The Obama administration announced months ago that it planned to change federal education policy such that public schools were measured such that students graduated from high school “college and career ready.” While no one seems to know quite what this means, at least some organizations are trying to figure it out. According to an article in the Community College Times:
The National Assessment Governing Board will create a special commission to increase awareness about high school seniors’ lack of academic preparedness in reading and math for higher education and job training.
Reporting on 12th grade preparedness is complicated by the fact that no generally accepted definition exists for what students need to know and be able to do to qualify for entrance into postsecondary education and training without the need for remediation, according to NAEP [the National Assessment of Educational Progress annual examination].
It would be very, very useful if the National Assessment Governing Board commission—which will include business leaders, politicians, and various education administrators, though no one from academia—would create that definition but that looks unlikely. According to the National Assessment Governing Board’s press release about the creation of the commission, “The commission, through its meetings, hearings, and presentations, will engage the public, educators at all levels, business leaders, and policymakers in discussion on this important issue.”
And then the commission will issue reports about how prepared American high school seniors are. This might be interesting to education policy types but a common definition of college and career readiness would probably be more valuable. [Image via]
