Issues Revolving around Education Transition

It is estimated that to secure a well-paying job, one is needed to have acquired at least a Post-Secondary Certificate (ACT, 2006). However, the education system is not perfectly streamlined, and to most people, it is considered to be leaky. The situation exists since the system is associated with numerous cases of high school dropouts. When such students fail to continue with their education, it becomes impossible for them to advance into a postsecondary institution. It is estimated that about 40% of students from high school do not get to join a post-secondary school institution since they fail to graduate. Even after being offered remedial studies, it has become evident that a large population of such students will still fail to successfully acquire a degree certificate until after they’ve have re-taken some papers (National High School Center,2007).

For disabled students, the transition rates into postsecondary studies are extremely low. As much as there has been a spike in the number of disabled students who complete high school education, the rate of admittance into post-secondary schools is too low in comparison to students who have no disabilities (Peter Hart Research Associates, 2005). For this case, admission to postsecondary has been sustained by community colleges. On the other hand, the rate of employment for such students is similarly very low when compared to other types of students. When the four subjects are not sufficiently passed (also known as gatekeeper subjects”) within the provided time, then it becomes challenging to sufficiently cover the entire sequence of study that is needed to make a student ready for postsecondary education.

Students should be made aware of the importance of attaining perfect grades as they start out their studied. Most importantly, they should be provided with proper access to materials that will help them attain enough knowledge to pass the course (Weidenthal & Kochlar-Bryant, 2007). Develop target approaches that are very broad In the process of developing strategies, policymakers should make either of the following decisions; a) Decide on the most suitable approach between overhauling reforms, which in this case will ensure that each and every other student has been assisted, or targeted approach that covers a particular category of students. b) Is it advantageous to coach students on a specific career/educational paths, or is it more beneficial to provide them with skills that offer them the highest level of flexibility? For the latter case, students will exploit the advantages that are offered by having numerous options? While deciding between the two options following choices, the following considerations should be made; 1.

Additionally, this will boost the self-advocacy abilities of such kids as they will really need this in the course of their transition after completing high school studies (Jerald, 2002). It is critical that academic courses are blended so as to target specific careers. Doing this will enable students to avoid making premature decisions concerning their career paths. At the same time, they will be able to understand how academic subjects can be applied practically in the course of their careers. When a curriculum is grounded within a particular career, then it becomes possible to offer context and focus. Proper Alignment There have been concerns that the high school curriculum is disconnected from the requirements of joining post-secondary school education and the eventual career progression.

The situation has led to an intense uptake of measures to overhaul the kindergarten system so that it becomes highly integrated (Kohler & Field, 2003). Such a call for change might possibly force education policymakers, political institutions, and the business society to collaborate more in aligning expectations between high school, postsecondary, and the work sector. Such is evidenced by the formation of the American Diploma Project. In this case, different states are coming together with the objective of achieving the following primary goals; • Streamline the expectations of the work industry, post-secondary, and high schools. Conclusion Numerous choices exist for policymakers as they try to structure interventions that will help to impact students with the right mindset as they progress into post-secondary institutions. The approaches that have been adopted seem to be very promising in giving students the right experience for the work sector and educational transition process.

So as to ensure that the adopted measures are highly effective, the focus should be placed on increasing the relevance, engagement, and rigor of the curriculum that is offered at the high school level. This should focus on students who are faced with barriers that prevent them from proceeding from high school to post-secondary institutions. References ACT, Inc. Journal of Special Education, 37(3) 174–184 National High School Center. Findings from the Early College High School Initiative: A look at best practices and lessons learned regarding a dual enrollment program. Washington, DC: American Institutes for Research, National High School Center. Retrieved January 20, 2008, from http://www. betterhighschools. Rising to the challenge: Are high school graduates prepared for college and work? A study of recent high school graduates, college instructors and employers.