New Option for Students to Graduate High School After Grade 10
Is getting a high school diploma after grade 10 a great idea or just another way for towns to save money by getting kids out of high school faster?
The new program to allow students to try to graduate high school early will first be implemented in the states of Maine, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Mexico.
The NY Times reports that this change to America's educational system is a replica of the systems other countries use. "The new system of high school coursework with the accompanying board examinations is modeled largely on systems in high-performing nations including Denmark, England, Finland, France, and Singapore."
Perhaps this new system will make American students more academically competitive. If they know they may be able to graduate early if they pass board exams they may make a much more fierce effort to achieve academically in their early years of high school.
The new educational strategy was created by the National Center on Education and the Economy. This group wants to lower the amounts of kids who need remedial classes in college. They think that knowing the board exams are looming at the end of grade 10 will encourage students to focus more rigorously on their studies.
Bill and Melinda gates have given a grant of $1.5 million dollars to the National Center on Education and the Economy. This funding will enable the group to test out this program and see if it can improve the American educational system. The Bill Gates Foundation is helping American children perhaps get a way to enter careers earlier via leaving high school early.
It is hard for me to decide if I think this program is a good idea. I moved to a new school system at the start of 10th grade. This was a tough experience. I don't know that I could have handled the stress of starting college at the end of that year.
But for those last two years of high school a frequent thought was "I just can't wait for college" because it was horrible to be at school without my childhood friends there too.
I was always a good student, but for math. I failed Geometry in Grade 10, despite having an A in Algebra the year before. I had to take a remedial math course my first year in college. Luckily, it was the only math course I needed in college. Once I finished that I knew I would always have high grades for the rest of college.
Even without a move, I think most students need at least 3 years in high school to fully absorb an education in the classics and also learn about more timely topics too like finance, communications, and international issues. The typical student likes the high school experience for its plethora of opportunities to participate in activities and socializing too. Many kids would be sad to lose a chance to have 4 years to enjoy high school.
However, I do think many advanced students are ready to move onto a county college after grade 10. During my time as a high school teacher I taught grade 12 for four years. It was easy to see that some of the most brilliant students were just coasting through the last year, eagerly awaiting college. Some kids are just far, far beyond their peers academically and ready to move on early to take on new challenges.
Thus, this program to leave high school early might give advanced students a way to speed up the pace of their education. They could finish college well before the normal time; then they could also continue on and get a lot of education in, such as achieving a masters or doctoral degree, before the demands of wanting to marry or start a family kick in.
American public schools need to become more competitive. That is for sure. Our math and science programs especially are falling behind other countries. Thus students are less prepared for competitive careers and for getting into top rate colleges.
What do you think? Are students ready for college after grade 10?
For more information about the National Center on Education and the Economy, go to: http://www.ncee.org.
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Published by Julia Bodeeb
Winner, Pulitzer Center Global Issues contest (Washington, DC), semi-finalist: The Nation's poetry contest. Published in newspapers, magazines and many online websites. Sold jokes to a major comic. Over a... View profile
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7 Comments
Post a CommentI truly don't think most students are ready for college after grade 10. Most of them aren't mature enough, and that includes learning how to face and handle distasteful circumstances such as bullying or snottiness by "the older kids." As undermining as these experiences can be, they help toughen us up and prepare us for "the real world."
Some of our schools have an agreement with the local universities for seniors to do their last year of high school at college. It's called joint enrollment. It definitely depends on the student, but the benefit are numerous - the biggest being a free year at college! The credit they receive gives them what they need to graduate high school and also counts as their college freshman year. My nephew did this and then transferred to GA Tech with a full year of credits under his belt. Quite a bit of savings!
I'm not sure if it's a good idea or not. Kids that go to college too soon may not be emotionally equipped to handle it. Excellent article. :-)
I would have to say I don't think it's a good idea. I'm glad I'm not a parent of a school age child!
I graduated one year early and have always regretted it! Cheers for writing on this.
I would say it very much so depends on the student, and that I would hope that parents have a say in the matter. Some kids are likely to be ready younger than others. Why should they have to stay behind when they know everything they need to know from high school?
Egad, I just read an article about Utah wanting to do it after grade 11 and thought that was odd. This many states and grade 10? It does give me pause to think that other countries do it successfully, but overall, I don't think it's a good idea. Maturity wise, all the world doesn't need is 15 year olds on college campuses. Also the timing is suspect. With the economy gone bust, this is one convenient way to shift the costs of education from states to the Feds (Federal student grants and loans for postsecondary ed).