A new report by the Legislative Finance Committee shows that there’s a serious disconnect between Public High Schools and Colleges and Universities in New Mexico. If found more then half of graduating high school students are not actually ready for college classes.
The committee analyzed data from the state Higher Education Department and found that 51 percent of public school graduates have to take remedial courses their freshman year.
New Mexico students struggle when it comes to English and reading, but are even less prepared in math. The report found that 77 percent of students who passed Algebra II in high school essentially have to start over and take remedial math courses when they get to college. That's time consuming and expensive. Students have to pay for the classes, they don’t get any academic credit, and it takes them longer to graduate.
Some education advocates call remedial courses “a bridge to nowhere” because often students end up getting discouraged. The LFC report found only 17 percent of students who have to take just one remedial class end up even graduating from college.
The report recommends more dialogue between high schools and colleges and universities so that educators are on the same page about what 'college readiness' actually is.