A recent article and op-ed piece covered the issue of students from Allegheny County’s school districts that enroll in the Community College of Allegheny County that need remedial education classes. We have written about remedial education previously (see here, here, and here) with the last piece addressing the growing need for remedial education at CCAC.
The percentages (in terms of the number of students from a particular school district attending CCAC) range from 100% for students that graduated from one of five districts to 53% for those that graduated from one district. The average for the County was 78%. Note that the article and op-ed are solely concerned with remedial education at the County’s community college, not any that might be taking place at other colleges or universities attended by students from the County.
Note too that the average per-pupil expenditure for instruction expense only in Allegheny County was $9,094 in 2012-13. Sixteen districts spent above that amount and twelve of those reported 70% or more of their students needed to take remedial classes. What is their explanation for why students enrolling in the County’s community college need to take remedial classes despite the above average instructional expense?
