Change the world. Change our schools.

Posted by Bonnie.

The Seattle Times took an important step today to ensuring that all students have the opportunity to attend college. Here is a link to the editorial.

The editorial, echoing many of the facts used on our Did You Know Campaign website and materials, urges the State Board of Education to adopt Core 24 and require Algebra II as the default curriculum for the third credit of math.

The state board is expected to vote on the new requirements in July. The vote should be a unanimous “yes.” Why wait? Others haven’t. The Bellingham School District changed its requirements to mirror admissions requirements at Western Washington University.

The State Board is voting on Core 24 and the content of the third credit of math at their July meeting in Vancouver.

You can urge the State Board of Education to vote YES on Core 24 and Algebra II by sending an email or attending one of their upcoming outreach meetings listed below.

Monday, June 2
4:00-6:00 PM
Spokane Community College
Littlefoot Conference Room, Student Center (Bldg. 6)
1810 N. Greene Street
Spokane, WA 99202

Tuesday, June 3
4:00-6:00 PM
Yakima Convention Center
10 North 8th Street
Yakima, WA 98901

Wednesday, June 4
4:00-6:00 PM
University Heights Center
Room 209 (Auditorium)
5031 University Way NE
Seattle, WA 98105

Posted by Michael

The Washington State Board of Education will hold 3 community engagement meetings in June to hear your thoughts on high school graduation requirements and accountability.  It’s important that education advocates weigh in at these meetings.

The State Board will consider your feedback when they convene in July to make key decisions about the number of credits Washington’s students need to graduate from high school.  Currently, our state’s minimum high school graduation requirements do not match minimum college admissions requirements.

Luckily, I had a great high school counselor who told me to take 3 years of math, instead of the minimum of 2 to graduate.  But we shouldn’t rely on luck to ensure Washington’s students have the opportunity to go to college or enter the workforce with the skills needed to succeed.

View your school district’s graduation requirements here and compare them to our state’s college admissions requirements.  If they don’t match up, make sure to voice your concerns to your local school board and the State Board of Education.

There is a whole lot of moving, shaking and contemplating going on in Washington’s K-12 community. In addition to the Basic Education Finance Task Force looking at our K-12 finance system, the State Board of Education is tackling math and science standards (along with OSPI), accountability and high school graduation requirements.

The Meaningful High School Diploma was the focus of a SBE work group meeting Tuesday. The SBE is considering increasing the minimum high school graduation requirements from 19 to 24 credits. Our current graduation requirements do not match entrance requirements to Washington’s four-year colleges and universities.

The proposed change to graduation requirements, called Core 24, ups credit requirements for core classes and certain electives.

Within Core 24, the SBE wants to allow some flexibility for students with post-secondary plans not best served by Core 24’s default requirements. Some elective requirements can be met in middle/junior high school or through CTE courses.

Raising high school graduation requirements should help to better prepare students for post-secondary life, regardless of what their plans are. Too many (52 percent) of Washington’s recent high school graduates take remedial courses at community and technical colleges. Even those students who pursue options other than a two- or four-year college need the same skills as those who do, according to employers. Research shows that when the bar is set higher students actually perform better, regardless of their achievement level.

This is an exciting time for education in Washington. We have many decisions ahead of us, and the time for bold solutions is now. This is one of the reasons the League of Education Voters has invited Kati Haycock, president of The Education Trust, to a town hall meeting to discuss some of these issues and solutions. Please join us in a conversation about the future of education in Washington.

Monday, April 28
7 - 8:30 p.m.
Seattle Public Library, Microsoft Auditorium
1000 Fourth Avenue, Seattle

Posted by Lisa, 3/31/2008

Posted by Bonnie, 3/24/2008