student needs before intermediate algebra: operations with real numbers, fractions, decimals, and percentages; ratio and proportion; linear equations and inequalities in one variable; the coordinate plane, graphing lines, slope, and intercepts; systems of linear equations; exponents and polynomial operations; factoring; introductory rational and radical expressions; and applied problem solving.

The course is offered at approximately 16 Florida institutions — a smaller number than it once was, because Florida's developmental education reform substantially reduced enrollment in these courses and many institutions moved to corequisite models instead.

Learning Outcomes

Required Outcomes

• Perform operations with real numbers, including fractions, decimals, and signed numbers.
• Apply order of operations correctly in multi-step expressions.
• Solve applied problems involving ratio, proportion, and percentage.
• Simplify algebraic expressions and evaluate them for given values.
• Solve linear equations and inequalities in one variable.
• Translate verbal problem statements into algebraic equations and solve them.
• Graph linear equations and determine slope and intercepts.
• Write the equation of a line given appropriate information.
• Solve systems of linear equations by graphing, substitution, and elimination.
• Apply the rules of exponents and use scientific notation.
• Add, subtract, multiply, and divide polynomials.
• Factor polynomials using common techniques.
• Simplify rational and radical expressions at an introductory level.
• Solve applied problems using appropriate algebraic methods.

Optional Outcomes

• Solve quadratic equations by factoring.
• Use a graphing calculator or software to explore relationships.
• Apply geometric formulas for perimeter, area, and volume.
• Interpret data presented in tables and graphs.
• Develop study skills and strategies specific to learning mathematics.
• Address mathematics anxiety and build academic confidence.

Major Topics

Required Topics

• Real numbers — integers, fractions, decimals, absolute value, and order of operations.
• Ratio, proportion, and percentage — setup and applied problems.
• Algebraic expressions — variables, terms, simplification, and evaluation.
• Linear equations — solving in one variable, including equations with fractions.
• Linear inequalities — solving and graphing on a number line.
• Applications — translating word problems into equations.
• The coordinate plane — plotting, graphing lines, slope, and intercepts.
• Equations of lines — slope-intercept and point-slope forms.
• Systems of linear equations — graphing, substitution, and elimination.
• Exponents — rules, negative exponents, and scientific notation.
• Polynomials — operations and special products.
• Factoring — greatest common factor, trinomials, and special forms.
• Rational expressions — simplification and basic operations.
• Radicals — simplification and basic operations.

Optional Topics

• Quadratic equations by factoring.
• Graphing technology.
• Geometric formulas.
• Data interpretation.
• Mathematics study skills and anxiety management.

Resources & Tools

• Elementary and Intermediate Algebra or Prealgebra and Introductory Algebra (Bittinger, Lial, or Martin-Gay) — the common text families.
• Publisher platforms — MyLab Math, ALEKS, or Hawkes Learning; most Florida developmental courses are delivered through adaptive homework systems with mastery requirements.
• Free resources — Khan Academy and OpenStax Elementary Algebra, both widely recommended for supplementary practice.
• Institutional tutoring and math labs — free, and the single most underused resource by students in this course.
• PERT (Postsecondary Education Readiness Test) — the Florida placement instrument, where placement applies.
• Scientific calculator, where the institution permits it.

Career Pathways

This is a preparatory course rather than an occupational one. Its function is to open access to the college-level mathematics that degree programs require — and, through that, to every career those degrees lead to. Students should understand the pathway it sits on rather than the course itself:

• MAT1033 Intermediate Algebra, then a college-level mathematics course such as MGF1106/1107 (Mathematics for Liberal Arts), STA2023 (Statistics), or MAC1105 (College Algebra).
• STA2023 is the gateway for nursing, business, health sciences, and social sciences.
• MAC1105 leads toward precalculus and calculus for STEM, engineering, and business majors.
• Career and technical programs generally require less mathematics, and some require none beyond a basic skills assessment.

Special Information

These credits do not count toward a degree — and students must understand that

This is the most important fact about the course. Developmental credits are institutional credits: they do not transfer, do not count toward graduation, and are not included in the GPA or in total hours earned. A student who completes MAT0022C with a C has satisfied their developmental education requirement in mathematics and may proceed — but has not earned degree credit. Financial aid also treats developmental coursework under specific limits. Students should know this before enrolling rather than after.

Florida Senate Bill 1720 made developmental education optional for most students

This is the Florida-specific fact that changes everything about who takes this course. Under SB 1720, students who earned a standard Florida high school diploma in the 2003-04 school year or later, and students who are active duty military, are not required to take a common placement test and are not required to enroll in developmental education at Florida College System institutions. Those students may enroll directly in a college-level course such as MAT1033, MGF1106, or MGF1107.

The practical consequences are worth stating plainly:

• Many students taking MAT0022C are doing so by choice, or because they fall outside the exemption (out-of-state or older diplomas, GED holders in some circumstances, or students who opt into placement testing).
• An exempt student who feels unprepared may still choose developmental coursework — and for some students that is genuinely the right decision. But it costs a term and money without degree credit, and the alternative is a college-level course with corequisite support.
• Many Florida institutions have shifted toward corequisite models, in which a student enrolls in the college-level course and a support course simultaneously, earning degree credit while receiving remediation. Where that option exists it is generally the faster path.

Students should ask an advisor specifically whether they are exempt and what corequisite options exist before enrolling in a standalone developmental course.

Course structure and numbering

MAT0022 combines what were formerly two separate courses (Developmental Mathematics I and II), which is why it carries 5 credits rather than the usual 3 or 4. It appears as both MAT0022 and MAT0022C. Related developmental numbers — MAT0018 (Developmental Mathematics I) and MAT0028 (Developmental Mathematics II) — still exist at some institutions as the unbundled sequence.

Why students place here, and what actually helps

Mathematics placement reflects preparation, not ability, and instructors of this course see the same pattern repeatedly: students who struggle usually have specific, identifiable gaps — fractions, negative numbers, the distributive property — rather than a general inability to do mathematics. Adaptive homework platforms are designed to find and close exactly those gaps, and institutional tutoring is free. The students who succeed are overwhelmingly the ones who use both consistently rather than the ones who spend more hours re-reading. Mathematics anxiety is real and well documented, and most Florida colleges offer support for it.