The roots of developmental education in America reach back to the early 1800s, but it was the 1947 report from the President's Commission on Higher Education that provided the national mandate for developmental education and placed it squarely within the mission of community colleges. This Commission stated that "[the community college] will attempt to meet the total post-high school needs of its community." At present, developmental education courses and programs, designed to enhance literacy and basic skills, permeate the American community college environment. These programs again received national attention when President Clinton signed the Goals 2000, Educate America Act, and literacy, one of the eight goals of American education, became required by law.

What constitutes developmental education? It is generally defined as those instructional and support activities designed to keep unprepared students in college and help them improve their basic skills so that they can successfully complete a program and achieve their educational goals.

Why are community college students required to take developmental education courses? Most colleges administer some type of placement test to entering students to assess their abilities in reading, writing, and mathematics. Students who do not score above a prescribed level on a particular placement test are then required to enroll in appropriate developmental courses. In 1996, for example, nearly 86 percent of Illinois community college students enrolled in developmental education were more than 20 years old (ICCB, 1997). Although most, if not all, of these students learned reading, writing, and mathematics skills in their secondary education, the passage of time since high school, often exceeding 20 or more years, has probably caused them to forget much of what they had learned previously.

Stanley Ikenberry, former president of the University of Illinois and current president of the American Council on Education, agrees that no one particularly likes remedial (developmental) education, and it would be easier for faculty and colleges if students came to college prepared to pursue their chosen programs. Colleges offer developmental education programs simply because students come unprepared, according to Ikenberry, and community colleges would be advised to fix the deficiency (Ikenberry & Stix, 1998).

If community colleges understand and accept the premise that providing developmental education is central to their mission, why then do these programs continue to receive less funding than baccalaureate-oriented or technical programs? Perhaps one possible solution to this problem lies within federal and state funding policy. For example, current educational policy in Illinois prescribes that community colleges will be reimbursed for developmental education courses at a rate which is considerably lower than that for baccalaureate-oriented or technical courses.

According to The Institute for Higher Education Policy (1998), "... it seems quite apparent that society needs more, not less, educated people and should do all that is possible to make this a reality." At this point, one might ask what might be an economic or social outcome if community colleges continue making developmental education a low priority? Perhaps all of higher education, especially education policy-makers, would be well-advised to consider the possible economic and social consequences if developmental education remains a low priority in America.

References

Cohen, A. M., & Brawer, F. B. (1996). The American Community College (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Illinois Community College Board. (1997). Remedial/Developmental Education in the Illinois Community College System. Springfield, IL.

Ikenberry, S. O. & Stix, N. (1998, June). Should Colleges Offer Remedial Education Programs for Students?, Symposium conducted in Insight on the News, Washington Times Corporation, Washington, DC.

The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. (1999, January). Taking Responsibility: Leaders' Expectations of Higher Education. (National Center Report No. 99-1). San Jose, CA: Author.

The Institute For Higher Education Policy. (1998, December). College Remediation: What It Is, What It Costs, What's At Stake. Washington: Author.

The President's Commission on Higher Education. (1947).New York: Harper & Brothers.