New High SchoolGraduation RequirementsPreparing Tennessee’s Students

for The New Economy

Contact Information

State Board of Education

Gary Nixon, Executive Director

Gary.nixon@tn.gov

Gary’s Blog:

http://garynixon.wordpress.com

The New Economy

• The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that today’s adult learner (18 and up) will have _________ jobs by the time they are 38.

• Students beginning a 4-year technical degree today will begin learning information that is outdated by their _____ year of studies.

10 to 14

3rd

The New Economy

• 1 in ____ workers have been at their job for less than one year.

• 1 in ____ workers have been at their job for less than five years.

2

4

In the new economy…

…workers must expect change in the pursuit of careers that require more and more learning beyond

high school.

What’s the outlook for

the new ecomomy’s

fastest growing and best paying

jobs?

How are we doing in

preparing our students for the new economy?

Are Tennessee Students Proficient?

• Spring 2007… National Chamber of Commerce comparison report card of key education factors in all states:

• Tennessee made an “F” in the category of Truth in Advertising…comparing Tennessee proficiency (our state assessments) to National proficiency (NAEP)

8th Grade Achievement on State Assessment v. NAEP (2005)

87%87%

26% 21%

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

Reading Proficient Math Proficient

Tennessee

NAEP

Is there a gap between achievement on state assessments and NAEP?

Performance MeasuresToday Beginning 2009-10

Advanced

Proficient

Below Proficient

Advanced

Proficient

Basic

Below

Basic

Workforce Readiness Benchmarks

•ACT’s research has found that the skills required to be ready for college are the SAME SKILLS required to succeed and advance in the career and technical workforce.http://www.act.org/path/policy/pdf/ReadinessBrief.pdf

ACT Readiness Benchmarks

ACT

SUBJECT ACT(Grade 11-12)

PLAN(Grade 10)

EXPLORE(Grade 8-9)

English 18 15 13Algebra 22 19 17Social

Science 21 17 15

Biology 24 21 20

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Explore - TN Explore - US Plan - TN Plan - US ACT - TN ACT - US

E-Pass Results

English

Algebra

Social Sciences

Biology

All 4

T ennes s ee

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Explore - TN P lan - TN ACT - TN

English

Algebra

Social Sciences

Biology

All 4

What Are We Learning?

Being ready is really, really important for ALL Students.

It is important that students who are not ready catch up as early as

possible.

What Are We Learning?

Students who score, or are projected to score, more than two points below the

Explore readiness benchmark score should receive extensive intervention.

ACT has found that students who score more than 2 points below the Explore

readiness benchmark scores rarely catch up and usually do not graduate.

What Are We Learning?Tennessee needs to more than

double the rate at which students earn a postsecondary credential.

Tennessee needs to develop seamless paths from the middle grades through high school to

postsecondary completion.

The underworked American: Children are exceptions to the country’s work ethic

The Economist, June 11, 2009

• American children have it easier than most other children in the world, including the supposedly lazy Europeans.

• They have one of the shortest school years anywhere, a mere 180 days compared with an average of 195 for OECD countries and more than 200 for East Asian countries.

• German children spend 20 more days in school than American ones.

• South Koreans over a month more. • Over 12 years, a 15-day deficit means American children

lose out on 180 days of school, equivalent to an entire year.

The underworked American: Children are exceptions to the country’s work ethic

The Economist, June 11, 2009

• American children also have one of the shortest school days, six-and-a-half hours, adding up to 32 hours a week.

• By contrast, the school week is 37 hours in Luxembourg, 44 in Belgium, 53 in Denmark and 60 in Sweden.

• On top of that, American children do only about an hour’s-worth of homework a day, a figure that stuns the Japanese and Chinese.

How do we prepare our

students to be college or career ready?

H S Graduation Requirements

Changes that begin with the graduating class of 2013, this year’s 9th graders, include:– curriculum aligned with ACHIEVE’s standards– new EOC assessments

• transition from Gateway to EOC as percentage of grade

– graduation requirements increased to 22 (including a fourth credit in math, ½ credit in personal finance, and ½ credit in PE)

– either chemistry or physics as one of three science courses

– one diploma for all students– 3 credit elective focus

H S Graduation Requirements

English - 4 Credits:• English I - 1 Credit• English II - 1 Credit• English III - 1 Credit

– AP Language and Composition

• English IV - 1 Credit– AP English Literature or Composition– IB Language I– Communications for Life

H S Graduation RequirementsMath - 4 Credits: (Students must take a math class each year)

• Algebra I - 1 Credit

• Geometry - 1 Credit

• Algebra II - 1 Credit

• Upper level Math: - 1 Credit– Bridge Math Students who have not earned a 19 on the mathematics component of the ACT by

the beginning of the senior year are recommended to complete the Bridge Math course.

– Capstone Math– Adv. Algebra and Trigonometry.– STEM Math (Pre-Calculus, Calculus, or Statistics)

H S Graduation Requirements

Science - 3 Credits:

• Biology I - 1 Credit

• Chemistry or Physics - 1 Credit– AP Physics (B or C)– Principles of Technology I and II

• Another Lab. Science - 1 Credit

H S Graduation Requirements

Social Studies – 3.0 Credits:• W. History or W. Geography – 1 Credit

– AP World History, Modern History, Ancient History, European History

• U.S. History – 1 Credit– AP U.S. History, IB History of the Americas HL (2 Years)

• Economics – .5 Credit• Government – .5 Credit

– AP U.S. Government, IB History of the Americas HL (2 Years), JROTC (3 Years), ABLS

H S Graduation Requirements

P. E. and Wellness – 1.5 Credits:

• Wellness – 1 Credit

• Physical Education – .5 Credit– The physical education requirement may be met by

substituting an equivalent time of physical activity in other areas including but not limited to marching band, JROTC, cheerleading, interscholastic athletics, and school sponsored intramural athletics.

Personal Finance – .5 Credit

H S Graduation Requirements

Fine Art, Foreign Lang., and Elective Focus – 6 Credits:• Fine Art – 1 Credit• Foreign Language – 2 Credits (Same)• Elective Focus – 3 Credits

– Students completing a CTE elective focus must complete three units in the same CTE program area or state approved program of study.

– science and math, humanities, fine arts, or AP/IB– other area approved by local Board of Education

• The Fine Art and Foreign Language requirements may be waived for students who are sure they are not going to attend a University and be replaced with courses designed to enhance and expand the elective focus.

“Life’s not about waiting for the storm to pass…

A Parting Thought:

It’s about learning to dance in the rain!

Vivian Greene