Challenged
Each student is challenged academically and is prepared for success in college or further study and for employment and participation in a global environment.
To succeed in college, other postsecondary education, and the workplace, students need higher-level thinking, communications, and problemsolving skills as well as knowledge of the world and its people. These are all products of a curriculum that challenges students to work harder as they investigate a wide range of real-world subjects. What's more, our high school graduates who pursue college must be adequately prepared, yet too many are taking remedial courses, which raises deep concerns about the value of their high school diplomas.
What We Know
Every nine seconds in America a student becomes a dropout (American Youth Policy Forum, 2006).
More than 25 percent of students do not have access to a single advanced course in mathematics, English, science, or foreign language in their high school (National Center for Education Statistics, 2007).
Of all students at public four-year colleges and universities, 29 percent have enrolled in a remedial class. A 2008 survey of remedial students shows nearly four out of five had high school grade point averages of 3.0 or higher. (Strong American Schools, 2008)
Of college students surveyed, 59 percent reported that their high school classes were easy, and nearly half would have preferred that those classes had been harder to better prepare them for college (Strong American Schools, 2008).
More than one-third of states have already adopted college- and career-ready standards and graduation requirements, but far fewer states have developed ways to test whether students are college- and career-ready (Achieve, 2008).
More than 4 in 10 voters believe the United States is falling behind other countries in education, and more than 80 percent believe that schools need to teach different things than they did 20 years ago (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2007). But only one-third of U.S. middle school students and five percent of our elementary school students study a foreign language (Committee for Economic Development, 2007).
What We Recommend
It makes sense that for students to learn at high levels, they must have access to a 21st-century curriculum that both challenges and inspires them. Students who spend most of their day being lectured and drilled in reading and math only, and who don't have access to courses in the arts, music, social studies, civics, and other broadening courses, are more likely to tune out and less likely to do well in school. To ensure that all students are academically challenged with a well-balanced curriculum, we recommend, at a minimum:
- Schools provide a well-rounded curriculum for all students
- Students have access to rigorous programs in arts, foreign languages, and social studies
- Schools maintain flexible graduation requirements
Please take a moment and grade your school and community.
Find resources you can use to provide access to a rich challenging curriculum to each student in your school and community.
