Dear Colleagues and Professionals
I'm a public-school principal seeking input from professors and businesses regarding what they want from HS graduates. Because nearly all students attend college, trade schools, or enter the workforce after graduation, we’ll use this information to begin vertically realigning curriculum. Our objective is to teach critical thinking through practical and focused materials gathered from experts in their field. Responses from undergraduate and graduate faculty are welcomed, along with anyone working in the industry. There are a total of 7 "required" questions and takes most people ~3 minutes to complete.
Optional Response Methods:
1. Email me "CER" at thompsoncaleb@gmail.com for the direct questions
2. Text "CER" to my cell (618.791.0429) and I will send you the link
3. Call my cell (618.791.0429) and we can have a conversation
4. Set up a video conference by calling or emailing me
All responses will remain confidential and will not be used to indicate acceptance into or success within any institution. The final report seen by teachers will reflect the desired skills required to succeed in each major (e.g. According to 72 instructors from 42 colleges/universities, ________ skills should be mastered prior to enrolling in business/nursing/etc).
This is not a part of a dissertation, results will not be published, and I am not being paid for this work - it's something that I believe will help thousands of our students, but nobody has had the time or funding to collect it.
My personal motivation: I've found over the years that receiving an A in a HS course like Biology will look good on a college application, but the skills mastered vary wildly from one school to the next, meaning you can have a class full of students who graduated HS with honors but are not truly prepared for your courses. I understand that some faculty have become accustomed to starting from "square one" with their students irrespective of remedial courses, however I would like to begin raising that standard once again. I believe that strong, relevant content can also address many of the fundamental skills which some students lack upon graduation (research, time management, note-taking, communication, etc).
Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions.