Inadequate standards hurt students’ chances of succeeding in the job market, according to the report. But there are no simple fixes for this problem, the study said. That’s because community colleges likely are reacting to the inadequate academic preparation of incoming students, a majority of whom require remedial coursework in college.

Community colleges set a low bar for students during their first year of enrollment, with lax academic standards in literacy and mathematics, according to a new study from the National Center on Education and the Economy. And many students fail to meet even those minimal expectations.

The study released today [05/07/13] uncovered “disturbingly low standards among community college instructors,” said Marc S. Tucker, president of the center, a nonprofit group that focuses on academic assessment and standards across systems of education. “It’s clear that we’re cheating our students.”

Inadequate standards hurt students’ chances of succeeding in the job market, according to the report. But there are no simple fixes for this problem, the study said. That’s because community colleges likely are reacting to the inadequate academic preparation of incoming students, a majority of whom require remedial coursework in college.

“To raise the standards in our community colleges without concurrently doing what is necessary to enable our graduating high school students to meet the minimal standards currently in place would be irresponsible,” the report said. “Such a policy stance will only make a tough situation worse. So action on both fronts is clearly urgent.”

The research gives a particularly in-depth view of academic expectations, according the center. That’s because it drew from a wide review of syllabuses, textbooks, tests and graded assignments from seven community colleges located in seven different states. Researchers picked the colleges to represent a broad swath of the sector. The sample colleges enroll students from urban, rural and suburban areas, with enrollments ranging from 3,000 to 30,000 students.

Other studies of academic standards at community colleges were based on surveys and focus groups with faculty members, which are “notoriously faulty” methods, officials from the center said.

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