THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, July 24, 1995 TAG: 9507220014
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 44 lines
Norfolk school superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr. makes sense when he suggests eliminating the general diploma. His system should adopt the recommendation and so should others in Hampton Roads.
A high-school education should equip all students with language and math skills, as well as a rudimentary grounding in history, science, civics and economics.
Beyond imparting that important gift of shared cultural literacy, high school should prepare students either to succeed in undergraduate education or in the world of work - or both. The three curriculum tracks - college prep, tech-prep and vocational studies - are supposed to offer paths to rewarding careers.
In fact, the world of work is changing so fast and requires so many new skills that a rethinking of all three may be n order. In an automated world where even factory work is knowledge work, shouldn't all students learn keyboarding and basic computer skills? Won't more skill in math than in the past be needed for almost all jobs? In a global market isn't a foreign language something every student should learn? Updating the curriculum is overdue in most systems.
But if the college prep, tech-prep and vocational curricula need increased rigor, that only makes the general program more of an embarrassment. Its minimal requirements prepare students for a minimalist life. That does them and the larger society a disservice.
The general diploma is in danger of becoming little more than a certificate of attendance that tells employers the student showed up but wasn't expected to learn much. That's simply not good enough, and schools should stop graduating the uneducated.
By all means, eliminate the general diploma. At the same time, make sure the other three curricula prepare students for the 21st-century job market they'll be entering. by CNB