The National Center on Education and the Economy is organizing a program for high school programs in eight states that will allow 10th grade students to pass a series of tests in order to receive a diploma two years early and immediately register for community college.
The organization says that the goal is to decrease the number of high school graduates who need to take remedial courses when they enroll in college, reports The New York Times. As it stands, more than a million college freshmen enroll in remedial courses each year, and most drop out before obtaining a degree.
The tests, known as board exams, cover English, math, science and history. If students fail the 10th grade exams, they are able to take them again at the end of their 11th and 12th grades. For those students who pass but wish to attend a four-year university, they will be allowed to take college preparatory courses in their junior and senior years.
The program is set to roll out in the fall 2011 in Connecticut, Kentucky, Maine, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. During the pilot project, as many as 10 to 20 schools in those states will participate in the program.
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