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[cgfunmathguy]

I just saw an op-ed in the NYT online. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/22/opinion/22schramm.html?_r=1&partner=EXCITE&ei=5043

Do others find the thesis that "the main mission of high school is preparation for college" strange? Considering how long colleges have been complaining about the preparation of entering froshes, I find it very disconcerting to think that anyone in K-12 (including the students) thinks that this is the case.

Comments?

[daniel_von_flanagan]

There is a strong national initiative to have almost all Americans get some kind of higher degree, at least at the AA level.  At the state level such initiatives are often called "P-20" partnerships, and the odds are that your state has one.  Whether or not we believe that universal higher education is a valuable goal (I happen to think it is, in other threads here we've seen that many on this forum disagree), as an articulated goal this can be a useful device in strengthening some aspects of K-12 education.  If students are required to take math all 4 years of high school, and K-12 teachers are made to understand that the students really do have to know how to do things like add rational functions because it will be required in later/collegiate courses, there is a greater likelihood that the students will come to our courses able to do the basic algebra.

On the other hand, my own state's P20 people tend to try to pressure us to lower the standards of our collegiate classes at the same time that they raise the K12 standards, so not all is good. - DvF