Policy: State

This policy brief advocates for a state education policy that would award academic credit for career and technical education (CTE) coursework. The authors argue that such a model would improve student engagement, deeper learning, and graduation rates. The brief provides an overview of CTE policy and academic coursework integration, posits a model for best practice, reviews exemplary states in the field, and outlines key factors in effective policy implementation.

This REL technical brief examines the use of Lexile-based assessment to determine the readiness of subgroups of 11th grade Texas students to read books used in first year college English courses. Differences in reading abilities were notable based on ethnicity, gender, SES, at-risk status, Limited English Proficiency status, education track (career and technical education vs. general education), and students receiving special education services.

This policy brief advocates for the approval of academic credit based on the completion of career and technical education (CTE) courses. The brief argues that students who receive CTE instruction are more engaged and experience deeper learning of content in ideal conditions. The authors also propose a method for evaluating CTE courses for academic content in order to determine if they would meet the requirements for awarding academic credit.

This paper examines readiness assessments and transition curricula in all 50-states and Washington, D.C.

This paper examines the impact of dual enrollment on college degree attainment for low socioeconomic status (SES) students. The author examined data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, and data from a follow up study completed in 2000 resulting in a sample size of 8,800. The author found dual enrollment increases the probability of attaining a degree within 12-years of completing the 8th grade, and that dual enrollment did not hinder students from low SES backgrounds from attaining a degree.

This brief provides a comprehensive overview and practical guidance on the topic of competency-based grading policies. In doing so, it describes the weakness of the traditional grading scale; outlines six steps for effective implementation of competency-based grading policy and practice; offers current case examples and lessons learned from the field; and presents possible implications for policymakers and stakeholders.