Effective High School Reform: Research and Policy That Works

July 2005
By Sunny Kristin

Introduction

Recent research on high school performance shows that large numbers of high school graduates are not adequately prepared for postsecondary education or training nor are they prepared to be competitive in the work force. A 2005 survey of 1,487 recent high school graduates, 400 employers, and 300 college instructors found that:

• Of recent graduates currently in college, 39 percent say they have gaps in preparation for the expectations of college;

• College instructors estimate that 42 percent of college students are not adequately prepared by their high schools to meet college expectations;

• Of recent graduates who have gone into the work force without earning a college degree, 39 percent say they have gaps in preparation for what is expected of them in their current job; and

• Employers estimate that 39 percent of recent high school graduates are unprepared for entry-level jobs.1

This report examines research about what works for high school students and what works at the state policy level to improve high school performance. To date, the majority of high school reform efforts made by state legislatures have focused on reducing high school dropout rates and improving the transition between high school and college. Research shows that comprehensive policies aimed at redesigning the high school experience have great potential to better meet the needs of students and improve high school performance. It is at the state policy level that comprehensive policies can be implemented to ensure that all high school students graduate prepared for work and college.

What Works: Rigor, Relevance and Relationships

Research shows that successful high schools provide rigorous academic coursework, relevant learning opportunities, and meaningful relationships with instructors who are qualified to help students achieve high standards.

Rigorous Academic Coursework

Research shows that the rigor of high school curriculum is one of the top indicators for whether a student will graduate from high school and earn a college degree. In fact, a study by the U.S. Department of Education found that the rigor of high school course work is more important than parent education level, family income, or race/ethnicity in predicting whether a student will earn a postsecondary credential.2

Unfortunately, most recent high school graduates report being only moderately challenged in high school. In the 2005 survey of almost 1,500 recent graduates, just 24 percent of graduates said they were significantly challenged during high school. One in five recent high school graduates said that “expectations were low and…it was easy to slide by.” Among those graduates who reported being significantly challenged in high school, 80 percent felt well prepared for the expectations of college.3

A rigorous high school curriculum requires challenging instruction and support for each student to meet high standards. Components of a rigorous high school curriculum include higher expectations for all students, with support for low-performing students through intervention programs and extended learning opportunities, and a requirement that each student complete a college- or work-ready curriculum in order to graduate from high school. Elements of rigorous academic coursework are described below.

Higher expectations for all high school students

• Studies show that higher expectations for high school students—that they will go on to some form of postsecondary education—significantly improve performance. When California’s San Jose Unified School District required all students to enroll in a college-prep curriculum, the test scores of black 11th graders increased nearly seven times more than those of other black students across the state.4

Requirement that all students complete a college- or work-ready curriculum to graduate from high school

• Studies show that aligning high school standards to college and workplace expectations is a critical step toward giving students a solid foundation in the academic, social and workplace skills needed for success in postsecondary education or a career.

• Students who are adequately prepared for postsecondary education are unlikely to require remedial classes in college, a key indicator for college success. Although approximately 45 percent of all students who enroll in postsecondary education will ultimately earn a bachelor’s degree, only 17 percent to 39 percent of students who take remedial courses will successfully earn that degree, depending on the number and type of remedial courses taken. Among students who take no remedial courses, 58 percent will earn a bachelor’s degree.5

• The American Diploma Project has found that there is a common core of knowledge and skills—particularly in English and math—that students must master to be prepared for both postsecondary education and well-paying jobs. The research shows that there is a strong correlation between scores in high school math and English and wages earned once in the workplace. Students who are taking below-average or functional/basic English increase their likelihood of being employed in a low-paid or low-skill job. Students in the top quartile of mathematics scores earn significantly more in the decade following high school than do students in the lower quartiles.6

Relevant Learning Opportunities

Research shows that creating multiple pathways to graduation, through a variety of learning opportunities, provides students with a meaningful high school structure that links subject areas and encompasses both personal experiences and connections to the world of adult work.

High school options that provide relevant learning opportunities and a rigorous college- and work- ready curriculum may include existing high schools, “schools-within-schools”, online or virtual high schools, and small high schools created by local communities. Relevant learning opportunities may include in-depth projects that take place both in the classroom and the work place and internships or community partnerships that provide students with a vision of their future and an understanding of how their school work is linked to what they will do after graduation. Elements of relevant learning opportunities include smaller learning communities, personalized learning opportunities, college-level learning opportunities in high school, and an understanding of postsecondary admissions and placement processes.

Smaller learning communities

• Smaller schools can reduce the achievement gap between white and minority students, help prevent students from dropping out, provide richer academic experiences, and provide safer environments for youth. A study by the Rural School and Community Trust found that smaller schools in four widely divergent states (Georgia, Montana, Ohio and Texas) reduce the harmful effects of poverty on student achievement. Specifically, smaller schools help students from less affluent communities narrow the academic achievement gap—as measured by each state’s standardized tests—between them and students from wealthier communities. The study finds that smaller schools also are safer schools, where students are far less likely to experience physical danger, loss of property and vandalism.8

• Research on school size consistently finds that students in small schools have stronger feelings of affiliation and belonging than do students in large schools. Students and teachers in smaller schools develop relationships that are more difficult to achieve in large schools, and each student’s participation in classroom discussions and school activities is necessary. In addition, parents who find the size and bureaucracy of large schools intimidating are more likely to feel that their participation is welcome and needed in small schools.9

Personalized learning opportunities

• A new body of research is finding that learning works best when it is personalized. Personalized learning opportunities provide students with an opportunity to plan and prepare for life after high school and to understand how their school work is related to postsecondary and career goals. Personalized learning means designing a blend of courses and experiences that match the needs and interests of each student.

• The career academy is a model of high school design that creates personalized learning opportunities through career-related experiences during high school. Career academies originally were developed to prepare students who otherwise might drop out of high school for the world of work. Since the early 1990s, the focus of career academies has expanded to prepare a mix of high-performing students and high-risk students for both postsecondary education and employment. Recent research finds that career academies improve labor market preparation and successful school-to-work transitions without compromising academic goals and preparation for college. There is compelling evidence that investments in career-related experiences during high school can produce substantial improvements in the labor market prospects of youth during their postsecondary years.10

College-level learning opportunities in high school

• Research shows that the expansion and financing of college-level learning opportunities in high school has the potential to greatly increase the number of students who successfully complete postsecondary programs after graduation. Sometimes referred to as early college programs or dual enrollment programs, college-level learning opportunities in high school have a number of benefits for students, including preparing students for the academic rigors of college; lowering the cost of postsecondary education by enabling them to earn free college credits and shortening their time to degree completion; and providing students with information about the academic skills they will need to succeed in college.

• A 2001 study conducted by the University of Washington found performance of students enrolled in the state’s dual enrollment program was comparable to college students enrolled in two-year institutions. Another study conducted by researchers at the University of Arizona found that students who participated in dual enrollment programs experienced lower drops in their grade point averages during their freshman year, compared with other University of Arizona freshmen.11

Understanding of postsecondary admissions and placement processes

• Research shows that effective college awareness programs can educate students and their families about the need to obtain a college education, how to prepare for college, how to apply for enrollment, and how to apply for financial aid. College awareness programs can help raise expectations for high school students so that all students are expected to participate in some form of postsecondary education.

• An example of a successful college awareness program is the Ohio College Access Network, which provides planning and start-up grants to communities that work to develop a college access program. The college access programs provide services to high school students and their families, including college admission and financial aid counseling, mentoring, SAT and ACT preparation, tutoring, college visits and career guidance. In its first year of operation, the University and College Access Network of Richland County increased the number of students who applied to college by 60 percent over the previous year. In Tuscarawas County, the Accessing A College Education program saw an increase in the percentage of students who applied to college from 49 percent in 2002 to 72 percent in 2004. 12

Meaningful Relationships

Research shows that students perform better when they are in schools where they have a personal relationship with a caring adult. Much of the evidence that supports the concept of meaningful relationships with adults comes from the experiences of small school environments, where teachers have smaller teaching loads and are personally responsible for acting as advisors or advocates for a small number of students. These smaller school environments, where every student is connected to and held accountable by a supportive and respectful network of adults, have been shown to greatly improve the academic and social development of high school youth. Elements of meaningful relationships include the following.

Excellent teachers and principals

• Effective teachers are critical to helping all students meet rigorous high school coursework and standards. Excellent teachers have high-level skills and knowledge in the subjects they teach and are trained in helping low-performing students succeed.

• Excellent principals provide important leadership in schools and are accountable for results in student achievement, attendance and truancy rates, graduation rates, and staff retention. Effective principal training programs include in-school clinical opportunities for observing excellent principals and on-the-job experience.13

Continuous interaction between students and adults

• A key concept in high school reform is the idea that successful high school students are able to form meaningful relationships with instructors who can help them meet high standards, both academically and socially. Evidence shows that this personal connection with an adult helps ensure that students have an advocate who understands their interests, struggles and ambitions. An example of continuous interaction between students and adults occurs at the Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center (“the Met”) in Providence, Rhode Island. In ninth grade, students are assigned to an advisor who works with them throughout high school. The advisory groups have 14 students and serve as a constant community for each of the students. The student and his or her advisor, with input from parents and mentors, create an individual learning plan that reflects the student’s needs and postgraduate plans. The Met high school has seen great results from this personalization. Every student in the school’s first two graduating classes was accepted to college. Most of these students were the first in their family to attend college.

• Another important element of personalization being used in small schools is “looping”, which puts students in the same teacher’s classes for multiple years. In this model, relationships can build over time and teachers have time to fully understand the learning styles and academic needs of each student.

No anonymity for high school students

• School size research consistently finds stronger feelings of affiliation and belonging on the part of small-school students than large-school students.14 The success of small school environments suggests that, when each student is well-known by at least one adult, they are more likely to achieve. Having smaller teaching loads allows teachers to focus on both the academic and social development of students and allows students to demonstrate their knowledge to adults in a personalized structure. When teachers and students are able to build relationships, both are motivated to make the high school environment successful.

Research-based Models that Have Been Shown to Raise Performance

Research clearly shows that successful high school reform requires elements of each of the three Rs: rigorous academic coursework, relevant learning opportunities, and meaningful relationships between students and teachers. Several studies have found that when one or two of these elements—but not all three—is attempted in a high school reform effort, the effort is not nearly as successful as in schools that use all three.

Some examples of research-based models that emphasize rigor, relevance, and relationships and that have been shown to raise high school performance include the following.

High Schools that Work

With more than 800 sites in 22 states, the High Schools that Work model is designed to integrate challenging academic and vocational curricula for high school students, whether they are college bound or preparing to enter the work force. The High Schools that Work school improvement design provides a research-based framework of goals, key practices and key conditions for setting higher standards and improving learning.

• Goals include making the senior year more challenging and meaningful for students by aligning senior year academic courses to standards to enable students to pursue postsecondary studies without taking remedial courses, and by assisting students who are not planning to attend college to use their senior year to prepare for high-paying, high-demand jobs by providing opportunities to take industry-approved programs that lead to an associate’s degree or a vocational certificate.

• Key practices include integrating high expectations into classroom practices and giving students regular feedback; requiring each student to complete an upgraded academic core and a concentration; and providing each student with the same mentor throughout high school to assist with setting goals, selecting courses, and reviewing the student’s progress.

• Key conditions include strong leadership, a plan for continuous improvement, qualified teachers, and flexible scheduling to enable students to earn more credits and complete either an academic or a career/technical concentration.

Participating High Schools that Work schools assess their 12th grade students in science, mathematics and reading, using National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) proficiency standards. The schools also collect data on student course-taking patterns, student behaviors and attitudes, and teacher attitudes and characteristics, and follow up with graduates one year later to find out how well their high school experience prepared them for postsecondary education and work. The assessments and data are used to prepare an annual site progress report for each school to measure accomplishments and ongoing challenges.

Substantial research-based evidence shows that students who complete the High Schools that Work recommended academic core and either an academic or career/technical concentration have higher reading, mathematics and science achievement scores than students who do not.15

Talent Development High School

With more than 950 schools in 16 states, the Talent Development High School model aims to improve the academic performance of students in large, comprehensive high schools that have problems with low student engagement, poor prior preparation among entering ninth-graders, low ninth-grade promotion rates, and continued problems in the upper grades. The Talent Development High School model divides large, urban high schools into smaller units (“academies”), including a Ninth Grade Success Academy and academies based on career themes for students in the upper grades. The model encompasses five main features:

• Small learning communities, organized around interdisciplinary teacher teams that share the same students and have common daily planning time;

• Curricula leading to advanced English and mathematics coursework;

• Academic extra-help sessions;

• Emphasis on professional development for staff; and

• Parent and community involvement in preparing students for career and college.

The Talent Development High Schools model was developed in response to research on high school dropouts that indicated that students drop out of school for four reasons: anonymity or social estrangement; apathy or lack of purpose; failure, especially in ninth grade; and personal problems such as drugs or pregnancy. To address these problems, the Talent Development model breaks the school into small, career-focused units; provides extra help to struggling students; and provides counseling to help students with personal problems.16

A recently released research study of five Talent Development high schools in the Philadelphia School District found that Talent Development schools produced substantial gains in attendance, academic course credits earned, and promotion rates during the first year of high school, and that the improvements in credits earned and promotion rates for ninth-graders were sustained as students moved through high school.17

America’s Choice

America’s Choice is a model for K-12 standards-based instruction. Since 1998, America’s Choice has partnered with more than 680 schools, including 30 high schools in 10 different states. The America’s Choice high school model is standards-driven, with emphasis on ensuring that all students are able to read, write and reason mathematically; that all teachers are proficient in standards-based instruction; and that all schools are reorganized to be more supportive and engaging of students. Key components of the America’s Choice model include the following.

• Commitment to standards and data. Schools align their instruction to state standards.

• Intense focus on literacy and math. Schools provide extended literacy and math programs for students who are to two to four years behind grade level. Both programs begin in the ninth grade and have a double block of 90 minutes each day.

• Personalized learning. Schools focus on bringing lower-performing students up to standard and providing differentiated curriculum for students at all levels.

• Professional development for teachers. Teachers are trained intensively during the course of the year for a minimum of nine days in literacy and six days in math.

• Small learning communities. America’s Choice divides high schools into two divisions: the lower division includes ninth and 10th grades and the upper division includes 11th and 12th grades. The lower division teachers, in teams that include English, math, science and social studies, serve approximately 100 students each. The lower division teacher teams are responsible for the same students during both ninth and 10th grades. Once students have completed the work of the lower division, they join an early college program for the 11th and 12th grades.

America’s Choice high schools aim to prepare every student to graduate ready for rigorous college-level work. When students successfully complete the work of the lower division, they enroll in one of four early college programs in the upper division. The first two options are the Early College Humanities Program and the Early College Mathematics and Science Program, in which they complete the courses required for admission to their state’s public university system, while specializing in humanities or math and science. The third option is the Career Academy, in which students complete the courses required for admission to their state’s public university system, while spending part of their time off campus learning about a broad career area. The fourth option, for students who know what technical career they want to pursue, gives students the opportunity to enroll in two-year programs at nearby technical or community colleges. The students in the technical programs earn high school diplomas when they complete the two-year technical or community college program.

A study by the Consortium for Policy Research at the University of Pennsylvania found that the America’s Choice program has been very successful in Rochester, New York, where more than half the city’s schools are using the America’s Choice model. The study found that the America’s Choice program diminished the achievement gap between white and minority students and had a powerful effect on the performance of Rochester’s lowest-achieving students. The gains in performance of students in the lowest quartile and African American and Hispanic students, in particular, were dramatic relative to their counterparts in non-America’s Choice schools in the district.18

Early College High School

With more than 50 schools in 20 states, Early College High Schools offer college courses taught either in the high school building or on college campuses, providing students with the opportunity to earn an associate's degree or two years of college credit toward a baccalaureate degree while in high school. The Early College High School program targets students who are underrepresented in postsecondary education, including students who lack the academic preparation needed to meet high school standards, students for whom the cost of college is prohibitive, students who are English language learners, and students who have family obligations. The program model is based on the principle that academic rigor, along with the opportunity to save time and tuition dollars, are powerful means to motivate students to work hard and exceed standards for high school graduation. Key benefits of the Early College High School model include:

• Providing rigorous instruction with intensive support;

• Reducing the number of years to a college degree; and

• Removing financial and other barriers to college.

The Early College High School model places a priority on creating small, personalized learning environments, with up to 400 students per school, and providing time for staff collaboration on curriculum and academic progress of individual students. Students are provided clear standards and quality of work requirements when enrolled in college-level courses, along with intensive support and mentoring. As a result, Early College high school students have the opportunity to complete the first two years of postsecondary education with substantial guidance and support.

A 2004 study of students at the Dayton Early College Academy in Ohio found that more than 70 percent of students from the academy scored over the 50th percentile in reading compared to 37 percent of Dayton Public School students, with similar results in language, math, science and social studies.19 According to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, existing Early College high schools report average attendance rates at over 90 percent; most ninth graders in Early College high schools enroll in one or two college-level courses and earn grades of C or better; and promotion rates at Early College high schools exceed 90 percent.20

Conclusion

In almost every state, K-12 and postsecondary education sectors are governed, financed and operated independently and often are overseen by different boards or legislative committees. To improve coordination across K-12 and postsecondary sectors and improve college and work readiness of high school graduates, legislators, governors and business leaders may wish to form partnerships that allow them to share information and resources. Strategies states can implement that aim to improve high school / K-12 outcomes include the following.

• Creating a permanent education roundtable or commission to include legislators, governors, business leaders and education providers to focus on improving coordination, accountability and reporting on student progress from grades K through 16;

• Focusing on tracking student progress through elementary, secondary and postsecondary institutions;

• Creating incentives for higher education providers to help implement statewide high school academic standards for college readiness; and

• Coordinating business, education, parent, community and faith-based organizations to support statewide initiatives that improve postsecondary education awareness.

Notes

1. Peter D. Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies, Rising to the Challenge: Are High School Graduates Prepared for College and Work? A Study of Recent High School Graduates, College Instructors, and Employers (Washington, D.C.: Achieve Inc., February 2005).

2 . Clifford Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education Office of Educational Research and Improvement, 1999).

3. Hart, Rising to the Challenge.

4. The Education Trust-West, The A-G Curriculum: College-Prep? Work-Prep? Life-Prep - Understanding and Implementing a Rigorous Core Curriculum for All (Oakland, California: The Education West-Trust, 2004).

5. Clifford Adelman, Principal Indicators of Student Academic Histories in Postsecondary Education, 1972-2000 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, 2004).

6. Anthony P. Carnevale and Donna M. Desrochers, Connecting Education Standards and Employment: Course-taking Patterns of Young Workers (Washington, D.C.: Achieve Inc., 2002).

7. American Diploma Project, Ready or Not: Creating a High School Diploma that Counts (Washington, D.C.: Achieve Inc., 2004).

8. Craig Howley and Robert Bickel, Small Works: School Size, Poverty and Student Achievement (Arlington, Virginia: The Rural School and Community Trust, February 2000).

9. Kathleen Cotton, New Small Learning Communities: Findings From Recent Literature (Portland, Oregon: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 2001).

10. James J. Kemple and Judith Scott-Clayton, Career Academies: Impacts on Labor Market Outcomes and Educational Attainment (New York, New York: MDRC, 2004).

11. Thomas R. Bailey, Katherine L. Hughes, and Melinda Mechur Karp, What Role Can Dual Enrollment Programs Play in Easing the Transition Between High School and Postsecondary Education? (New York, New York: Columbia University, 2002).

12. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Redesigning the American High School - Getting it Done: Ten Steps to a State Action Agenda (Washington, D.C.: National Governors Association, 2005).

13. Achieve Inc., and National Governors Association, An Action Agenda for Improving America’s High Schools (Washington, D.C.: Achieve Inc., and National Governors Association, 2005).

14. Cotton, New Small Learning Communities.

15. Southern Regional Education Board, High Schools That Work: An Enhanced Design to Get All Students to Standards (Atlanta, Georgia: Southern Regional Education Board, 2005).

16. American Institutes for Research, An Educators’ Guide to Schoolwide Reform (Washington, D.C.: Palavin Research Center, 1999).

17. James J. Kemple, Corinne M. Herlihy, and Thomas J. Smith, Making Progress Toward Graduation: Evidence from the Talent Development High School Model (New York, New York: MDRC, 2005).

18. Henry May, Jonathan A. Supovitz, and David Perda, A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of America’s Choice on Student Performance in Rochester, New York, 1998-2003 (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Consortium for Policy Research in Education, 2004).

19. Tracy A. Huebner and Grace Calisi Corbett, Rethinking High School: Five Profiles of Innovative Models for Student Success (San Francisco, California: WestEd for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2004).

20. The Gates Foundation, http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Education/TransformingHighSchools/Schools/ModelSchools/ECHS.htm, 2005.

Successful schools embed “rigor, relevance and relationships” into their framework. Coined by the Gates Foundation, this refers to “…rigorous academic coursework, meaningful relationships with instructors who can help students meet high standards, and relevant learning opportunities through internships and community partnerships.”

The American Diploma Project found that a meaningful high school curriculum must be tied to “the standards of the real world: to the knowledge and skills that colleges and employers actually expect if young people are to succeed in their institutions.”⁷

Acknowledgments

This publication is a product of the High School Redesign Project, a partnership between the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The project is designed to provide information, examples, and analysis to state legislators about the need for high school reform and the role of legislators in creating and implementing effective strategies. This is one of six briefs in a “toolkit” for state legislators. Other briefs examine state legislation on high school reform; innovative school designs and models; innovative state strategies; high school reform and No Child Left Behind; and the costs of new school designs.

NCSL is grateful to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for their support of this effort and for their leadership on this issue nationally and in the states.

Sunny Kristin, author of this brief, serves as a policy specialist in the NCSL Education Program and is the primary staff on the NCSL High School Redesign project.

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