Student achievement continues to trend upward

Programs and policies designed to boost student achievement and strengthen successful transitions between high school, college and career are continuing to prove effective, according to the latest College and Career Readiness Indicators Report, just released by Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education for the Class of 2017.

One in four students in this class earned the DOE Honors Certificate, an increase of seven percentage points from the Class of 2016. The on-time graduation rate has steadily increased to the current rate of 83 percent, and of those graduates who enrolled in college, more are tackling college-level math and English without need for remediation.

The CCRI reports, composed annually by Hawaii P-20’s Data Exchange Partnership, present information on how well-prepared Hawaii public school graduates are for college, and as in years past, the latest report shows that the collaboration between the University of Hawaii System and the Hawai‘i State Department of Education to strengthen the education pipeline is paying off, according to press release.

Fewer students entering college are enrolling in below-college level courses and more students are enrolling directly into college-level math and English. Over a six-year period, enrollment in college level English increased from 48 percent to 65 percent, and in college-level math from 29 percent to 39 percent. These numbers include students who earned college-level credits while still enrolled in high school.

So why mention this?

To brag a little about local schools.

Several are spotlighted in the Class of 2017 CCRI for gains made in a number of areas of college and career readiness, including:

Kapaa High School

• Increased on-time graduation rate to 91 percent for the Class of 2017 from 80 percent for the class of 2012

• Leads the state in the number of Career and Technical Education concentrators at 73 percent

• Increased dual credit participation to 31 percent for the Class of 2017 from 16 percent for the Class of 2012

Kauai High School

• Increased on-time graduation rate to 90 percent for the Class of 2017 from 82 percent for the class of 2012

• Increased dual credit participation by 25 percentage points, to 29 percent from 4 percent for the Class of 2012

• Increased the number of CTE concentrators to 65 percent from 49 percent in the Class of 2014

Waimea High School

• Increased the number of students earning college-level math credit in high school to 11 percent for the Class of 2017 from 0 percent in 2012

• Increased dual credit participation to 29 percent from 9 percent in the Class of 2012

• Reduced the number of students not taking math in their first semester of college to 26 percent in the Class of 2017 from 48 percent in the Class of 2012

Wow. That’s impressive.

The figures certainly indicate Kauai students not only want to go to college, but they are working hard to make it happen. They are planning ahead, looking ahead, and we applaud them and encourage them to keep it up.

“It’s evident that many students are raising the bar for themselves and want to enroll in dual credit programs,” said Superintendent Dr. Christina Kishimoto. “These opportunities wouldn’t be possible without the support of our community and education partners that continue to work alongside us to give our students a head start on their college and career paths.”

Give credit, too, to UH and HIDOE, for strengthening the ties between high school and college, so that more students make a successful transition to postsecondary education.

These efforts have included reviewing and revising placement policies at UH campuses to allow students to be placed into college-level courses based on their achievements in high school, offering dual-credit courses that allow high school students to earn both high school and college credits while in high school, and a number of other efforts designed to boost student achievement and success in higher education.

Stephen Schatz, executive director of Hawaii P-20 Partnerships for Education, summed things up well: “As an education community, we are all responsible for achieving better outcomes for our students. This data is invaluable as it helps to shine a spotlight on what’s working so we can continue and expand efforts in those areas, and also know where we need to improve.”