Arkansas Media Campaign: Students Need Tougher Classes

The Arkansas Department of Education has a message for parents across the state: Students need to take tougher classes.

To get that point across, the state launched a media campaign last month to promote its new Smart Core high school program—a 22-unit curriculum designed to improve students’ college and work readiness.

But while Smart Core is the default curriculum for students who entered 9th grade this school year, 10 percent of parents have invoked their option of keeping their children out of the program in favor of an easier course load. State officials say that opt-out rate is too high and hope their media campaign, which includes a Web site and radio and television commercials, will encourage more parents...