Remedial Education for Future Teachers

Re “Remedial Classes at Cal State,” Letters to the Editor, Nov. 9.

It gives me hope to know that some of Los Angeles’ future teachers are beginning as remedial students. Of course they belong in the university, having met California’s own criterion for admission. Besides passing all remedial classes, for which they receive no credit, they have to pass several regular classes at the same time. Once they’ve finished the remedial class (or classes) in math or composition, they take exactly the same sequence of general education classes as everyone else. These classes are a minuscule part of their total education.

These students, who have to work harder to combat the effects of an inadequate educational system, and choose to be teachers, know exactly what is necessary to help their own students succeed. They should be commended for their willingness to return to the troubled institutions they came from, bypassing opportunities to make a lot more money in fields where they would be respected and supported.

These young people who overcome heroic odds to educate themselves represent the vast majority of California’s school-age population. Thank God for the remedial classes that enable them to serve our youth.

NORAH CUNNINGHAM

Pacoima