I got stuck in one of those “remedial” English classes my freshman year, not because I couldn’t write, but because I am slow at writing by hand, and so I didn’t finish a timed essay completely during the placement exam. You would think they could judge from the part that I did finish that I shouldn’t be in that class, but I guess they needed to fill it up, so I got stuck there.
Really, there were only about one or two other people in that class who should have even been at college level, and they were foreigners. The rest of the natives in that class were black and they were hopelessly ignorant.
I’m sorry you had to waste a semester (and the money) there; did they have a “test-out” option?
Those classes are horrible because they wrack up debt for unqualified students, with a high chance that they won’t finish a degree due to the extra time/money required.
Recently the local news here in NJ described how our schools are looking for foreign students to fill the classrooms; they were already doing that 20 years ago because they could charge a higher tuition than they could for in-state residents. I’m unsure as to how I would guide my children as they near the age where they’ll have to make some choices regarding higher education...