The relationship between beginning college chemistry achievement and prior knowledge, number of college mathematics courses completed, GPA of college mathematics courses completed, levels of Piagetian intellectual development, mathematics ACT score, scien

This study was designed to investigate the relationship between achievement in Chem 33 (a third semester general chemistry course) and the following predictor variables: prior knowledge (Chem 32 grade), level of Piagetian intellectual development, number of college mathematics courses previously completed, grades received in prior college mathematics courses, science ACT scores, mathematics ACT scores, and composite ACT scores.; During the winter semester of the 1994–1995 school year, the students who were enrolled in two sections of Chem 33, taught by the same professor, were given the TOLT test. In addition, their student records were examined in order to determine the grade they received in Chem 32, the number of mathematics courses Completed in college, the GPA for the mathematics courses completed in college, the science ACT score, mathematics ACT score, and the composite ACT score. A Pearson Correlation was performed on these variables to determine to what extent they were able to predict the student's achievement, measured by the grade in Chem 33. What was found in respect to achievement in Chem 33 was: prior knowledge was r = 0.67, GPA of mathematics courses completed in college was r = 0.58, mathematics ACT was r = 0.50, composite ACT was r = 0.40, and TOLT was r = 0.33. A stepwise multiple regression was also performed to see what interactions could be found between the variables themselves.; There was no single predictor variable that adequately serves as a dominant predictor variable for success in Chem 33. It can be concluded that the Chem 32 grade (prior knowledge) coupled with the GPA of the college mathematics courses completed in college as well as the mathematics ACT score are the best predictors for achievement in Chem 33.