Series highlights three states that are leading with their innovative work – California, Louisiana, and Georgia.
Contact: Enrique A. Chaurand
Email: echaurand@All4Ed.org
Phone: 816-825-1072
Washington, DC – All4Ed is proud to present a series of College and Career Readiness Close-Up briefs, which highlights innovative approaches to college and career readiness (CCR) indicators in several states. These indicators are an integral part of high school accountability systems and are essential for preparing students for success in postsecondary education and the workforce.
Since the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015, 37 states have integrated CCR indicators into their accountability systems for high schools. However, there is no uniform method for measuring readiness, leading states to develop different metrics and standards for evaluating student preparedness.
All4Ed’s recent report, “Undermeasuring: College and Career Readiness Indicators May Not Reflect College and Career Outcomes,” raises questions about the effectiveness of these approaches. The report suggests that many states’ CCR rates may be “undermeasuring” students’ postsecondary potential, akin to how highly qualified students are often “undermatched,” leading them to enroll in colleges that do not reflect their abilities.
The report offers several recommendations for state leaders to enhance their CCR indicators and highlights states that are leading the way in this effort. In the College and Career Readiness Close-Up series, All4Ed delves deeper into three of these innovative states: California, Louisiana, and Georgia.
Here’s a glimpse of what each state brings to the table:
1. California Leads in Disaggregating Readiness Data: California’s College/Career Indicator (CCI) on the California School Dashboard stands out for providing more than just the percentage of high school graduates deemed prepared for college or a career. California offers additional context for Dashboard users to interpret the CCI and provides detailed, underlying data for those who wish to explore the topic further, including data on individual groups of students across schools.
2. Louisiana Defines a Stronger Diploma: Louisiana’s Strength of Diploma index redefines how readiness is measured. Unlike other states’ CCR indicators, it takes into account not only whether a student graduates “ready” but also the quality of different high school pathways. This approach encourages schools to assist students in completing readiness measures tied to the most robust postsecondary outcomes.
3. Georgia Measures Readiness with College Outcomes: Georgia, a trailblazer in the field, utilizes postsecondary data for high school accountability and looks at whether students enroll in college-level, non-remedial courses. This innovative approach is aimed at ensuring that students are genuinely prepared for what lies ahead in their educational journeys.
“Through the College and Career Readiness Close-Up series, we aim to amplify the voices of states that are redefining the CCR landscape,” said Ziyu Zhou, Research and Data Specialist at All4Ed, and co-author of the reports. “These innovative approaches provide richer, more nuanced information about students’ preparation for higher education and the workforce, ultimately enabling data-informed decisions in education.”
The College and Career Readiness Close-Up series delves into the heart of transformative state policies to measure, incentivize, and promote high school pathways that better prepare students for college and careers—which is why it has been added as a featured resource in All4Ed’s new State Policy Center. The State Policy Center is a dynamic repository of model legislation, resources, and technical assistance to support state leaders and advocates in developing policies that prepare students for success in a rapidly changing world. The College and Career Readiness Close-Up series provides real-life examples of the Center’s model policies and practices for states implementing college and career pathways and next-generation accountability systems. All4Ed invites education stakeholders, policymakers, and educators to explore these state-level initiatives and consider how they can adapt and enhance their own CCR indicators.
For more detailed insights into each state’s CCR initiatives, please visit http://all4ed.org/publication/ccr-close-up
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