Multiple Pathways to Student Success: Envisioning the New California High School
California must significantly improve secondary education because today’s increasingly competitive global economy demands that we prepare all students to be critical thinkers, high-level problem solvers, and lifelong learners. To address this demand, it is imperative for California to establish a new vision for its California high schools that combines both transformative new approaches as well as strengthened and expanded existing programs. In particular, the multiple pathways approach has been identified as one of the most promising models for high school transformation.
As a systemic districtwide high school transformation initiative, the multiple pathways approach is intentionally designed to ensure that more students graduate from high school prepared to take advantage of postsecondary educational and career opportunities without the need for remediation. Within a district’s multiple pathways system are individual pathways that each offer high school students four key components: an integrated core academic curriculum; an integrated core career technical curriculum; a series of work-based learning opportunities; and student support services. The California Legislature, recognizing the importance of the multiple pathways approach, enacted Assembly Bill 2648 (Bass), which called for a report from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) to explore the feasibility of establishing and expanding the multiple pathways approach in California.
To develop the report Multiple Pathways to Student Success: Envisioning the New California High School, the State Superintendent has sought information and feedback from a wide range of stakeholders, including representatives from state agencies, postsecondary education institutions, kindergarten through grade twelve (K–12) education, teacher and administrator organizations, businesses, community leaders, parents, students, and researchers. Based on the interviews, focus groups, literature review, and survey results of this fi eld study, it is clear that there is a debate under way in California, as well as across the country, about the best ways to improve high schools. Among stakeholder groups and organizations, however, there appears to be a growing consensus that:
» California is not succeeding in preparing students for ongoing education and employment in the twenty-first century.
» California needs a stronger unifying vision of the purposes of high school in preparing graduates for ongoing education3 and career opportunities. Implementation of the multiple pathways approach statewide — partly because it seeks to integrate academic and career technical education — can help inform and exemplify a statewide vision for student success.
» California needs a stronger unifying vision of the purposes of high school in preparing graduates for ongoing education3 and career opportunities.
Implementation of the multiple pathways approach statewide — partly because it seeks to integrate academic and career technical education — can help inform and exemplify a statewide vision for student success.
via WestEd | Download the Executive Summary | Download the Full Report
