The New York State Education Department on Monday presented findings from a commission that could lead to changes in graduation requirements for high schoolers.
The Blue Ribbon Commission on Graduation Measures recommended a dozen changes to graduation requirements and educational standards across the state.
Education Commissioner Betty Rosa said in a statement that every student is unique and a one-size-fits-all approach to graduation requirements fails to nurture their differences.
“We must remove barriers and facilitate equitable access to education by addressing the individual needs of students, increasing opportunities for work-based learning or college readiness programs, and providing students with practical skills and experiences that enhance their employability and post-secondary education opportunities,” Rosa said.
For students, the commission’s proposals could mean they’ll be required to earn additional credits in financial literacy and civics. And instead of three types of diplomas, there would be one with optional endorsements. It could also lead to changes in the number of assessments and the type of exams that students are required to take to determine whether they qualify for high school diplomas.
New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) said the proposals outlined by the commission would help prepare students to be life-long learners while readying them for careers in a dynamic economy.
"The recommendations ... promise a bright future for our students and a positive outlook for New York as an innovator and global economic leader,” the statewide teacher’s union said in a statement.
The state Education Department said it will work over the coming months to develop guidance and adopt changes related to this initiative.
The Blue Ribbon Commission’s recommendations:
1. Replace the three diploma types with one diploma, with the option to add seals and endorsements.
2. Include civic responsibility (ethics); cultural competence; financial literacy education; fine and performing arts; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) credit(s); and writing, including writing skills for real-world scenarios, in diploma credit requirements.
3. Ensure access to career and technical education (CTE), including internships and work-based learning opportunities for all students across New York State.
4. Move to a model that organizes credit requirements— including content area credit requirements— into larger categories (e.g., mathematics and science courses could be included in the “STEM” category).
5. Reduce and/or modify diploma assessment requirements to allow more assessment options.
6. Create state-developed rubric(s) for any performance-based assessments allowed as an option to satisfy the diploma assessment requirements.
7. Create more specific, tailored graduation requirements to address the unique circumstances of certain groups of students (e.g., non-compulsory age students, newcomer students, refugee students).
8. Provide exemptions from diploma assessment requirements for students with significant cognitive disabilities and major life events and extenuating circumstances (e.g., medical conditions, death of a family member, trauma prior to sitting for a required exam).
9. Pursue regulatory changes to allow the discretion to confer high school degrees posthumously.
10. Require all New York State teacher preparation programs to provide instruction in culturally responsive-sustaining education (CRSE) practices and pedagogy.
11. Require that professional development plans include culturally responsive-sustaining education practices and pedagogy.
12. Review and revise the New York State learning standards.
