Dive Brief:
- Minnesota has become the latest in a line of states considering legislative changes to remediation models at public colleges.
- Inside Higher Ed reports the Minnesota model will give students who place into remedial education the option to go straight to college-level courses, but will require additional tutoring and support to do so.
- Critics find limited evidence to support corequisite remediation, as it’s called, and worry the most disadvantaged students will not be helped even though statistics may show those at the top of the distribution are seeing great success.
Dive Insight:
A major concern for students taking remedial education is that they’re spending money for college courses that don’t count toward a degree. Evidence shows students who start in remedial education aren’t as likely to graduate. These statistics do not prove a cause-and-effect relationship, of course, but they are informative. Reforms to current college remediation models are likely to keep more students engaged for longer. But, state college systems, in partnership with K-12 feeder schools, will have to keep working on a full solution.