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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous] 
 I say introduce national subject exams like the British GCSEs that kids take the Summer they are 16 and A- Levels at 18.

The logistics of standardising GPAs for every American high school would be almost impossible but we already have national exams like the SAT IIs and APs. Expanding the infrastructure to include national subject exams for all kids at set ages would be more feasible. [/quote]

I agree, We kind of already do that, but not uniformly. People self select to take the SSAT at 6th or 8th grade if they want to go to private school, so there is a tiny level of sorting there; then people are tracked for APs or not, so there is a second level of sorting there. But whether it's bringing back the SATIIs or requiring an AP-type exam, the number of tested subjects should be significantly shrunk, or at least limit the ones that "count" for admissions standing - we don't need 29 AP subjects. There are core competencies that every student entering college should be able to demonstrate.

But, I'm not a fan of steering kids too early into non-academic tracks like some countries do, at least not unless we start uniform screening for learning differences and ADHD at a young age so "late bloomers" can get the help they need to develop strategies to mitigate disabilities from the start. Right now it depends too much on a parent or teacher noticing an obvious problem and choosing to do something about it. Too many bright people go undiagnosed and crash in late middle to early high school -- these are the types who often go on to be brilliant PhDs, if parents can afford a diagnosis and they don't get literally side-tracked. Many kids crash and burn even earlier and are incorrectly deemed unteachable.

We also will have to significantly change how we care for and educate our profoundly special needs population. We should have much better options and smoother transitions for their futures than most families currently face. Unfortunately, it's going to be a while before any work can begin.[/quote]

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