New Report Underscores Gaps in High School Guidance Programs to Prepare Students for Work

A new report from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) underscores several recommendations included in Southern Growth Policies Board’s 2002 Report on the Future of the South: The Mercedes and The Magnolia.

The NCES report, High School Guidance Counseling describes high school guidance programs, activities, and staff at U.S. public high schools during the 2001-02 school year. Forty eight percent of all public high schools said “helping students with academic achievement” was the most important goal for guidance counselors.

Only 26 percent of the schools gave top priority to “helping students plan and prepare for postsecondary schooling.” And only 8 percent of schools said “helping students plan and prepare for their work roles after high school” was their priority. Also, only 45 percent of schools had a curriculum aligned around career clusters/paths or block scheduling and only 15 percent had small learning communities.

The 124-page report can be found at: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2003015