<p>Among the changes are that if your progress to your planned associates degree or vocational certificate (or presumably transfer to a four year school) takes too long, you will lose registration priority. And if you have a fee waiver, you will lose it after 110 (semester) units.</p>
<p>Basically, it prioritizes those following a clear plan to a degree, certificate, or transfer, at the expense of those who are taking courses just for personal interest, or who are not making clear progress toward their intended goal, or who need a very large amount (>50 semester units worth) of remediation. However, critics appear to be saying that the latter may be overrepresented among those who need the fee waivers.</p>
<p>sounds about right. I know someone that just wanted to get her teaching certificate and got an AA in the process. Now that standards are changed, she’s trying to get her bachelors and has to petition for financial aid because she has over 90 credits already.</p>
<p>I doubt that, but they should start education plans and let freshman know these policies because it could effect them in the future- ie major changes. </p>
<p>Just take the highest math you can and finish your GE’s and students will be ok.</p>
<p>Pre-algebra should have been learned in junior high school (7th/8th grade).</p>
<p>Of course, that is a sad commentary on the state of K-12 in California if someone who actually graduated from high school needs to go back to pre-algebra. (However, since community colleges do exist in part to give people a second chance, there could still be some need for such courses even if K-12 were up to standard – but there would be less need.)</p>
<p>These proposed changes are a good start at reducing the difficulties serious students face in getting into the classes they need to transfer to a four year school in a timely manner. Too many students spend too much time at CCCs which limits opportunities for new students and is a heavy burden on taxpayers. Offering pre-Algebra in junior high school at public expense and then supporting CCC students with financial aid and fee waivers in junior college taking remedial pre-Algebra makes one wonder how many times do we have to pay for some people to learn this fairly simple material.</p>
<p>Another problem that needs to be dealt with is the number of students at CCCs who withdraw from class after class to “protect their GPA” and then register for it again, making it very hard for students fresh from high school to get the classes they need to transfer in a timely manner. Students who withdraw from the same class more than once should be prohibited from ever registering for it again and more than five withdrawals in a two year period should result in a lengthy suspension or even permanent dismissal from the entire CCC system. CCC students need to learn how to “protect their GPA” by making an all out effort the first and only time they take a course.</p>
<p>Well there are many reasons for withdrawals, I know I have a few times. But you are right. But I’ve never withdrew from the same course more than once. There def should be legislation on limits of what students can and cannot do in this pressing economy.</p>
<p>What they should do for students repeating courses is that anyone taking a course the second (or third, etc.) time should only be allowed to register for the waiting list, ordered by the number of times the course was previously taken (more tries getting worse priority), with ties broken in favor of those repeating D/F grades over those who withdrew late* or are trying to repeat passing grades.</p>
<ul>
<li>Withdrawing late means after the deadline for some other student to add the course and take the place of the withdrawing student.</li>
</ul>
<p>I really wish CC’s would start to cut their non-transferable courses more . Nothing is more aggravating then first taking a CSU only class, since all the other classes are full , and then realizing your going to a UC, and not having 15 units ( SEMESTER, I wasted a semester of my life) count . </p>
<p>Too much money is wasted on crap like Entertainment technology, which amounts to course work not recognized by the UCs .</p>
<p>AND I don’t think any aid should be given for taking non-transferable( as in remedial ) math or English . In fact we could fix alot of problems by not giving students who did poorly in high school( like below a 3.0, ideally 3.25 ) ANY financial aid until after the completion of 30 semester units . That way the money would only go to kids serious about their education .</p>
<p>Not everyone wants to go to a uc, and while I think more people should aim higher I don’t think we should try to force them.
As for bad high school students, I was one of them, I hardly learned anything, my first year I had a 1.1.
I went to community college without purpose and I ended up loving it. I have a 3.72 and I’m glad that cc offers lower classes for those of us who need to work our way up.</p>
<p>Hellolilly , its not about forcing anyone . UC transferable units are still good for CSU , it just doesn’t always work the other way . Like I have 15 CSU only units , since my CC wasted money on offering CSU only classes . Lets say those 5 classes had been UC transferable courses, then I’d be ahead right now and if I had went to a CSU I would also get credit for those 5 classes . </p>
<p>As for lower classes, yeah if you need to take Algebra one since you missed it in 9th grade, go ahead, but you shouldn’t receive aid for it</p>
<p>But isn’t it your own mistake, you could have looked into whether they were transferable to a uc, you may think those classes are useless and that’s why they shouldn’t be funded by aid but to some people they’re useful.</p>
<p>The UC classes I should of took were full . Many of these classes ARE useless, and rather then cutting any UC transferable classes, the useless CSU only classes need to go . </p>
<p>Like I already said, the kid going to a CSU is still good with UC transferable classes . And tell me why anyone should be given money for taking a remedial class . If you can’t test into at least English 101( what ever the first transferable english class is ,) thats on YOU . YOU need to pay money to catch up .</p>
<p>Wow, that’s pretty harsh at the remedial math part: I’d guess that a lot of people that need remedial math also wouldn’t even be able to go to college if it wasn’t for financial aid.</p>
<p>Many of the students who receive aid in cc are the same low income students who went to crappy low income underfunded schools who don’t properly teach kids, so in a way it’s not their fault the public schools system failed them, and what’s wrong with them receiving aid now to finally get a proper education.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, this is often more the fault of the K-12 system than it is the student’s fault. If the K-12 system were better at teaching what it should be teaching, then there would be less need for remedial math and English in colleges.</p>
<p>ucbalumnus is absolutely correct. I took Algebra in 8th grade (Jr high) and the teaching was horrible. No homework (if there was it was rarely turned in or checked), barely any tests and no quizes between them. Most of the time kids in my class chatted and played board games or something. Some of the more determined students ended up reading the textbook and tried to teach themselves! It was pretty bad and the teacher ended up getting fired and replaced about 2 months before the school year ended. But the damage was done - what was the school gonna do? Hold back everyone to do algebra again when we were all slated to go to another school?</p>
<p>Needless to say, they “passed” us all and I went straight into Geometry in 9th grade. Had an F after the first couple weeks and thankfully the teacher really cared and talked to me on the side. He suggested I retake algebra so I switched classes and luckily there too was a tacher who cared and actually taught and assigned homework, etc. Went on to Geometry, Adv Algebra and Pre-Calc by Sr year. But you can imagine if that geometry teacher just strung me along with maybe a D and tried to pass me to Adv Alg. . . I would have been so far behind and so screwed. Obviously I wasn’t the only one affected in that 8th grade class.</p>
<p>Guys I’m not saying that CC’s shouldn’t offer Algebra one or other basic courses . But students shouldn’t get aid for taking those classes . This would also encourage students to get out in a reasonable amount of time , like if you need to catch up you need to work that much harder, if you need remedial english and math , that should be in addition to your other classes . My cc actually went the other way and allowed up to 30 units of remedial coursework to count for aid , but not against a student in making satisfactory progress . </p>
<p>I believe that it should be required for students to put in a significant amount of time( and a bit of money) on the community college level before just handing out loans and grant money . Its still only 36, 40$ a unit . At a bare minimum students who had poor high school GPA’s should have to complete their first semester at a CC on self support( at least 12 units) . This will provide a great filter to see who’s really serious about getting an education .</p>
<p>Of course, that means that the poorest students who went to the worst K-12 schools are most likely to be shut out. Now, if the K-12 system had to give money to the community college for every student who had to take a remedial math or English course after having supposedly passed the same course in K-12, that might provide more incentive. As it is, the state educational system is paying to teach some students twice because it failed the first time in K-12.</p>
<p>It does, however, make sense to withdraw aid for repeating courses due to either failure or late withdrawl (or worse, grade grubbing – attempting to get a higher grade than an original passing grade).</p>