The Effects of Dual Credit and Dual Enrollment on High School Students - Essay Example

?The Effects of Dual Credit and Dual Enrollment on High School Introduction It is believed by some educators that the high school senior year is redundant for majority of the students since typically they satisfy all high school diploma requirements and go on to pursue post secondary education by the time junior year ends (Andrews, 2004). To resolve this issue of seniors “blowing off the senior year” due to a lack of any substantial challenge, in 1973 the Project Advance program of Syracuse University was created (Andrews, 2004). Following this development the model was adopted by various institutions and consequently there was an emergence of a multitude of dual credit programs. In 1974, LaGuardia Community College, New York established the Middle College High School program targeting alienated and at risk students in typical high schools who potentially may not succeed in acquiring their diplomas (Lewis & Overman, 2008). Similar programs were adopted by Florida International University in 1982 (Partners in Progress) and Kingsborough Community College in 1984 (College Now). Motivated by the success of the Minnesota dual credit program, Washington State passed the ‘Running Start’ program in 1990 which allowed juniors and seniors with necessary qualifications to take college level courses at technical and community colleges without having to pay college tuition. In 1994 this was expanded to incorporate four year universities if there were no community colleges in the high school district (Kim & Bragg, 2008; Board, 2011) In 2004, the legislature founded House Bill 3103 which established federal guidelines tailored to provide assistance to high schools via increasing the magnitude of dual credit programs, expanding the breadth of the curriculum of these programs, and tutoring/mentoring students to aid in a seamless transition into postsecondary educational institutions (Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2005). Definitional Issues Opinion is divided among experts regarding the proper terminology that should be accorded to the opportunity provided to high school students to attend college classes which generate credits at both high school and college levels. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board defines a dual credit course as one that includes academic as well as technical courses. For the present purpose, dual enrollment hereon is defined following Klein (2007, p.23) as “courses that allow high school students to receive both high school and college credit simultaneously”. These modules are typically taught by professors or adjunct instructors belonging to the institution, and the same classes are attended by college and high school students. Concurrent enrollment for early-college high schools is also located on the college campus but only high school students attend class. The Early College High School, founded by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation in 2002 serves traditionally underrepresented students by enabling them to access the simultaneous pursuit of college credits and a high school (American Institute for Research, 2009). Because they are easier to implement as well as less expensive, concurrent and dual enrollments have gained greater popularity (Karp & Bailey, April 2005). Kim & Bragg (2008) additionally distinguish articulated credit courses such as career and technical education, International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement which only allow high school students to apply for the college credits. The present literature review will restrict its focus to concurrent and dual credit courses. Notably, these courses have the twin fold benefit of assisting a high school student either to an academic career or into the workforce (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2011). The paper will primarily address the following questions: 1. What are the principal benefits and major concerns for students who participate in dual enrollment/dual credit programs? 2. What are the central advantages and disadvantages for partnering institutions? 3. What could be the significant benefits and central concerns associated with expanding the scope of the program to incorporate all high school students and all postsecondary institutions? Question 1: What are the principal benefits and major concerns for students who participate in dual enrollment/dual credit programs? The principle objective of dual enrollment/credit programs is to provide a ‘seamless’ secondary to post secondary educational transition (Andrews, 2004). The THECB (2011) slated legislation for college-readiness, which requires each and every school district to have programs which allow students to earn 12 credited hours of college classes was passed back in 2006, and it became effective from the Fall of 2008 onwards. Dual and concurrent enrollment courses are two alternative ways of satisfying these conditions. Although the traditional target of dual enrollment has been the most academically gifted student in high school, in recent years the efficacy of these programs in reducing the demand load on remediation courses, reducing dropout rates, bridging the disconnect among high school and college curriculum, reducing material duplication, senioritis, and attrition has been realized (Kim & Bragg, 2008). There is a substantial variation in decisions regarding who has to pay tuition, fees and other costs at the district level for dual enrollment (THECB, 2011). While some school districts pay these on behalf of the student either from school allotment or from local funds, it is required by other districts that these fees, tuition etc costs be borne by the student’s family. Interestingly either of these cases may have negative impacts on the levels of participation. For instance, local funds are used for dual credit, when the financial situation becomes tight, school districts may not be able to afford participation. Further, school districts which are not financially very affluent may not be able to adopt the programs if they are required to gather own funds to support the students. On the other hand if it is the student’s family that has to bear the costs, participation from families with low or moderate income will dwindle. As per the education code of Texas (Sec. 54.216) public higher education institutions can at their discretion waive at the mandatory tuition as well as fees at least partially for dual credit courses. In reality surveys show that while most community colleges provide full or partial waivers Universities rarely do so (THECB, 2011). A primary concern however is that with increased participation, overhead costs of the courses also rise. Consequently institutions may be forced to reduce or totally eliminate such waivers. Although there are a few professors who believe that students who complete dual credit courses are in fact underprepared for advanced college level courses and skipping classes at the entry level may be unwise (Reisberg, 1998), dual credit systems do provide several advantages for students as well as the state alike with regards to the system of dual credits. It has been documented in a number of studies that enrolling in dual credit classes enhances the probability of a student completing high school, and enrolling in and persisting in college, decreases overall costs of tuition as well as fees for students by increasing the pace of obtaining the degree. Accelerated time to degree in turn may free up resources such as space from the facility and faculty which can then be used to increase and support intakes of additional students. The new graduates who were able to accelerate their time to degree enter the workforce earlier and start earning wages thereby increasing their lifetime incomes as well as benefiting the economy as well (Brophy & Johnson, 2007). It has been argued by some researchers that dual credit programs can provide opportunities of exploring and deciding on post-secondary educational choices. The students are exposed to a realistic test of their capacities in adapting to college level classes and they have a realistic understanding of their possibilities of success in college (Kim & Bragg, 2008). A problematic that has emerged in research is the common pitfall of a few instructors as well as counselors who placed students from high schools in dual credit class to boost their self-esteems hoping that the spurt will improve academic performance since self-esteem in adequate doses and an ability to control ones desires, urges and lethargy are necessary hallmarks of scholarship. However the process of bolstering these directly, irrespective of actual performance, may not be a very effective strategy particularly for students performing below par. Because of the role of self esteem boosts as a delectable reward it can serve as a reward for demonstrated learning improvements and good performances. The reward can also be used to motivate strategizing, hard working and finally, persistence and all these can undoubtedly enhance performances without any accompanying pitfalls of unworthy self-praise that does not relate to performance in any way. But misleading students to believe they are capable in spite of not performing well on a first test may actually have greater detrimental effects on the student’s future. (Forsyth et. al, 2007). Question 2: What are the benefits and concerns for institutions who partner with the local schools to provide dual credit/dual enrollment programs? THECB states that both the school district as well as the college is eligible to apply for state funding to finance dual credit classes by state law. Funding of school districts depends upon daily attendance averages of students and the convenience is that time spent in a dual credit class can be counted toward school attendance. College receives formula funding from the state for contract or instructional credit hours recorded. Ways to engage faculty in charge of teaching dual credit courses are being incorporated with the goal of refining the final learning objectives of these courses (THECB, 2011). While it is possible for colleges and high schools to collaboratively support the dual credit programs, assistance with scholarships, transfer agreements for certain courses, designing of courses, training of instructors and support and finally designing testing methodologies that actually test student knowledge and ensure the maintenance of rigor (THECB, 2011). College classes involve a smaller number of small-scale team assignments and stress more on independent learning compared to high school courses (Klein, 2007). Dual enrollment thus can help school students get used to forthcoming new challenges. A widely held belief is that all such dual credit/enrollment programs, particularly those targeting students who may not be considering themselves as college material, should access extra support, in forms like tutoring or counseling. Community colleges add significantly to increasing a students’ access to post-secondary education particularly because of the twin advantages of a) the geographic proximity and b) competitive costs. It was reported by The NCES (National Center of Education Statistics) in 2006 that 4 of 10 US undergraduate students were enrolled in different community colleges in 2003-2004. Not only can dual credit programs recruit new students whose plans did not include going to college as well as retain high school students who contemplating dropping out, but also contributes substantially to the expansion of educational opportunities for students in smaller rural high schools (Kim & Bragg, 2008). However, since almost every community college maintains an open door policy to offer better opportunities for pupils to enroll in college, these colleges are sometimes viewed as being characterized by lower standards and non-academically prepared pupils. Indeed, the deficit of academic training among students who enter community college is troubling national problematic, with 40 – 60 percent of the students having to take at least one remedial class in either reading or writing or in Mathematics. For the period 1998-2001, 32 percent of students who had completed their first year did not return for their second year (Kim & Bragg, 2008). Although the open door policy gives access to students to participate in a collegiate experience, those attending typically lack academic preparation and lowered retention and completion rates are worrisome numbers. Question 3: Does the trend toward encouraging all high school students and postsecondary institutions to participate in dual credit benefit the students? Because of the explosion in the number of these programs, the quality levels of the courses may potentially be adversely affected. To regulate quality and embalm rigor, collaborations in terms content, teaching styles as well as standards among high schools and colleges can be advised (Klein, 2007). The last four decades has seen substantial progress in terms of number of graduates in higher education. However there is a strong achievement differential among groups formable according to factors like income, family educational history, race in post-secondary education (Hoffman, 2003). It has been determined that with tutoring and counseling the dual/concurrent program has been able to reach target groups of moderate and low achievers as well as students identified as being at risk. The Early College High School Initiative (ECHSI) situated within the college campus funds dual and concurrent programs especially for students who traditionally have been underrepresented in postsecondary education. The program provides participants opportunities to pursue a diploma at high school and simultaneously earn college level credits (American Institute for Research, 2009; Lewis & Overman, 2008). The program is characterized by all the necessary components like the new 3Rs: “rigor, relevance and relationship” (Lewis & Overman, 2008) for success. Research shows that first generation students in college are approximately twice more likely to get a withdrawal from a 4-year college program before the onset of the second year relative to a student whose parents have been able to acquire a college education. Further it has also been documented that the probability of students from upper income classes earning a bachelor’s degree by the age of 24 is 7 times greater than that of a student from a lower or moderate income family (Hoffman, 2003). There are partaking gaps for marginal groups (such as African-American or Hispanic), lower income as well as students in the classifiable as low to middle achieving students (Klein, 2007). Although there may be substantial benefits for majority of students from these college courses, not all of them are initially prepared to effectively manage the situation and thus proceed to the stage of learning. Experts’ recommendation is that the programs cautiously order coursework such that students are never simply shoved into some college level course without preparation or context (Klein, 2007) but rather spefic foundational material is provided for students needing to strengthen their bases. Summary Acceleration in the pace of making education choices is a rather important strategic ploy that targets increments in the success rate of colleges and high schools simultaneously because of the inherent capacity of the process for bridging the postsecondary - secondary disconnect (Hoffman, Vargas, & Santos, 2009). Dual credit courses set up students for succeeding course work provided they have unswerving and clear learning goals (THECB, 2011). To enhance a high school graduate student’s preparation for college, the thoroughness, quality, and magnitude of the curriculum should be modified and ameliorated. Cautious direction and counsel in selection of courses is critical. Teachers as well as counselors should motivate and inspire preparation over self-esteem boosting (Forsyth, Lawrence, Burnette, & Baumeitse, 2007). Brophy and Johnson (2007) concluded that the majority of students partake in the dual enrollment program as it saves them money, acquires accountability, and enables receiving college credits which later allow them to take less post-secondary hours. Further, advantages of taking dual credit classes include increases in academic rigor of high school curricula, helping low-achieving students in meeting relatively higher academic standards; providing supplementary scholastic opportunities; reducing school dropout rates and enhancing students’ aspirations, helping in the acclimatizing to college life process for students; as well as considerably reducing the cost of college education (Karp & Bailey, April 2005). However, this can be a strong disincentive as it can be an incentive for student participation (Peters & Mann, 2009). Further research is necessary to comprehend the true effects of these dual credits on completion rates. However, there is consensus among some researchers who are of the belief that the high school curricula rigor intensifies and motivates persistence and thus college completion (Kim & Bragg, 2008). References American Institute for Research. (2009). Fifth Annual Early College High School Initiative Evaluation Synthesis Report. Six Years and Counting: The ECHSI Matures. Arlington: SRI International. Andrews, H. A. (2004). Dual credit research outcomes for students. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 28(5), 415-422. Brophy, M., & Johnson, T. (2007). Dual enrollment at the community college and high school: Where do students hear about it? Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, (15)1, 47-55. Falconetti, A. (2009). 2+2 statewide articulation policy, student persistence, and success in Florida universities. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, (33)3, 238-255. Forsyth, D. R., Lawrence, N. K., Burnette, J. L., & Baumeitse, R. F. (2007). Attempting to improve the academicpPerformance of struggling college students by bolstering their self-esteem: An intervention that backfired. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 447-459. Hoffman, N. (2003). College credit in high school: Increasing postsecondary credential rates of underrepresented students. Change, 35(4), 42-48. Hoffman, N., Vargas, J., & Santos, J. (2009). New Directions for Dual Enrollment: Creating Stronger Pathways from High School Through College. In A. C. Bueschel, & A. Venezia, Policies and Practices to Improve Student Preparation and Success (pp. 43-58). San Franciso: Jossey-Bass. Karp, M. M., & Bailey, T. R. (April 2005). State Dual Enrollment Polcies: Addressing Access and Quality. New York: Community College Research Center. Kim, J., & Bragg, D. D. (2008). The Impact of Dual and Articulated Credit on College REadiness and Retention in Four Community Colleges. Career and Technical Education Research, (33)2, 133-58. Klein, A. (2007). Acceleration Under Review. Education Week, 22-2. Lewis, M. V., & Overman, L. (2008). Dual and concurrent enrollment and transition to postsecondary education. Career and Technical Education Research, 33(3), 189-202. O'Banion, J. (1997). A Learning College for the 21st Century. Connecticut: American Council of Education and the Oryx Press. Peters, J., & Mann, R. (2009). Getting ahead: Current secondary and postsecondary acceleration options for high-ability students in Indiana. Journal of Advanced Academic, 630-657. Reisberg, L. (1998). Some professors question programs that allow high-school students to earn college credits. The Chronicle of High Education. Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. (2011, 2 17). Dual Credit-Frequently Asked Questions. Read More