Reports Present Troubling Data about Student Preparation for College

Two new reports offer different perspectives on high school students' performance and preparation for college. According to Rate Your Future, a survey of high school students conducted for the National Governors Association, a majority of students believe that their school has prepared them to read at an advanced level and to perform algebra. But data reported by the National Center for Education Statistics in NAEP 2004: Trends in Academic Progress indicate that while achievement has improved in many areas, the overall picture is more negative than student self-assessments might suggest. Fewer than half of seventeen-year-olds "can understand complicated literary and informational passages" when reading, fewer than one in ten can perform algebra, and about six in ten can perform "moderately complex" math.

The National Governors Association survey also suggests that, although high school students tend to be unaware of the level of preparation needed to succeed in college and at work, many recognize that they would benefit from a more challenging curriculum. Large numbers of students say that high school has been "easy," and many believe that their education--especially in the senior year--could do more to prepare them for the transition to college and work.

FINDINGS

Student Assessments of High School: National Governors Association Survey

1. Of students who plan to graduate from high school, fewer than one in ten say high school has been "very hard" and more than one in three say it has been "easy."
2. Thirty-two percent of students who plan to graduate "strongly agree" that they would work harder if high school offered more demanding and interesting courses.
3. Eighty percent of students who plan to graduate rate their high schools as "excellent" or "good" at preparing them with basic reading skills, and 75 percent say that it prepared them to read at a high level.
4. Eighty percent of students who plan to graduate rate their high schools as "excellent" or "good" at preparing them with basic math skills, and 71 percent say that it prepared them in algebra.

Student Performance in High School: 2004 NAEP Findings

1. Thirty-eight percent of seventeen-year-olds demonstrate an ability to "understand complicated information" when reading.
2. Fifty-nine percent of seventeen-year-olds can perform "moderately complex procedures and use logical reasoning to solve problems," but only 7 percent can perform "multistep problem solving and algebra."
3. Seventeen-year-olds who say they read for fun almost every day have higher average reading scores, but over the past twenty years, the percentage of students who read for fun has been declining.
4. Seventeen-year-olds who spend more time on homework have higher average reading scores, but over the past twenty years, the percentage of students reporting they were not assigned homework has increased.
5. On average, seventeen-year-olds who indicate having access to a computer at school score higher in math, as do those who report having used a computer to solve a mathematical problem.
6. On average, seventeen-year-olds who report watching less television score higher in math.
   

NAEP 2004: Trends in Academic Progress (PDF) can be downloaded from the National Center for Education Statistics. A summary of the Rate Your Future survey findings is available online from the National Governors Association.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Half of high school students say that the senior year could be more meaningful.
• Ninety-three percent of students say that "taking courses related to the kind of job I want" would work "very" or "somewhat well" at improving the senior year.
• Large majorities of students think that their senior year would be more meaningful if they were given more detailed information about college and allowed to take courses for college credit.