"Do's and Don'ts" for Advocating College and Career Readiness

DO’S AND DON’T’S FOR ADVOCATING COLLEGE‐ AND CAREER‐READY GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

DO….

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Be bold: An overwhelming number of voters support rigorous college‐ and career‐ ready graduation requirements. Do not shy away from discussing their importance and how they fit into your overall reform agenda!

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Brand your graduation requirements: Name (brand) and discuss your graduation requirements and ensure that all of your key stakeholders (e.g., educators, policymakers, community leaders) are using the same brand and discussing the requirements using the same messages. Focus groups in states with current graduation requirements showed a low awareness of what the requirements were called and where they came from (state vs. district or school), particularly among parents.

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Stress the importance of a broad and rigorous curriculum: Math and English are critical foundational subjects but don’t forget to discuss all of your requirements (and ways in which they can be augmented) so that the public can see that your graduation requirements are well rounded and provide students with choices.

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Discuss important life skills: Don’t back away from talking about the core academic courses, but also talk about how those requirements teach important communications, critical thinking, problem solving and teamwork skills.

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Point out that college‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements provide more opportunities and help level the playing field for all students: The poll results show that the public supports rigorous requirements as an avenue for improved opportunities for all students. Note, however, that in focus groups we found concern about singling out the benefits for particular demographic/ ethnic groups, particularly among members of those groups. Keep opportunity messages broad, for the benefit of all.

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Explain how you are supporting students in meeting the new requirements: The public supports college‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements—and that support only increases when you can explain the supports and incentives you have in place to help students succeed.

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Tie college‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements to the economy: Three of the four leading arguments have an economic focus. Talk about how aligning your graduation requirements with postsecondary success will improve your state’s economic climate—and job opportunities for your citizens.

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Acknowledge that times have changed: There is widespread understanding that a high school diploma is no longer enough and that students will need to be prepared for education and training after high school. Having your higher education and business community leaders discuss what that means in your state—and the opportunities that are available for well‐prepared students— will reinforce the message.

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Talk about college‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements as the new baseline: Discuss raised requirements as an incremental shift in response to real world demands. Talking about the requirements as a huge change from the status quo can be off putting to audiences you need to reach.

© Achieve June 2010

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DO’S AND DON’T’S FOR ADVOCATING COLLEGE‐ AND CAREER‐READY GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

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Discuss “college and career readiness” and preparing graduates for “education and training after high school:” Neither phrase is 100% clear to all audiences alone. Use either phrase with some context to explain your goals.

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Explain what you mean by “college:” Make clear in all of your communications and outreach materials that being ready for “college” is broader than just being prepared for a four‐year, baccalaureate program.

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Allow students to make this argument for themselves: Most students admit there is a gap between their level of preparedness and what was needed after high school – as well as the fact that rigorous requirements will push them to do more than they would have on their own

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Seek bi‐partisan support and a broad coalition of advocates: These requirements find the same levels of support regardless of partisan affiliation, education level or ethnicity. Look for ways to expand your current base of support.

DON’T….

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Be defensive: The public is on your side and instinctively understands the need for and benefits of college‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements – but it’s important to talk about them proactively and bolster the support that’s out there.

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Indulge in a debate about how well high schools are currently preparing students: Voters are divided on this issue. College‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements are equally popular among those voters who believe schools do a good job preparing students and among those who believe schools are not doing a good job. College‐ and career‐ready graduation requirements are about improving the prospects and options for all high school graduates.

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Sell these requirements as a “cure” for dropout rates: Voters do not believe that kids drop out of school because they did not find it challenging enough.

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Oversell the benefits of the requirements: Graduation requirements set the bar and are an important part of systemic reform but they are not a panacea. Without other policies and programs in place, such as student supports, they alone will not improve student achievement— and the public knows that. Explain how your policies work together to improve education, but don’t oversell any single element of it.

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Allow your opponents to define the requirements as a “one‐size‐fits‐all” program with no room for diversity or personalization: This reveals one of the biggest concerns of voters about the requirements, but it can be mitigated by explaining how the requirements can be built upon based on students’ interests and plans for after high school.

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Be afraid to talk about global competition: The public understand that times have changed and that states are no longer competeting against one another but are competing in a global economy.

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Use the argument that math skills needed by blue collar workers are the same as what is necessary to do well in college courses: It is not a credible argument with the public. That’s not

© Achieve June 2010

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DO’S AND DON’T’S FOR ADVOCATING COLLEGE‐ AND CAREER‐READY GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS

to say that the public doesn’t believe that all students need a baseline of college‐ and career‐ ready knowledge and skills in mathematics, they just don’t believe it’s “the same.”

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Use education speak or jargon: Be careful when using words that are not in everyday nomenclature, even words like “remediation” and “postsecondary” can create confusion if you don’t discuss them in context. Check your language and be sure your materials appeal to the broadest possible audience.

DO…use the following language in promoting graduation requirements…

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“All high school students need to be ready for some kind of additional training after high school.”

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“Students from (STATE) not only are competing with kids from (OTHER STATE), but with kids from Japan, China and India.”

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“Higher (or high) standards push all students to succeed.”

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“It is better to implement the same rigorous graduation requirements for everyone so all students are being pushed to succeed and achieve their potential.”

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“Students need core academics like English and mathematics, but also some of the skills colleges and employers value most, like communications, teamwork, critical thinking, and problem solving.”

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“Today 80% of jobs require some kind of training/education after high school.”

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“About 30% of college freshman have to take remedial courses; most high school graduates say if they could it over again they would work harder and take more difficult courses.”

© Achieve June 2010

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