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Reformers have scored legislative progress in their efforts to enroll many more California community college students in credit-bearing courses instead of remedial classes, with placements based on high school grades rather than just placement exams.
Critics decry remedial classes as dead ends that often lead to students dropping out. Students too often feel trapped in remedial courses even though they might have done well if they were admitted directly into credit classes that count toward their diplomas, according to researchers.
With about 80 percent of community college students statewide now reportedly being required to take at least one non-credit remedial course in English or math, the proposed legislation could have a big impact in moving hundreds of thousands of students faster to their degrees and reducing dropout rates, supporters say.
The state Assembly’s Committee on Higher Education unanimously passed a bill, AB 705, this week that would require all community colleges to use high school grades as an important part of the placement decision and to give students much more opportunity to skip remedial courses and go directly to college level ones.
In a major shift, the bill would reverse the traditional burden of proof: instead of students testing their way into credit classes, colleges would have to enroll them into those courses unless “those students are highly unlikely to succeed in them.” Colleges would have to “maximize the probability that students will enter and complete college-level coursework in English and math within a one-year time frame,” the bill states.
Assemblywoman Jacqui Irwin, D-Thousand Oaks, the bill’s author, cited research that shows that placement exams by themselves are not good predictors of students’ success in college and she pointed to disheartening statistics that show large numbers of students never progress past remedial math and English. “By helping students move through college at a rate that matches their potential, AB 705 will allow students to graduate faster and increase their likelihood for success,” she said at the committee hearing Tuesday.
The change would ally California more strongly to a growing movement nationwide to overhaul placement policies and to also create so-called co-requisite courses that allow remedial students to earn credit in classes that cover college level material with extra hours of lecture time and tutoring. The California State University system recently began an effort to eliminate all non-credit remedial classes and replace them with co-requisites by 2018.
For decades, California community colleges have been required to at least look at high school grades but many in the past used them only rarely, primarily in close-call cases when students narrowly failed placement yet had A’s in high school courses, officials said. In the past few years, some of the 113 community colleges in California have dramatically changed such placement by using high school grades as the main factor.
According to the statewide community colleges’ chancellors office, 67 campuses are participating in the Multiple Measures Assessment Project , which is piloting different ways to evaluate students and creating a data bank on the topic. But reformers say more and faster efforts are needed.
Katie Hern, co-founder of the California Acceleration Project, a statewide faculty-led group that has been working to change remedial education, praised the Assembly committee’s 10-0 bipartisan vote. In an interview Wednesday, she said that remedial placement is “the single biggest barrier to college completion.” And while other issues such as poverty and family responsibilities will still obstruct students, AB 705 would “do a lot to address the restrictive and unfair placement policies we currently now have,” said Hern, who is an English instructor at Chabot College in Hayward.
Her Acceleration organization recently published a new report, titled “Up to the Challenge: Community Colleges Expand Access to College-Level Courses,” which details experiences of community college students who were classified by tests as needing “basic skills” improvement, but were allowed into college level classes and did well.
Hern noted that the bill allows local districts to develop their own methods of judging students and does not eliminate standardized placement exams. In some cases colleges will look at overall high school GPAs for English placements with closer looks at individual math class grades in high school for math placements.
Some faculty members are worried that such changes will allow academically weak students into difficult classes and that the material will have to be watered down to avoid massive failure rates. But Hern said such fears have been proved to be unwarranted at schools where placements have been reformed. Professors there “are teaching challenging courses and students are rising to the college courses,” she said.
Remedial courses may still exist for students who badly need improvement. After all, community colleges have no entrance standards other than a high school degree. But many such classes may be replaced by the co-requisite model, officials say.
The state’s community college system and its chancellor, Eloy Oritz Oakley, are “very supportive”of the bill’s goals, according to Laura Metune, the system’s vice chancellor for external relations. Oakley previously headed Long Beach City College, which has been using multiple measures in recent years. But Metune and other officials expressed hopes that the bill can be somewhat changed to push for the creation of a statewide data system so high school transcripts can be shared easily to help evaluate students at any college statewide. They also want the bill to allow more flexibility on campuses. For example, schools may want to experiment on how they place older students who start college many years after high school, Metune said. There are concerns that the proposed law might “lock in” measurements that prove to be obsolete in coming years, she said.
An influential study issued in November by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) showed the extent of the problem: That 80 percent of students entering community colleges enroll in at least one remedial course based on their testing results or other criteria. About 87 percent of Latinos and African Americans are placed into at least one remedial class, compared with 74 percent of whites and 70 percent of Asians. The study found that only 44 percent of students complete their sequence of math remedial courses within six years, while 60 percent do so in English.
That report also said that the more such courses that students are required to take, the more likely they are to drop out before they get to credit-bearing classes. Just 16 percent of students placed in remedial courses later earn a certificate or associate degree in six years, the study found. Overall, remedial education at most California community colleges, remedial – or developmental, as the study calls it – education “is lengthy, attrition is high and outcomes are poor,” stated the report.
AB 705 now undergoes review by the Assembly Committee on Appropriations and then possibly to votes by the two houses of the Legislature. Since legislative leaders have expressed support for the bill’s goals, Irwin and other advocates are optimistic about its chances of passage and signing by Gov. Jerry Brown. But much could happen between now and the legislative recess in mid-September and the governor’s subsequent review of any bill that passes.
Its passage would be “a game changer for ensuring that more students have an opportunity to enter into college-level math and English,” said Jessie Ryan, executive vice president of the Campaign for College Opportunity, a California organization that advocates for improved access to affordable higher education and has consulted on the bill’s details. The bill’s passage “is an equity imperative” since Latino, African American and low income students are now disproportionately pushed into remedial classes, she said.
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Kyle 5 years ago5 years ago
Remedial education is a waste of time, money, resources and energy in College!
Math & Physics Professor 5 years ago5 years ago
This bill is completely misguided, and there are multiple incorrect statements in this article, one by Katie Hern herself. In particular, she states that the bill does not eliminate standardized placement when in fact it does. These lawmakers seem to forget that many of our students have been out of high school for years, and many others have GEDs. Without placement tests, what are we to use to place these students? Furthermore, the … Read More
This bill is completely misguided, and there are multiple incorrect statements in this article, one by Katie Hern herself. In particular, she states that the bill does not eliminate standardized placement when in fact it does. These lawmakers seem to forget that many of our students have been out of high school for years, and many others have GEDs. Without placement tests, what are we to use to place these students?
Furthermore, the claim is made that schools are given significant room to innovate when in fact they’re not. Schools have two years to come up with something that works better than a set of made up and nearly unattainable success rates, and if they fail to do so, they must follow the strict guidelines of the law.
The research covering the corequisite model pontificated by CAP and required by AB705 is severely lacking, having been done only at universities with high selectivity and in states with K-12 systems that aren’t completely failing.
I have attended multiple CAP conferences, and when myself or my colleagues ask difficult questions we are not given answers. For instance, one claim is that using GPA as a placement indicator will reduce equity gaps. But CAP has not done research to verify this fact. In fact, there has been quite a bit of peer reviewed research addressing this matter and indeed equity gaps exist in GPAs.
AB 705 combined with the new success based funding model only guarantee one thing; uneducated community college graduates. We need to fix our K-12 system. That is the only real way to reduce remediation while raising success rates.
Ms Sol 7 years ago7 years ago
Unfortunately these lawmakers are not teachers. They have no classroom experience, therefore do not experience what teachers do each and every day. It isn't that the courses are difficult. There has been a change in the student population; students think that they can complain about things, and everyone has to bend over backwards. Students think they are "entitled," and this way of thinking is so wrong. Many college students fail … Read More
Unfortunately these lawmakers are not teachers. They have no classroom experience, therefore do not experience what teachers do each and every day. It isn’t that the courses are difficult. There has been a change in the student population; students think that they can complain about things, and everyone has to bend over backwards. Students think they are “entitled,” and this way of thinking is so wrong. Many college students fail because they do not do the homework, they come in late and leave classes early, they do not take advantage of the office hours instructors have or other resources such as workshops and math labs, reading and writing centers. Every resource is available to students, but they are the ones not taking advantage of anything. Students have become very lazy but they want to finish school quickly.
Many community college students will suffer when transferring to a 4-year university if this law passes. They will not be taken by the hand and walked through all of the things they need to do. They have to understand this is “NOT” high school, this is college and you are on your own. It is a student’s responsibility to take care of their schedules, study time etc. If we do not teach students how to be responsible now, they will never learn. They will continue to cry at someone’s office until they get their way. Our economic future will also suffer if this law passes. Students will have a mediocre degree/education and they will only be able to find mediocre jobs. Our future is at stake here, do not water down the education system any more. Other countries study more material in a school year and their success rates are higher. It is sad to see that the U.S. is the lowest when it comes to education. I became a teacher to help students, the government is doing the opposite.
I hope law makers will reconsider this and make other positive changes or leave the colleges to do what they think is best for the students. Maybe those law makers should come and spend a semester at a college to see what really goes on here. They need to see both sides of the story, not just one.
College English Teacher 7 years ago7 years ago
I've taught community college writing courses in the Bay Area for more than twenty years. From my observation, the reason developmental students drop out is for two reasons -- 1) they are heavily recruited by community colleges whose budgets are based on enrollment numbers and 2) they were poorly prepared in their high schools and, thus, have extreme difficulty keeping up with even the most basic college courses. Developmental students do not drop out because … Read More
I’ve taught community college writing courses in the Bay Area for more than twenty years. From my observation, the reason developmental students drop out is for two reasons — 1) they are heavily recruited by community colleges whose budgets are based on enrollment numbers and 2) they were poorly prepared in their high schools and, thus, have extreme difficulty keeping up with even the most basic college courses.
Developmental students do not drop out because they are bored in developmental classes. They are discouraged because they’ve been poorly prepared. If minorities are most likely to wind up in developmental programs, it’s not because colleges are racist against them. It’s because the students’ high schools failed to prepare them.
I am now seeing woefully unprepared students in my Freshman Composition classes. To their credit, they are trying their hardest in the face of failing scores on their homework. But am I to pass them based on their commitment? Or should I pass them based on their abilities?
The state of California wants to see more college graduates to fill more jobs in the future. But what’s the point of hiring graduates who cannot read, cannot write, and cannot perform basic math? That’s a certain recipe for a state of declining quality.
That’s the future California our legislatures are voting for.
Tiffany 7 years ago7 years ago
Eliminating remedial courses is not the solution to the problem of the growing number of remedial students entering colleges. In our nanny educational system, it’s just another way to push more unprepared students along the assembly line, earning diplomas and degrees they don’t actually deserve. In the end, it’s the students and society who suffer.
Nina Ashur 7 years ago7 years ago
I agree that there is a problem with the cycle of remedial courses and the use of single test measures, but that does not mean that the solution to accurate placement is the use of high school grades. Most high school grades are an extremely unreliable predictor of success especially for math or English class placement. In my 35 years of work as a faculty in high school, community college and university, it … Read More
I agree that there is a problem with the cycle of remedial courses and the use of single test measures, but that does not mean that the solution to accurate placement is the use of high school grades. Most high school grades are an extremely unreliable predictor of success especially for math or English class placement. In my 35 years of work as a faculty in high school, community college and university, it is the rare student who willingly enrolls in a math or English class that best fits his or her skill level.
As Californians, we have been here before where there was no high school equivalency exam because too many students were failing. The result was that the students were not employable because they could not read or write at 4th grade level and/or were mathematically incompetent. So, once again we see reports of an increase in high school graduation rates now that the high school equivalency test has been eliminated and now comes the push to make the community college faculty responsible for passing students through basic skills classes even when students are not prepared to do the work.
This is NOT the solution for this serious and long-standing problem as it is only applying a bandage “too small in thought” to really address the issue. Students of color and those struggling to graduate will not benefit if this legislation passes.
John Almy 7 years ago7 years ago
I do not know Katie Hern, but I admire her from her writings, and I also admire what she is trying to accomplish with the Acceleration Project. But the truth is, until we work with students who demonstrate that they are at least as willing and prepared to put in the effort that we are, none of these programs or bills are going to accomplish anything of value. Students need a solid foundation. Most of the … Read More
I do not know Katie Hern, but I admire her from her writings, and I also admire what she is
trying to accomplish with the Acceleration Project.
But the truth is, until we work with students who demonstrate that they are at least as willing and prepared to put in the effort that we are, none of these programs or bills are going to accomplish anything of value. Students need a solid foundation. Most of the community college students I work with do not have one, and I am sorry to say, judging from the lack of effort they put into their work, that many do not seem overly interested in building one.
Furthermore, if what I am reading in so many journals and newspaper articles nowadays is accurate, these students are not going to be required to have that foundation in order to receive a bachelor’s degree. It is only when they attempt to get a decent job that they will discover that once again, they have been “accelerated” right on past basic English and math and into the unemployment line.
If we want to increase and accelerate college graduation rates honestly and fairly, we need to provide well-staffed learning centers where people can go and earn the basic education they did not get the first time around. Then, after they have proven their sincerity through writing samples and computation skills, welcome them to college with open arms and open pocketbooks. All of this could be accomplished with a tiny fraction of the money we now spend on those who have no intention of doing the work.
Some will point fingers at me and call me an elitist, but I know from experience what it takes to make the journey from rat-infested shacks and the clutches of human monsters to get to this hallowed ground, and passing students who do not know the material is not the way to do it.
Ted Germain 7 years ago7 years ago
What a horrible thing. The administratization of teaching has now pushed its way into our college system. The end result of this trend will be incompetent doctors and engineers coming out of state colleges and moving into our society in greater numbers. Up to now I’ve held out hope that with colleges holding the line, our public schools would be forced to do a better job, but instead, the corruption has just moved upstream.
Replies
Michael Vela 7 years ago7 years ago
Very well said. It would be one thing if the grades that will be used to determine college readiness were earned, but we all know how that works. Students in my developmental math courses often come from pre-calculus courses in high school but cannot solve simple linear equations.
Ann 7 years ago7 years ago
And in other new … Californians support vouchers for private schools where academic accountability means something.
Gail Monohon 7 years ago7 years ago
Big potential problem here because some high schools with large populations of underachieving students are now giving out unearned passing grades in order to raise graduation rates. Grades are no longer a valid indication of learning. Students are simply passed through the system.