Final Progress Reports - Southern Regional Education Board

SREB recommends that several points be considered in developing these senior-year courses:
That the initial focus be on English/language arts (specifically, expository reading and writing) and
mathematics.
That the courses be explicitly based on the college-readiness skills mutually determined by K-12 and
postsecondary education.
That successful completion of these activities be creditable to the high school diploma.
That these activities be developed jointly by public school and postsecondary staff, faculty and teachers.
That a common assessment of student performance on these 12th-grade activities be developed to
determine if each student meets readiness standards. If so, the student should be deemed ready and
not subject to further placement testing in postsecondary education.
Because states have lacked appropriate high school courses, especially in math and English, to help students
overcome academic weaknesses, the development of transitional courses aligned with college-readiness skills has
been a strong focus of SREB’s work in participating states.
State Progress
Five of the six SSCRI states created teams of K-12 teachers and postsecondary faculty to design and pilot these
courses.
Florida’s Department of Education (FLDOE) released state standards and descriptions for one-semester,
one-half credit elective transitional courses in 2008. Concerned that one semester was not enough time for
many students, the FLDOE and Florida College System developed yearlong, one-credit elective courses
aligned with entry-level, credit-bearing college courses. Successful completion while in high school may
exempt students from further placement testing and college remediation. A 2011 law requires high schools
to advise students of deficiencies and requires schools to offer and students to take the necessary transitional
course(s).
Kentucky law requires schools to provide a transitional course or monitored intervention to every student
not meeting college-readiness benchmarks in English/language arts or math. Statewide teams of secondary
and postsecondary educators designed transitional math and reading courses aligned with the revised
Kentucky Core Academic Standards and with college- and career-readiness standards. Math and reading
courses were launched in September 2010.
The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) decided not to develop and implement transitional
courses until after the state has fully implemented its Common Core Curriculum Frameworks and a
nationally accepted common core assessment. The state has an opportunity to base transitional courses
on the common core readiness standards and reflect readiness assessments being designed by the national
assessment consortia. The MSDE plans to develop transitional courses for all high school students, not
just seniors, in 2014.
Texas legislation has supported 12th-grade, college-preparatory courses for students unprepared for college-level
study. Working in teams, K-12 teachers and higher education faculty are developing transitional
courses in mathematics and English/language arts for high school seniors who pass the EOC exams but
do not meet the college-readiness performance level.
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