Placement tests have traditionally been used by community colleges nationwide to determine whether recent high school graduates are prepared for the rigors of college coursework. The results of these examinations have landed many incoming college freshmen into remedial or “developmental” classes designed to bring their academic skills up to par before embarking on more challenging college-level classes. However, recent evidence suggests that those remedial classes may have a much larger – and negative – influence on college completion rates overall. Additional research has shown that these placement examinations may not even be the most accurate assessment of college readiness for the majority of students today.
College Placement Exams Study: Other Measurements More Accurate?
A new study from Achieving the Dream, a non-profit organization, was created to improve community college outcomes for low-income students. The study, titled “Where to Begin? The Evolving Role of Placement Exams for Students Starting College,” found that tests commonly used by colleges to determine incoming student placement may be inaccurate and create hurdles to student success in college. The study found that other factors, including high school grades, may be better measures of success.
The study looked at students from the Long Beach Unified School District who attended Long Beach City College after high school. The study found that ninety percent of the students had to take five semesters or more of remedial classes before starting their college coursework. The study also found that if the college had relied on grade point averages rather than placement exam scores to allow freshmen to move right into the college curriculum, the number of freshmen in college classes would have risen by as much as 500 percent.
“With educational reformers keenly focused on remedial education, new research using longitudinal data systems questions the efficacy and fairness of the very tests on which the system of remedial education relies,” Pamela Burdman, author of the study, was reported as saying at EdSource. Burdman added that the results of this study were so “stunning,” additional studies will soon be launched on 22 community colleges within the state of California.
This video discusses college placement tests.
Placement Exams and Completion Rates
For many years, the issue of placement examinations was not addressed because educators did not link these examinations to overall college completion rates. However, with increased focus on completion, schools are now forced to take a look at whether remedial education has an impact on the number of students who go on to complete their degree programs. As that link began to be studied, it became apparent that there was a direct association between students who had to take multiple remedial courses and those who never finished their college degree.
According to California Watch, only 25 percent of students required to take remedial reading courses in community college have ever moved to a transfer-level English course. Only 10 percent of students taking a remedial math class ever moved to a college-level course. For schools with a dismal completion rate of around 30 percent, the impact of remedial coursework could profoundly affect those numbers.
The study reported in the California Watch found many potential problems with college placement examinations, including exam inconsistency from school to school and lack of preparation and awareness of exams by students. Many students didn’t realize they had to take the tests and did not prepare for them ahead of time. Even after completing exams, several students didn’t know how much impact those scores would have on their overall community college experience.
This video looks at increasing student achievement and completion rates.
Five Challenges to Placement Exams
The study by Achieve the Dream categorized five elements that result in the problems with the placement exams as they are today:
- High Stakes – These placement examinations are currently seen as low-stakes exams, so students are unaware of the repercussions if they don’t perform well.
- Effectiveness of Developmental Education – The study also suggests that developmental or remedial education in its current state may be an ineffective tool in improving college success.
- Positive Indications – Early studies suggest that allowing students to accelerate through remedial education – or skip it entirely – could improve student outcomes.
- Poor Indicators – Studies also suggest that placement examinations are poor indicators of academic success and that other measuring tools may be more effective.
- Incomplete Picture – Placement examinations may not provide a complete picture of potential student success since they don’t accurately measure intangibles like persistence, motivation, and critical thinking skills.
This video examines the issues of academic rigor and instructional support.
Hope for the Future
Fortunately, amid much bleak news on placement exams, there is a bright spot in the recent study. Researchers also looked at ways to change the system to make it more accurate and conducive to increased completion rates. Some states are also becoming innovative in the way they approach college readiness. For example, Education Week reports that North Carolina is now working with the College Board to design a new type of interactive exam that will better reflect the curriculum taught in the state.
New Jersey has plans to factor high school grades into examination scores. A community college in Texas also uses a similar system for students who fall into the “grey” zone of college readiness. Other schools are trying new ideas like providing online study guides for placement exams and offering remedial coursework in tandem with college classes for students who require additional help.
College readiness is an essential factor in college success, but measuring readiness is an imperfect process. Perhaps research like this will help educators find the most effective ways to measure readiness to provide students with the best chance of success in the future.
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