Removing the Remedial Education Barrier to Community College Graduation

Less than 40% of community college students graduate within six years. A major barrier to community college graduation is remedial classes as these classes increase the time it takes for a student to graduate while also increasing financial burdens. To alleviate the burdens that community college students face, Congress should pass legislation that would incentivize remedial course reform through a grant program. These reforms would include multiple measure placement systems, coordination between high schools and community colleges, and co-requisite course models.

Remedial classes are non-credit-bearing classes that students are placed into when it is determined they are not prepared for college-level classes. Traditionally, remedial classes are centered around math, English, and writing. Students are placed into these classes based on a single, high stakes, standardized test. Many times students are misplaced, as they could have actually received a B or higher in a credit-bearing course.

While remedial classes are meant to help students, they in fact do the opposite. Remedial classes are incredibly costly to students and their families. Research has found that remedial classes cost around $1.3 billion a year across all institutions and $920 million a year at two-year colleges. Students borrow an estimated $3,000 per remedial course and accumulate $380 million in federal student loans each year. Therefore, students end up accumulating large amounts of debt for a class that does not count towards their degree. 

Students in remedial courses also often do not complete their degree. Less than 10% of students in remedial classes at community colleges go on to complete their degree within three years. Not only are students not getting their degree, but they are leaving school in large amounts of debt. By incentivizing remedial education reform, Congress could help reduce student debt while ensuring students complete their degrees.

This is not an uncommon issue. More than two-thirds of community college students are placed into remedial courses, sometimes for multiple semesters. Students from marginalized communities are even more likely to be enrolled in remedial courses. Between 2011 and 2014, 58% of Hispanic students, 57% of Black students, 39% of Pell Grant recipients, and 40% of first-generation college students were placed into a remedial course. If Congress incentivized states to implement reforms, then fewer students would end up in remedial courses to begin with.

By creating a federal grant program, Congress could incentivize states to implement remedial course reforms that have been found to be successful. These reforms would allow more students to enter community college remediation-free and to work towards degree completion more easily.

One way to reduce remedial course placements is through multiple measure placement systems. These placement systems are meant to reduce the number of students placed into remedial classes. Instead of only relying on a single standardized test to place students, these systems also use other factors, including high school GPAs and coursework. Research has shown that this is a more accurate predictor of how students will do in college-level classes. Using this approach would mean that fewer students would be placed into remedial classes in the first place.

Improving coordination between high schools and community colleges also would decrease the number of students entering college in remedial courses. Students would be tested in their junior year of high school for college readiness. They would then be able to take any needed remedial classes during their senior year of high school. This way, students enter college remediation free and start on their degree right away.

Co-requisite courses enroll students in college-level coursework while providing additional academic support, usually in the form of a supplemental class. These courses allow students to start earning credit and moving towards degree completion from the start. When Tennessee implemented this model, the state saw a drop in the cost for a student to get through a college-level math class and a rise in student pass rates.

The best way to incentivize community colleges to implement these reforms is for Congress to create a federally administered grant program. This is not a new idea. In 2019, Norcross (D-NJ) introduced the Remedial Education Improvement Act. This bill would have allowed the Department of Education to award grants to institutions of higher education for improving remedial courses. Grant funds could be used for aligning high school and postsecondary education course work, creating co-requisite course models, and comprehensive support to students.

If Congress wants to support community college students and increase graduation rates, it should incentivize remedial course reforms. Remedial classes don’t help students. Instead, they create a financial burden and act as an obstacle to graduation. Congress needs to reform this system.