Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

CAE and Pearson Partner to Bring Critical Thinking Assessment to Secondary Education Students

NEW YORK (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Council for Aid to Education, Inc. (CAE), a leader in designing innovative performance tasks for measurement and instruction of higher order skills, today announced the immediate availability of its College and Career Readiness Assessment (CCRA+) through a non-exclusive partnership with Pearson [FTSE: PSON.L], the world’s leading learning company. Pearson will resell CCRA+ as part of its Pearson Assessment for Learning Suite (PALS).

Designed for students in grades six through 12, CCRA+ assesses critical thinking, problem solving and written communications – essential skills that are predictive of positive academic and career success. These skills are highlighted in Portraits of a Graduate profiles, yet most states and districts do not have an effective and reliable approach to measure these skills.

“CAE is proud to partner with Pearson to help schools and districts access our assessment tools to support student growth,” said Bob Yayac, president and CEO, CAE. “While more than 125 districts have developed or are developing a Portrait of a Graduate, our research and conversations indicate most have not identified how they will measure these skills in an objective, consistent and standardized manner. CCRA+ addresses this important need.”…Read More

Fewer than half of underserved students believe post-high school education is necessary

As school district leaders continue to worry about students’ college and career readiness, a new survey finds that less than half of students from traditionally underserved populations believe education after high school is necessary.

The new survey conducted by ECMC Group, in partnership with VICE Media Group, surveyed more than 1,000 high school students ages 14-18 from low-income, first-generation and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color) backgrounds and found that only 45 percent believe education after high school is necessary, compared to 52 percent of all high schoolers.

In addition, only 8 percent feel fully prepared to make the decision of what to do after high school.…Read More

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Major gender disparities harm students’ college and career readiness

Far fewer female high school graduates say they feel prepared to decide on a career path compared to male high school graduates, according to the second part of a national student survey, Post-Graduation Readiness Report Part II, with additional findings focused on disparities between male and female high school graduates.

While part I of the report from YouScience revealed that almost all high school graduates (75 percent) do not feel prepared to make college or career decisions after graduation, the newest findings reveal imbalances between male and female graduates in relation to college and career readiness. The national online survey polled more than 500 male and female high school graduates from the classes of 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022.

The survey highlights how the lack of career exposure can lead to feelings of uncertainty for all students when it comes to post-high school readiness, however males felt more confident to make a choice after graduation simply due to being more exposed to more career options: only 41% of female high school graduates stated that they felt prepared to make a career choice or declare a major upon graduation compared to 57% of males.…Read More

Most high school grads feel their skills aren’t up to par

Most high school graduates (75 percent) do not feel prepared to make college or career decisions after graduation, according to a survey from YouScience, a college and career readiness company.

The national online survey,  Post-Graduation Readiness Report, polled more than 500 students from the 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 high school graduation classes.

There is a tremendous opportunity for high schools to impact students’ college and career readiness, and most of the respondents (62 percent) felt that it is one of schools’ responsibilities. Despite that, 41 percent felt unprepared to make a career choice or declare a college major upon graduation, and 30 percent were not following any planned educational or career path. For 57 percent of the graduates, family and friends had the greatest impact on their college and career decision-making.…Read More

State of Georgia Approves Continued Use of YouScience Discovery Statewide for K12 and Technical College System of Georgia Students

AMERICAN FORK, Utah /PRNewswire/ —  YouScience, the leading college and career readiness company, today announced the State of Georgia has approved the continued use of the company’s aptitude assessment,  YouScience Discovery, for more than 1 million K12 students, and students within the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), which includes 22 technical colleges across 88 campuses. Last year alone, roughly 240,000 7th and 10th grade students in Georgia took YouScience Discovery to identify their natural abilities and align them with potential careers.

In 2010, the General Assembly of Georgia enacted the Bridge Bill, which was passed to ensure that Georgia’s 6th – 12th grade students were made aware of available college and career options. YouScience seamlessly fits into the state’s initiative and Georgia’s curriculum to fulfill the bill’s requirements.

“This renewal is a testament to the success that students have achieved with using Discovery over the past eight years,” said Edson Barton, CEO at YouScience. “It’s critical we ensure that today’s graduates are aligned with what the workforce is looking for and have a sense of what careers they can thrive in. It’s also vital that career exploration starts at a young age so that we can get students on the right pathway – whether that be college or directly into a career – as early as possible. We’re thrilled to continue our work with the state of Georgia and aid its students’ in college and career exploration and ultimately success.”…Read More

VHS Learning Supports Students’ College and Career Readiness via Expanded Catalog and New “Exploring College & Careers” Infographic

Boston – April 14, 2022 – Giving students the chance to explore subjects beyond those in a standard core high school curriculum is a crucial step in readying them for college and careers. Students taking online high school courses through VHS Learning will start the 2022-2023 school year with many unique for-credit options, from Python Programming to Law, thanks to the nonprofit’s newly expanded course catalog. These new courses add to the more than 300 courses already available.

VHS Learning’s new courses for the 2022-2023 academic year include the following:

  • AP® Chinese Language and Culture
  • Business Law
  • Career Exploration and Readiness
  • Chinese 3
  • Civics and U.S. Government
  • Law and the U.S. Legal System
  • Python Programming
  • Spanish 1 Credit Recovery
  • Spanish 1 Summer
  • Studio Art
  • Veterinary Medicine

AP® Chinese Language and Culture runs 33 weeks, while the other new courses are semester-length and run for 15 weeks. These new courses enable students to discover subject areas that might not otherwise be available to them at a high school level.…Read More

YouScience Releases Career Insights Report on Women, STEM, and the Talent Shortage

AMERICAN FORK, Utah, March 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ —  YouScience, a leader in aptitude-based assessments, personalized career guidance, and industry-recognized certifications that support college and career success, today announced the release of a new national report,  Career Insights: Women, STEM, and the Talent Shortage. The insights are based on data gathered from the test results of more than 100,000 female high school juniors and seniors across the nation who completed a  YouScience Discovery assessment. The findings uncover a significant career exposure gap for women, as their aptitude scores for STEM-related occupations far outweighed their self-defined interest in them.

According to a 2021  ManpowerGroup survey, talent shortages in the U.S. have more than tripled in the last ten years, with 69% of employers struggling to fill positions, up from just 14% in 2010. Globally, estimates show that by 2030, the talent shortage could reach 85.2 million people, resulting in the loss of trillions of dollars in economic opportunity for companies.

YouScience garnered the insights by analyzing student’s self-defined interest in top careers versus their aptitude for success in those careers, including STEM and other high-paying opportunities. The data includes the top 50 most frequent career matches from a selection of 500.…Read More

Why self-discovery increases college and career success

What do you want to be when you grow up? As we get older, the answer often changes from highly visible and glamorous endeavors, such as being an actor or a rockstar, to something more useful and meaningful to us personally.

Determining a great career path, however, isn’t always easy and is more often than not inhibited by a lack of exposure to career options and awareness of our own natural abilities. Yet, in order to secure the right educational pathway, students are asked to make a decision as early as high school and sometimes even middle school. 

Statistics show that over the course of a person’s lifetime, they will work an average of 90,000 hours. That’s a lot of time. Time that, if not mapped out properly, can be costly and less than satisfying. So how does a high school-aged student choose a career path at such a young age? What are the steps students need to take to pick a fulfilling profession? …Read More

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4 ways online tutoring helps our at-risk, low-income district achieve goals

Our urban Title I district serves a population of 78 percent at-risk students and 84 percent low-income families. We were already managing low proficiency rates on math and ELA state assessments prior to the pandemic, and the move to remote learning made it even more difficult for teachers to engage with students who couldn’t be on campus.

The shifting rigor of Maryland’s College and Career Ready Standards pushed our students even further behind the curve. We knew we needed a program to accelerate learning outcomes and boost proficiency rates on MCAP/PARCC assessments while also providing academic support to students in need.

Finding the right solution…Read More

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10 SEL activities for high school students

Between balancing core instruction, administering assessments, grading homework, and ensuring students are prepared for college and career, high school teachers have a lot on their plates. SEL activities can make your jobs easier!

When students have strong social and emotional skills, they are more motivated, engaged, and understand the value of their learning. SEL also helps reduce disruptive behavior and office referrals, which allows teachers to spend more time on their instruction. Additionally, SEL activities can improve high school students’ college and career readiness and help them set goals for life after high school.

It’s easy to integrate SEL activities in your core instruction! Here are 10 activities and lesson ideas for high school students–organized by subject area–to get you started.…Read More

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