Relearning to Earn: The Role of Remediation in Vocational Education and Job Training

The use of remediation as a prerequisite for vocational education and job training has grown substantially--principally in community colleges, technical institutes, adult schools, and various job training programs. Furthermore, a rough "system" of remedial programs exists in most communities, with several levels of difficulty that lead to a General Education Diploma (GED) or college-level preparedness and with extensive referrals among programs. In practice, however, this system fails, because referrals are haphazard, the tracking of individuals is non-existent and information about effectiveness is completely lacking. Furthermore, the majority of programs use a pedagogy--the didactic approach we call "skills and drills"--which is likely to be least effective for those adults in remediation. Because the need for remediation is likely to become more pronounced, reforming the current system is important--which will require not only the coordination and referral mechanisms familiar to policymakers but also pedagogical reforms that have rarely been considered.