Journey to the Core

Friends, I’ve been on a journey the last few days—a quest to find out what people really think about the State Board of Education’s new graduation requirement scheme, Core 24. Turns out, to the surprise and delight of the Board and others, the state’s new graduation requirements really do fit most people's definition of a meaningful high school diploma.

My journey started Wednesday afternoon in the University Heights Community Center in Seattle, where more 70 community members (including students, teachers, administrators, parents and businesspeople) gathered to weigh in on the new credit package.

So what did they like? It was said time and time again that the two key strengths of the Core were that it a) prepared all students for the 21st century workforce, postsecondary education and citizenship; and b) gave students flexibility by allowing them to personalize and customize their education. Participants also lauded the Board’s inclusion of art and foreign language, while retaining a strong focus on math and science.

And what were their concerns? Well, that was a no-brainer: funding issues and teachers shortages. These aren’t exactly small hurdles, but as we’ve said before, sometimes it’s more important to get the policy right first.

It was also mentioned that the Core should have a safety-net for students that fail classes or drop out and return to school. And, in a work session I attended on Thursday, the Board wrestled intensively with how struggling students could be both encouraged to meet high standards, but also supported in their time of need. I certainly don’t have an answer to this dilemma, so it will be interesting to see what they ultimately come up with.

If you weren’t able to make one of the three community outreach meetings, take a look at the graphic demonstrating Core 24 below and share your opinions on the new requirements with the State Board by filling out this short (seriously people, it takes like two minutes) online survey.