Opinion
Education Opinion

College Knowledge

September 30, 2005 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Conley’s central argument, increasingly echoed by others in the higher education community, is that what it takes to succeed in high school is too often at odds with what it takes to succeed in college.

BRIC ARCHIVE

The crux of the problem, as Conley puts it, is that “high school courses often focus more on memorizing information or interpreting and applying information in a basic fashion, whereas college courses contain more concepts and ideas, theories and principles.” Many high school students, for instance, do little analytical writing and later struggle with college essays. Consequently, as many as half of all college freshmen must take remedial courses.

Conley, director of the Center for Educational Policy Research at the University of Oregon, emphasizes that the issue of college readiness is not a problem for top-tier students, who take AP and other intellectually rigorous courses.

His goal is to raise other students—many of whom have little college knowledge—into the top tier by, among other things, opening admission to AP, signing everyone up for essential tests such as the SAT, and simplifying the curriculum so that kids “cannot make bad choices.” His proposals, ambitious as they are, are worth pursuing, especially in an era when college is more of a requirement than an option for many occupations.

—David Ruenzel

A version of this article appeared in the October 01, 2005 edition of Teacher as College Knowledge

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Equity & Diversity Webinar
Classroom Strategies for Building Equity and Student Confidence
Shape equity, confidence, and success for your middle school students. Join the discussion and Q&A for proven strategies.
Content provided by Project Lead The Way
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Disrupting PD Day in Schools with Continuous Professional Learning Experiences
Hear how this NC School District achieved district-wide change by shifting from traditional PD days to year-long professional learning cycles
Content provided by BetterLesson
Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 8, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 22, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 8, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
6 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 1, 2023
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read