After rating the Common Core State Standards for applicability to entry-level college courses, postsecondary educators agree that most of the academic standards reflect the skills that students will need upon entering postsecondary education.
The findings were gleaned from a survey of postsecondary instructors from 2-year and 4-year institutions across the nation, including those in Career Technical Education (CTE) fields such as health care, computer technology and business management. Participants were asked to discuss the applicability of the standards to the instructor’s course, and to rate the importance of broad and detailed components of the academic standards to their course. Many found that most common core standards prioritize areas like critical thinking and problem-solving and reflect the knowledge and skills that students need for future success.
However, other respondents found the common core standards incomplete. The chief executive officer of the Education Policy Improvement Center, David Conley, stated that completely relying on these standards to judge a student’s preparedness could be misleading. “[Students] may possess only a subset of the knowledge and skills, strategies and techniques necessary to be fully ready for postsecondary success.†NASDCTEc is developing a common core of technical standards that will align with the common core standards and fill in some of these gaps to better prepare students for college and careers. Through CTE programs, students acquire more comprehensive knowledge and skills aligned to the expectations of postsecondary educators and employers.
Click here to view the survey and report.
Kara Herbertson, Education Policy Analyst
Tags: college and career readiness, common core state standards, postsecondary