If you feel unprepared for the rigors of college, you’re not the only one. The chances are good that your instructor is equally unready to teach you.
Universities assign remedial classes to teaching assistants, adjunct instructors and sometimes the newest faculty members. Those with the lowest standing – and often the least amount of teaching experience — teach remedial classes. Elite professors of distinction teach only upper-level classes; you won’t have access to the best in higher ed.
Unprepared students get unprepared instructors.
How the system works
Remedial classes are most often assigned to part-time instructors. These teachers often have only a bachelor’s degree. Many work for several colleges, and in doing so, keep minimal office hours. Colleges do not require that the instructors have a background in teaching.
Assigning full-fledged university professors to remedial classes offers little hope for ameliorating the situation. Universities do not mandate that their fully-tenured faculty have backgrounds in education. These professors have been hired because of their prominence in their fields of study, not for their ability to close learning gaps.
Thought-leadership and remedial instruction are worlds apart.
Who gets left behind
As a result, remedial classes are failing students.
According to the Community College Research Center, three out of every five students enrolled in remedial college English classes don’t acquire the skills needed for college coursework. The prospects are worse for remedial math classes, where 80% of students never make it to college-level math.
Good grades are no indication of success
You may have earned As and Bs in high school, but even a 4.0 GPA is no guarantee that you’ll be able to skip developmental classes in college.
Prepare now
Having to take remedial college classes adds to the cost of a college education, requiring both money and time.
Enrollees will not see a tuition break for remedial classes. All tuition hours are billed the same, but the hours spent in remedial courses will not count toward a degree plan. Instead, these courses hold students in limbo until they are ready for the rigors of authentic college work.
To prepare for your college education and skip remedial classes altogether, do these things:
- Take your high school classes seriously by studying the material and mastering it.
- Get a feel for a college class by taking a dual-enrollment course Close gaps early. Hire a tutor and sign up for study sessions to get the help you need.
- Close learning gaps early. Hire a tutor and sign up for study sessions to get the help you need.
- Do well on standardized assessments and placement tests by reviewing what will be testing and practicing for the exam.
Hopefully, you’ll be prepared enough to skip remedial classes.
