Many school districts offer remediation courses to help students who are behind academically catch up. A study by Umut Özek of the RAND Corporation finds that while high school remediation improves short-term academic achievement, it does not lead to better long-term postsecondary outcomes.
The study evaluated the impact of a Florida law requiring remediation for students scoring the lowest on state tests. These courses, offered during the school day, provided targeted support and smaller class sizes in the relevant subject. Özek followed ninth- and tenth-grade students in one Florida district who entered high school between 2008 and 2012, comparing those who just qualified for remediation to peers who just missed the cutoff and did not receive the extra support.
While remediation improved reading scores in the short term, it had unintended long-term consequences. Students placed in remedial tracks were less likely to take advanced coursework in both the subject area of remediation and other core classes. This tracking effect helps explain why they were about 5 to 6 percentage points less likely than their peers to earn any college degree (associate or bachelor’s). Because remedial classes take up elective slots in students’ schedules, these students were also nearly 7 percentage points less likely to enroll in Career and Technical Education courses that can support stronger career outcomes.
The effects varied based on students’ prior achievement. For students with the lowest reading scores two years earlier—those who had been consistently underperforming—remediation did not negatively affect postsecondary outcomes, and, in some cases, increased high school graduation and college enrollment rates. In contrast, remediation had clear negative effects for students who had once been proficient but only recently began struggling in reading. This pattern suggests that remediation programs are most effective when targeted to students who have been consistently low performing, rather than those whose performance has only recently declined.
Özek concludes that while remediation can raise achievement in the short term, its current structure may inadvertently limit students’ long-term success by reducing access to advanced courses and career-related electives. He recommends that policymakers and educators design remediation strategies that maintain these opportunities, better preparing students for both college and the workforce.