1 / 27

Closing the Expectation Gap

Closing the Expectation Gap. Fourth Annual 50-State Progress Report on the Alignment of High School Policies with the Demands of College and Careers. Align High School Graduation Requirements with College- and Career- Ready Expectations. II. The expectations gap.

malinda-drakos
Download Presentation

Closing the Expectation Gap

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Closing theExpectation Gap Fourth Annual 50-State Progress Report on the Alignment of High School Policies with the Demands of College and Careers

  2. Align High School Graduation Requirements with College- and Career- Ready Expectations II. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP

  3. The expectations gap • In today’s economy, all students need a challenging academic course of study to succeed in postsecondary education and to get a good job. • But in many states, students can graduate from high school without having what it takes to continue learning or to earn a living wage. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 3

  4. Closing the expectations gap • To close this expectations gap, Achieve created the American Diploma Project Network. • The Network includes 34 states that together educate nearly 85 percent of the nation’s public school students. • Network states have committed to four policy actions to better prepare students for college, the workplace and citizenship. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 4

  5. American Diploma Project Network agenda • Align high school standards with the demands of college and careers. • Require students to take a college- and career-ready curriculum to earn a high school diploma. • Build college-and career-ready measures into statewide high school assessment systems. • Develop reporting and accountability systems that promote college and career readiness. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 5

  6. Requiring a rigorous curriculum is key to better preparing students for college and careers • Course-taking matters more for student achievement than social problems, family obstacles and student ability. • Nearly every state requires students to study specific subjects for a certain number of years or take specific courses to graduate, but most do not require a college- and career-ready curriculum. • Research by the American Diploma Project and others shows that students who go to college and students who go to work need the same knowledge and skills, particularly in English and math. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 6

  7. ADP: Identifying knowledge and skills students need to succeed in college and the workplace • Achieve, The Education Trust, and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation launched the American Diploma Project (ADP) to identify knowledge and skills students need in English and math to succeed in college or get a “good” job. • Partnered with Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada and Texas. • Involved wide variety of K–12, higher education and business representatives. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 7

  8. How American Diploma Project defines “good” jobs • Pays enough to support a family well above the poverty level, • Provides benefits, and • Offers clear pathways for career advancement through further education and training. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 8

  9. What does it take to succeed in good jobs? • American Diploma Project research found that: • 84 percent of highly paid professionals took Algebra II or higher in high school. • Employees in vast majority of good jobs took four years of grade-level English. • Employers emphasize importance of workers being able to think creatively and logically and to identify and solve problems. • Fastest-growing occupations require some education beyond high school (e.g., certificate, bachelor’s degree, associate degree, on-the-job training). Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 9

  10. To be college- and career-ready, students need to complete a rigorous sequence of courses • In math: • Four courses • Content equivalent to Algebra I and II, Geometry, and a fourth course such as Statistics or Precalculus To cover the content American Diploma Project research shows students need to be college- and career-ready, high school graduates need to take: In English: • Four courses • Content equivalent to four years of grade-level English or higher (i.e., honors or AP English) Cross-disciplinary proficiencies are critical elements of the math and English benchmarks Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 10

  11. Cross-Disciplinary Proficiencies • To achieve success in college, the workplace and life, American students must not only master important content, they must also be adept problem solvers and critical thinkers who can contribute and apply their knowledge and skills in novel contexts and unforeseen situations. Specifically, the ADP benchmarks include the following cross-disciplinary proficiencies: • Research and Evidence Gathering. • Critical Thinking and Decision Making • Communications and Teamwork • Media and Technology • Students need a strong content foundation in order to master these sophisticated cross-disciplinary proficiencies. Cross-disciplinary proficiencies are, therefore, best taught in the context of rigorous courses in the foundational disciplines. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 11

  12. Taking rigorous high school courses greatly increases students’ readiness for college-level coursework Percentage of students who meet ACT benchmark for college algebra by math courses taken in high school Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core: Preparing All Students for College and Work, 2004. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 12

  13. Students who had a rigorous high school curriculum are more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree Source: Adapted from Horn, L. and Kojaku, L.K. High School Academic Curriculum and the Persistence Path through College: Persistence and Transfer Behavior of Undergraduates Three Years after Entering Four-year Institutions, National Center for Education Statistics, 2001. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 13

  14. Taking challenging courses in high school closes college completion gap between whites and minorities 13% 30% Source: Adelman, C. Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment, U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, 1999. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 14

  15. Minority interest in advanced math far exceeds availability Percentage of students Source:National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, Progress Toward Power: A Follow-Up Survey of Children’s and Parents’ Attitudes About Math and Science. Research Letter, October 2001. Survey conducted by Harris Interactive, 1999. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 15

  16. Graduates say they would have worked harder if high schools had challenged them If your high school had demanded more of students, set higher academic standards and raised the expectations of how much coursework would be necessary to earn a diploma, would you have worked harder? • Wouldn’t have worked harder • Would have worked harder 80% 82% • Strongly feel I would have worked harder High school graduates who did not go to college High school graduates who went to college Source: Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 16

  17. Current students agree Percentage of students who say they would work harder if high school offered more demanding and interesting courses Source: National Governors Association, summary of RateYourFuture.org survey findings, 2005. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 17

  18. Graduates who faced high expectations in high school twice as likely to feel prepared for future Percentage saying they were extremely/very well prepared Source: Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 18

  19. Taking advanced math in high school better prepares students for math on the job Percentage of high school graduates extremely or very well prepared for expectations of college/work Source: Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 19

  20. Students who did more writing in high school feel better prepared to write on the job Percentage of high school graduates extremely or very well prepared for expectations of college/work Source: Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? prepared for Achieve, Inc., 2005. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 20

  21. Twenty states require a college- and career-ready diploma for all ME VT WA ND NH MT MN MA NY OR WI RI ID SD MI CT WY PA NJ IA OH DE NE IN NV IL MD WV VA UT DC KY CO KS MO CA NC TN SC OK AR AZ NM GA AL MS TX LA FL AK Mandatory college- and career-ready diploma Default college- and career-ready diploma HI Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 21

  22. …eight others plan to ME VT WA ND NH MT MN MA NY OR WI RI ID SD MI CT WY PA NJ IA OH DE NE IN NV IL MD WV VA UT DC KY CO KS MO CA NC TN SC OK AR AZ NM GA AL MS TX LA FL AK Planning to raise requirements HI Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 22

  23. How states are doing it: Default curricula (opt out provision) Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 23

  24. How states are doing it: Mandatory curriculum (no opt out provision) Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 24

  25. What it will take to raise graduation requirements • States that let local districts set their own requirements will need to consider other approaches. • States need to pay more attention to the content of the courses that are taught rather than simply measure course titles and Carnegie units. • States need to allow teachers to engage students in different ways that match their learning styles. • States need to ensure that there are enough teachers who are prepared to teach higher-level courses. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 25

  26. What can we expect? • Implementation takes time and effort. States must: • Monitor efforts. • Communicate effectively. • Invest resources wisely. • Use data to protect investment. • Build in the necessary supports and incentives for teachers and students to ensure all schools can provide the rigorous curriculum to all students. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 26

  27. These efforts matter • All students need and deserve to be prepared for success in both postsecondary education and the labor market. • This is not easy work … but this is possible … and this effort is essential. Achieve |2009 CLOSING THE EXPECTATIONS GAP 27

More Related