CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — State officials have restructured how remedial courses at Tennessee colleges operate.

The Chattanooga Times Free-Press (http://bit.ly/1SbEuGv ) reports that the Tennessee Board of Regents has changed how students take remedial classes in math and writing at community colleges and universities.

The new program has allowed freshmen deemed unprepared for college-level work to take for-credit courses while enrolling in learning support classes. The new system replaced earlier rules that required students to pass a remedial course before taking college-level courses.

The changes were made after many college students became stalled in remedial courses and weren't earning the college credits needed to graduate.

The board of regents said that after the new program was installed in the fall, 51 percent of students across the state passed math, and the pass rates for students in writing nearly doubled.

"The success of this first year has exceeded our expectations," said Tristan Denley, vice chancellor of academics at the Tennessee Board of Regents.

He credits the extra help students receive as the reason behind the numbers.

Brittney Davidson, writing center director at Chattanooga State Community College, said college students have since become more motivated knowing they can earn college credit.

"We raised the bar for our students, and because we raised the expectations, they were able to rise and meet them," she said.