Posted on 11/18/2022 8:06:49 AM PST by karpov
Remedial classes have been standard practice at community colleges since about the 1980s. The original intent of these not-for-credit courses was to protect underperforming students from failing actual college classes. Remedial courses gave such students the extra support they needed to eventually take those classes—and succeed in obtaining a degree.
However, in recent years there has been some debate over the effectiveness of remedial courses. This culminated when Governor Gavin Newsom of California signed a bill severely limiting the ability of community colleges to place students into such classes. Colleges cannot now mandate remedial courses for academically underprepared students except in what commentators are characterizing as “highly specific circumstances.”
California is not the only state to limit the use of remedial courses. Louisiana’s public colleges no longer place students in remedial English and mathematics courses. Instead, they place students in for-credit classes right away, while offering more academic support. Recent results from the 2020-21 academic year show that this may be the right move. Students enrolled in the for-credit math classes passed more than 50 percent of the time, while students in the remedial courses passed only 11 percent of the time.
In 2014, Florida made placement exams and remedial classes optional, as well. And it required community colleges to replace remedial classes with for-credit classes. A study from the Center for Postsecondary Success at Florida State University found, in 2019, that this new requirement boosted overall student success. Other states are beginning to follow suit.
The arguments against remedial classes are varied. First, research from Judith Scott-Clayton et al. estimates that a quarter to a third of students are incorrectly placed in remedial courses, despite the fact that they would fare well in normal college-level courses.
(Excerpt) Read more at jamesgmartin.center ...
Just one more reason or basis for ‘the state’ to track you. If everything is for credit they will demand your SSN to do so. Nobody can learn anything anymore with ‘the state’ or feds tracking it.
Suppose the lowest-level math class that a community college thinks is worth of college credit is Algebra II. If a student does know know Algebra I, for example how to solve a linear equation such as
2x + 3 = 9
how are they going to pass Algebra II? You may end up having a pass grade in Algebra II not mean anything. More broadly, by lowering standards enough you can graduate everyone, but their diplomas will have little value.
Algebra is racist and transphobic.
This is a direct reflection on public schools.
They are not teaching the material needed to go to higher ed.
They are passing students that are unable to do basic skills. they can not read, write, do math. have any understanding of US or any history, other than the US is an EVIL racist country. possibly the worst place on the planet.
That students MUST go to a CC to reach the level of what used to be a HS education as horrendous.
No Biggy just lower the standards for the regular collage class and bingo no more need for remedials.
Meh. They can learn on the job.
Fine...Let’em fail.
Our unionized teachers are letting high school students down. Remedial classes are largely the fault of the teachers unions. So, now students clamor to get credit for courses that they shouldn’t. What a mess Newsome and Democrats have made for Californians.
And Newsome is eyeing a Presidential run. THIS is what he has achieved, a dumbed-down society with massive homelessness and droves of illegal immigrants.
Not for me!
No argument but also consider the fact that a lot of these kids are from families in bad shape. The "Great Society" has done a fine job of wrecking the lower class family structure in favor of dependency on the state.
If it hadn’t been for classes like TV Guide 101, a lot of Snowflakes wouldn’t have ever “graduated.”
What "debate"? Look at the stats.
“Students enrolled in the for-credit math classes passed more than 50 percent of the time, while students in the remedial courses passed only 11 percent of the time.”
How many of them really did the work, learned, and passed on their own merit? I suspect that the majority were just given a passing grade.
America has been dumbed down. Idiots can be given a “college degree” but they really can’t be educated. Dopey is dopey. Best summarized by the old Abbot and Costello joke. “Didn’t you go to school stupid? Yea and I came out the same way.”
In California at least, people have discovered life is just as easy if you remain ignorant.
In CA, high school GPAs have reached record highs and yet Cal State math placement testing upon enrollment (for those needing Calculus for BS degrees) has shown record lows (failures).
Lots of grade inflation going on.
There were a lot of students who were behind, but they had a reasonably solid foundation so they picked up things pretty quickly.
Decided I was going to “give back” a few years ago so I tried to pick up where I left off.
The students these days are very different . It's not just a matter of not taking college algebra, chemistry and other prerequisites They lack critical learning skills and work ethics. They have a very hard time coming up to speed on the subject matter.
For my entire student career my social security number was my student number. At every opportunity I told the school that the law said the social security number could not be used as an identifier. The response was universally, “Whatever.”
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