COURSE TAKING, ACHIEVEMENT, AND CURRICULAR POLICY (SECONDARY, HIGH SCHOOL, BEYOND, TRACKING, SAT SCORES, INSTRUCTIONAL TIME)

Recent national and state level study commissions have recommended more stringent high school graduation requirements in order to boost student achievement. Using data from High School and Beyond for six states and College Board Achievement Test scores for two states, this study examined the level of coursework taken by students in different states, and the effects of variation in coursework on performance. Among New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, California, and Washington 1980 seniors, students from New York and Pennsylvania reported the most coursework taken during the last three years of high school. Although states differed markedly in the distribution of students across tracks, New York and Pennsylvania students reported the most coursework regardless of high school track, or whether students were college bound vs. non-college bound. Within each state, there were dramatic differences among the three tracks in the amount of academic coursework received. College Board Achievement Test data were compared for New York and California 1982 seniors who completed the American History, Math 2, French, and Chemistry tests. The results showed, that after controlling for aptitude level, New York students reported taking more coursework in social studies, mathematics, foreign language, and physical science. New York students also earned higher scores on the four achievement tests. With-in-state regression analyses determined that for both states each year of American history, foreign language, mathematics, and physical science was positively related to performance on the four tests respectively. In conclusion, the evidence generally supported the belief that increased coursetaking will lead to higher performance on standardized tests. The study also raised the issue of track assignment, since track was strongly related to amount of academic coursework, and academic coursework in turn affects performance.