As nearly 500,000 K-12 students in San Diego County go back to school, it is a good time for our schools to recommit to preparing more students for college.
Employers are demanding the same critical-thinking skills, higher math and excellent communication skills required by college admissions officers. Students who have those essential skills and knowledge will fare better whether they go straight to college or start their careers right after high school. Whichever path they choose, they will be prepared.
But that's assuming they graduate. In San Diego city schools, according to the district's Report on Dropouts and Graduates, 2004-05, the estimated four-year dropout rate is 11.3 percent – that means out of 1,000 students who start off as freshmen, 113 will not finish in four years.
The San Diego County Schools Report Card 2005 shows that just over one in three students exit high school meeting the University of California/California State University “A-G” course requirements.
Both reports indicate an improvement over previous years. Working together, we can build on this progress. The key is to challenge our students.
Consider a recent Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-sponsored poll, which indicated that 90 percent of high school students who drop out of high school largely do so not because of failing grades but because they are bored and unchallenged. They have a “C” average or better.
The implication is that schools can significantly reduce the dropout rate if teachers demand more of their students. It suggests what we in education already knew – that all can complete the course work necessary for college admission.
This has been shown in school districts across the country. They have shown positive results by insisting on high expectations for all students and providing daily academic support through Advancement Via Individual Determination, an elective that supports students academically as they tackle rigorous curriculum such as Advanced Placement.
AVID students, most of whom lack a college-going tradition in their families, get extra assistance in mapping out their four-year high school education. We begin this process early – starting in elementary school – because the more support the students have along the way, the more likely they are to stay in school and graduate.
The results are positive but not surprising; research shows that students who take challenging, college preparatory courses do better in school and persist, even if they started out with poor test scores and low expectations.
Nationally, 75 percent of AVID seniors were accepted to four-year colleges, and 99 percent graduated from high school in 2004. Nearly 86 percent met the California “A-G” requirements, more than double the rate of the county.
The goal of K-12 education must be to ensure 100 percent of students graduate with the ability to fulfill their potential – whether that takes them to higher education or directly to the work force.
The larger mission of the public school system is to groom young people to be informed participants and leaders in our democracy. Exposing all students to rigorous course work and higher-level skills advances this important mission. Inequities in our school system lead to inequities in our society and risk undermining our democratic values.
By raising our expectations for our students and implementing programs such as AVID that build relationships, provide rigor and are relevant to students' interests, we can begin to change that.
Nelson is executive director of the San Diego-based AVID Center. He is the former Texas commissioner of education and a past superintendent.
