Colleges and universities almost always require an assessment test of incoming freshmen. These tests are designed to measure the extent the student's knowledge in specific areas of learning. The big three are math, English composition, and reading comprehension. These are considered absolutely essential to success at institutes of higher learning.
While students tend to dread and hate these tests, they have tremendous value in determining where the student belongs in the new student mix. If a person has trouble adding and subtracting, there is little reason to put him or her into a college algebra classroom. It will just be asking for failure.
English composition testing is required to see if the student has an adequate understanding of word usage, grammar, and punctuation to perform at a college level. If there is no hope of at least being able to achieve a "C" or higher, the student needs remedial work before trying to do college-level writing.
It almost seems out of place to measure reading comprehension in someone preparing to go to college. However, if the student was unfortunate enough to be pushed along through a soft curriculum in high school with little or no individual attention to performance, it can be a problem. A student may find a way to sneak and cheat through high school without reading, but it will not happen at the college level.
With so many adults returning to the college ranks after a decade or more of no additional formal education, almost all state universities and community colleges have instituted remedial class to prepare students for college work. The assessment tests serve to guidance about the weak areas that need to be strengthened before the college courses are taken.
These courses are given at the colleges. If a student needs remedial help in one area but is strong in another, he or she can start college work while building skills that are needed at the same time. The department that oversees remedial education almost always is equipped with several tutors who can give one-on-one instruction and help to speed up the learning curve.
There is no shame in needed remedial work. It is far less embarrassing to attend some classes slightly below college level than it is to flunk out of school. Today's schools recognize that their job is to prepare people at all ages for work in society. Assessment tests are a big gun in their arsenal to be able to help almost everyone achieve educational success.
