Less than half of all U.S. students who took the 2017 ACT failed to show enough mastery in English or math to do well in college. Furthermore, 40% to 60% of first-year college students require remediation in English, math or both, according to a separate CAP report on remediation. These are alarming numbers that coupled with other statistics – everything from high school and college graduation rates to U.S. competitiveness on a global scale – serve as the driving force behind myriad efforts to reform public schools.