January 2018 Achieve Insights

January 2018

Achieve Insights is a monthly briefing of newsworthy items from across states related to ensuring that all students graduate from high school prepared for college, careers, and life.

Indiana policymakers work to consolidate state’s four diplomas into one States will soon report a statewide graduation rate that, under a new definition established through ESSA, requires states to count only the diploma that most students earn, along with any other diplomas that are more rigorous. Amid concerns that students earning the state’s least rigorous General Diploma – which 12 percent of Indiana graduates earned last year – would not be counted in the state’s adjusted cohort graduation rate, Indiana policymakers are working on a solution. Two bills (HB 1426 and SB 177) are under consideration in the state legislature that would establish a system with one diploma that includes four “designations” with varied requirements. Three of the four designations would be at the college- and career-ready level.

Achieve considers states’ mathematics and ELA/literacy high school graduation requirements to be at the college- and career-ready level if students are expected to complete a course of study aligned with state-adopted CCR standards, which typically includes at least three years of mathematics through the content of Algebra II and four years of rigorous, grade-level English.

Ohio adds flexibility for students to take computer science to graduate Governor John Kasich signed legislation in late 2017 that will

allow Ohio districts to choose whether high school students in their schools can take AP Computer Science in place of Algebra II as a graduation requirement. As part of the new law, schools must also warn students taking AP Computer Science instead of Algebra II could hurt their chances of being accepted into postsecondary institutions where Algebra II is an admissions requirement. Achieve recently released a report with Burning Glass Technologies that found nearly one in four jobs in Massachusetts (23 percent) require computer science; however, Massachusetts discourages students from substituting science or technology courses, including computer sciences for the recommended four units of mathematics required under MassCore. MassCore is the state defined college- and careerready program of study that is substantially aligned to admissions requirements in public four-year colleges. While computer science content could certainly benefit students as they prepare for postsecondary education or a future career, it should not come at the expense of core mathematics content.

U.S. Department of Education releases notice for Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority applications under ESSA The U.S. Department of Education (USED) issued a notice inviting applications from states under ESSA’s Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority. States must notify USED of their intent to apply by February 2, 2018, and full applications are due on April 2, 2018. This is a new pilot program written into ESSA. Applying states that are selected into the program will be able to pilot innovative assessments in place of the statewide assessment system in participating districts. This new provision puts states in the driver’s seat to determine new, innovative ways to measure student progress toward college- and career-readiness, such as through performance assessments in competency-based systems or science assessments aligned to new college- and career-ready science standards.

All students should graduate from high school ready for college, careers, and citizenship.