This white paper considers course-taking behavior—specifically the a–g subject requirements for the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) systems, career technical education (CTE) course pathways, and an integrated course pathway—as potential measures to be included in California’s college and career indicator.
The National Assessment Governing Board is an independent, bipartisan organization that sets policy for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The Governing Board established the NAEP Program of 12th Grade Preparedness Research to assess what NAEP can report on the academic preparedness of 12th grade students entering college and job training. The Governing Board commissioned the Educational Policy Improvement Center in October 2012 to conduct the College Course Content Analysis (CCCA) study, which used course artifacts to identify the prerequisite knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) in mathematics and reading that are necessary for students to be prepared to qualify for entry-level, credit-bearing courses that satisfy general education requirements.
This white paper considers college admission exams—specifically the SAT® and ACT®—as potential measures to be included in California’s college and career indicator. This white paper begins by presenting a brief overview of the two exams, their respective histories, and their current applications to other state accountability systems. Next, the SAT and ACT are evaluated against the framework being used for all five categories of potential college and career preparedness measures. This white paper concludes with a summary that identifies major strengths, weaknesses, and tradeoffs.
This paper highlights the conceptual soundness of explicitly acknowledging and developing metacognitive factors in the learning process. It also demonstrates the feasibility of measuring these skills and of the ways in which schools, districts, and states can incorporate them into practice, first on a limited, experimental basis, with the commitment to scaling them up when they demonstrate success.
EPIC engaged in a three-part research initiative, conducting an environmental scan to understand the current policy context of South Carolina and to identify “peer state” accountability models, designing and facilitating a series of regional meetings to elicit the values and priorities of stakeholders in the education system, and constructing an analytical framework based on findings from those stakeholder meetings.
In the winter and spring of 2012-2013 the Educational Policy Improvement Center (EPIC) partnered with representatives from the Office of Secondary/Postsecondary Transitions at Oregon Department of Education (ODE) and the Oregon Department of Community Colleges Workforce Development (CCWD) to guide secondary and postsecondary instructors in the development and implementation of formative performance assessments.
The white paper begins with a description of the CCSS and an assessment of their significance. A following analysis then explains why the CCSS, while necessary, are not sufficient as a platform for college success. A corresponding explanation of the DQP clarifies the prompts that led to its development, describes its structure, and offers some guidance for interpreting the outcomes that it defines.
The Educational Policy Improvement Center (EPIC) conducted an analysis of deeper learning skills on behalf of the Hewlett Foundation to create a crosswalk between the Deeper Learning Skills (DLS) and the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The purpose of the crosswalk was to understand the ways in which strategies for deeper learning relate to the CCSS.
This March 2013 primer from the American Institutes for Research (AIR) covers the transition from vocational education to career and technical education, “an educational strategy for providing young people with the academic, technical, and employability skills and knowledge to pursue postsecondary training or higher education and enter a career field prepared for ongoing learning.”
This report describes the Job Training Programs Curriculum Study (JTPCS), which was commissioned by the National Assessment Governing Board (Governing Board) to analyze the content of course materials from five job-training occupational areas and is part of a larger program of preparedness research projects that are being conducted for the Governing Board.