From the Rumford (Maine) Meteor:
Gov. Paul LePage said Wednesday he will propose a bill in the next legislative session that will require school districts to pay for their graduates’ remedial courses in college. LePage cited the number of college students who need remedial classes as evidence of the ways Maine’s education system is failing students and taxpayers. Fifty-four percent of students entering the Maine Community College System need to re-learn basic skills, as do 20 to 25 percent of students at the state’s four-year universities, LePage said. “The parents of this state pay taxes for public education, then they have to pay a second time when their kids enter college.”
That's "higher ed" these days. My question would be "Why are these kids accepted at community colleges if they lack required skills?" (We all know it's all about warm bodies and the money.) I think the Gov. has it backwards, but it is a clever political ploy.
I'm with Charles Murray in thinking that around 5% of kids are "ready" for serious higher ed, unless that "higher ed" means job training. It's all about Insty's College Bubble. Except for the most competitive schools, I think community colleges and most colleges are the new High Schools. Honestly, you would not believe the ignorance and intellectual incompetence of college grads that I have interviewed in recent years.
We have to face the fact that "higher ed" is a government-sponsored industry, just like GM and Solydra, churning out stuff that nobody really needs.
