Allowing gifted students to skip high school in Calfornia

Contra Costa Times ^ | June 19, 2002

[gracie1]

I think this is a good idea. Why spend 4 years going over the same damn thing you should have learned in elementary and Jr Hi? Taking basket weaving and ceramics? That was the extent of my 9 thru 12 education. As someone has already pointed out, in times past all you needed to do to get into collage was pass an entrance exam. There was limited public education and many never went a "public school".

I think the ones to benefit the most will be home schoolers.

[headsonpikes]

This is a great idea!

Anything that helps kids escape from the camps is a great idea.

[SoothingDave]

As it was, I hated college because it was reviewing the same subjects I'd already learned in high school, which strikes me as an insane waste of time and money.

Did you go to a "top tier" school? There shouldn't be that much remedial work. I've got to believe there was a program out there in some college which would have challenged you.

I am wary of people skipping too many grades, as they only worsen the problem of feeling socially outcast. Besides, college is the time to relax.

SD

[Kevin OMalley]

I took the CHSPE when I was 16, and moved on with my life. I refer to people who remain in high school as 5 percenters, which is to say that staying in high school only makes sense for those 5% of students who either can't pass the CHSPE (California's version of the high school proficiency exam), are trying for an athletic scholarship, are the most popular guys with the prettiest cheerleaders on their arm, or just want to goof off. The rest of the people in high school should just take the test and go to community college, start getting college credits out of the way.

It's particularly bizarre that the kids today are going to be REQUIRED to take a test when they graduate; that just means that you're wasting your time from the moment you CAN pass that test. A high school diploma means NOTHING in today's economy -- a 4 year college degree is a true necessity and the sooner you get it, the better off you are.

I have often heard that the reason to stay in high school is "so you can go to the senior prom". This is just an incredible joke -- what a waste of time. I can't believe kids waste 4 years of their lives for a chance at one night of fun, or because they're "building up cherished memories". That's a crock for many, if not most high school kids today, and they need to get the heck out of this socially repressive environment... leave it to the 5 percenters to harrass each other. For those parents who are trying to convince your kids that they're having fun when the kids know they aren't, you'll end up getting the worst end of the teens' treatment when the chickens come home to roost with their surly remarks, attitude problems, and drug use.

An 18 year old with an AA degree has a MUCH better chance of getting into the college of his or her choice than an 18 year old clueless high school grad with a 3.0 grade average. This will have the effect of increasing competition in the upper tier, which will trickle down to the lower/middle capability students. Hopefully we'll see kids in community college saying things such as, "I got out in 1 year" or "I skipped high school entirely". A bright kid with an Bachelor's degree at 19 or 20 years old will finally have an education on par with what goes on in Japan & other industrialized nations.

AB2607 is the best policy proposal for secondary school in California since the introduction of the CHSPE.