Helping ease the transition to Higher Education

I dropped my eldest daughter Zoë off at college last fall. Any parent who has experienced that moment knows that it’s a unique mixture of sadness, pride, and wonder. Did I do everything I could to prepare her for this? Is she ready socially, emotionally, academically? Last week, while our family traveled together on spring break, I learned that she’s doing fine – though she did have to make some adjustments to college. Me? I’m still adjusting, but more than ever I am excited for her and the grand adventure she has embarked upon.

Both of my daughters are fortunate to attend excellent public schools and they have built strong academic foundations. Even with all that, I was still concerned about how Zoë would transition from high school to college – as any parent would be similarly concerned. Imagine, then, how significant a parent’s concern when her child’s school is not high performing – where her child did not have access to challenging high school classes or a broad breadth of course offerings. I think often of how compounded those worries might be in parents who themselves did not go to college.

Parents’ concerns over whether their children will successfully navigate the transition from high school to higher education are real and they are tangible. Research shows that this transition is often a challenging one for students on many fronts, and it is truly a systemic issue. The current path leaves too many students playing catch up to their peers.

We want all students, for example, who finish 12th-grade English to be ready to pick up English 101 on a college campus. Today, that is too often not the case. Studies show that between 28 percent and 40 percent of first-time undergraduates enroll in at least one remedial course. Among community college students alone, several studies have found that more than half need remediation to be able to do college-level work. I want to focus a few comments on that issue.

Historically, our U.S. work at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has focused on college readiness and higher education. In K-12, we’ve put a priority on supporting teachers and their deep connection to students and on high standards. In higher ed, we’ve been researching and supporting programs that make clear what students get for their money, and provide students with guided pathways, personalized learning, and technology-enabled advising.We’re now giving new attention to an interconnected track: bridging K-12 and higher education to ensure that students can smoothly transition.

The foundation is funding work to support conversations between high school faculty and postsecondary faculty so they can better understand one another’s work and see if their expectations for students and standards can better align, as well.

Through our partnerships, we’re also working our way toward an agreed understanding of what it means to be college and career ready. A shared definition opens the door for districts and schools to adopt policies that create supports for students who are struggling and accelerate the learning of students who are ready for higher education through AP classes, dual enrollment, among other options.

Many students also lack the essential information and guidance they need to map out their own transition. Do they know what courses to take in high school and college to achieve their dreams? Do they understand the SAT and ACT? Do they understand how to fill out the FAFSA? The process is often unclear and confusing for both students and families. We’re continuing to listen to students about the supports they need to make a successful transition, as well as how they can find and use the information.

Shared standards and expectations, clear and accessible information, and personalized supports can help bridge the gap between K-12 and higher ed for more students. Ultimately, all parents, whether they are dropping their children off at college or for the first day of preschool, want their kids to succeed. We are working to make sure that opportunity is available for all kids – yours and mine – no matter their zip code, what school they attend, or their family’s financial situation. This is an area we will continue to explore, and I hope you’ll join us in the conversation by leaving your valuable comments and ideas below.

This article is published in collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

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Author: Gavin Payne, director, United States Program Policy and Advocacy, leads the team responsible for developing and executing engagement strategies to support the scaling and sustainability of the foundation’s work toward College-Ready K-12 Education and Post-Secondary Success.

Image: Profile of students taking their seats for the diploma ceremony at Harvard University in Cambridge. REUTERS/Brian Snyder.