Nearly 1 million high school students entering a college or university fail placement exams, even though they graduated with an average 3.0 or higher GPA, according to a report released this week by Strong American Schools.
Strong American Schools is a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., established “to raise education awareness in the presidential election.” Former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer established the study, “Diploma to Nowhere,” in order to “highlight the fact that many college freshmen need to take remedial classes to relearn skills they should have been taught before graduation,” said Rachel Bird, senior policy analyst for the organization.
The study found four-year public universities enroll 310,403 students in remedial classes each year, costing students and their parents almost $550 million per year. Strong American Schools compiled statistics from federal data and surveyed 17 states, including Texas.
Bird said 24 percent of students at four-year institutions and 38 percent at two-year institutions in Texas took at least one remedial course in 2006.
“At a time when people are trying to save as much money as they can, this is a hidden tax on Americans who are struggling to afford college as it is,” Bird said.
Gary Lavergne, UT’s director of admissions research, said only 1 percent of students at UT ever take a remedial course.
“UT is not a good institution to study remediation because we virtually have no remediation on our campus,” Lavergne said. “We’re a selective institution, and very few of our students come to us without having already tested out of any remedial subjects.”
Corporate communication freshman Jennifer Stadelmann said her teachers at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas adequately prepared her for the demanding study skills needed to succeed at UT.
“There is a lot of self-teaching,” Stadelmann said. “You have to have some internal motivation. There isn’t as much as of a personal relationship with your teachers as I had in high school.”
Pam Way, assistant director of tutorial services, said UT policy does not classify students as remedial.
“We don’t look at what a student’s high school experience is as an indication as to where they should be with their studies,” Way said. “We’re happy to provide tutoring for basically any student that needs help in a subject we tutor.”
The organization found that among students who graduated within eight years, 57 percent did not take remedial classes, 29 percent took one or two remedial courses, and 19 percent took four or more remedial courses.
