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Mike Kirst Believes California Students Are Better Prepared for College

Portrait
Day
March 2016

In response to oversimplified measures of progress frequently used to determine national rankings, Mike Kirst, President of the California State Board of Education, writes an opinion piece for The Mercury News describing California’s progress in preparing students for college. At the classroom level, Kirst observes that the state's high school students surpass national averages of advanced placement course enrollment and scores on college admission tests. Participation rates for college admission tests also continue to increase, with more than 242,000 California students taking the SAT and more than 122,000 taking the ACT in 2015. As a measure of aptitude, Kirst notes that individual compare favorably to SAT scores in Florida, New York, and Texas. Overall, Kirst suggests that these measures signify that California students are better prepared for college. In the meantime, California continues to ramp up the use of actionable data geared to prepare students for college. For example, new computer-based tests measure college readiness in grades 3-8 and 11 and will provide parents and educators with information they can use to help get students on track for college.