Remedial courses increase

The Cal State Long Beach English department is grappling with an increased number of students who are ineligible for baccalaureate English courses.

"We've found that of 1,864 freshmen, a majority qualify only for pre-baccalaureate courses," said Eil een Klink, director of the Intensive Learning Experience Program.

To combat this problem, the English department recently obtained $120,000 from the administration for additional pre-baccalaureate - or remedial - classes. These courses provide instruction for students who are not yet ready for the degre e of expository writing demanded in English 100 (Composition).

The pre-baccalaureate courses are English 001 (Writing Skills) and Intensive Learning Experience Program 010 (Strategic Reading and Writing) and are non-degree applicable.

To quali fy for English 100, students must score at least 151 on the English Placement Test. Those with scores between 142 and 150 must take English 010. A score below 141 means enrollment in ILE 010.

"Preparation (of students) has been steadily declining," said James Neal, director of testing and evaluation services. "Only 20 percent of entering freshmen are eligible to take English 100."

Klink said that the decline in test scores is not just a Cal State Long Beach problem.

"There is a general lowering of the Scholastic Aptitude Test and the EPT test scores," she said. "It's happening throughout the Cal State system."

Klink stressed that the poorer student performances on tests should not be the focus of the English department's efforts.

"Our job is not to point the finger at why students aren't doing as well. Our job is to see that students are enrolled in courses," Klink said.

The department has modified its requirements for incoming freshmen. The Scholastic Aptitude Test ( SAT), once used only to determine exemption from taking the EPT (a score of 470 was the cut-off), is now used to determine eligibility for English 100. A student with an SAT score of 410 can register for English 100 only if their EPT results are unava ilable at the time of registration.

"The score of 410 is the closest equivalent in the SAT to the score of 151 in the EPT," Neal said. Neal emphasized that the SAT will not be a substitute for the EPT. A student will not be allowed to remain enrol led in an English 100 class if he or she cannot qualify based on the EPT, even if the SAT score was above 410.

Neal said that students were allowed to qualify for English 100 through the SAT so that more students could enroll in these classes.

Mark Wiley, co-director of the composition program, explained, "It's been a policy that the pre-baccalaureate courses have smaller classes to help [students] with their writing skills."

Since enrollment for the pre-baccalaureate classes have increas ed and since the department is restricted by the "smaller classes" policy, English 001 and ILE 010 were the priority consideration in getting more classes.

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