When an early assessment shows a high school junior is not ready for college, there is a growing move to use that senior year to play catch up. Transition or readiness courses have been developed specifically to prepare lagging students for the rigor of college before they set foot on campus, with the hope of saving them from languishing in remedial classes
Eight states now offer transitional curricula statewide to high school students, and another 21 states have locally run initiatives, according to a recent review by the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University. The report, issued last May, also found that 25 states, and districts in another 13 states, measure the ability of all high school students by the junior year to succeed in entry-level courses at the postsecondary level.
(For a full exploration of this trend, see my story last month, Transitonal Courses Catch on as College Prep Strategy.)
Today at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, Education Week is hosting a free webinar with Columbia’s Elisabeth Barnett, a researcher at the center, and Robert Denn of Chattanooga Community College who helped create an innovative transition program in Tennessee. I will be moderating the event and am looking forward to a rich discussion.
To register, click here. We welcome your questions in advance or during the event. If you can’t sign on this afternoon, you can access the transcript of the webinar in an archives online.