Declining high-school graduation rates should be everyone's concern

Dr. Jim Goodnight, Chief Executive Officer of SAS Institute
Keynote Address
North Carolina Citizens for Business & Industry Annual Meeting
Wednesday, March 16, 2005

I want to use this opportunity to talk about a national issue that has my concern. Among the industrialized countries in the world the United States now ranks 16th in high-school graduation rates. We used to be in the top five. This has very serious implications for our economic prosperity. Obviously, if we are not producing the workforce for a 21st century economy, we will not be able to retain or attract the industry we need to compete.

Did you know that by the end of the 1920's North Carolina was first in the nation in the production of tobacco, textiles, and furniture? That was then. Now, that economy has given way to an economy driven by knowledge industries, Information Technologies, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, biotech, health care, and others. Today's job market demands a highly educated workforce even for entry level jobs.

Our low-skill economy is gone and the race for knowledge skills and talent is on. And, we are no longer competing with just our sister states, but now with China, India, Malaysia, and Singapore, to name just a few.

• A large percentage of 11th and 12th graders in North Carolina are taking Advanced Placement courses and are testing well on them.
• North Carolina is the top performing state in the proportion of high school students taking upper-level math.
• But, we are one of the worst performing states (45th) in the percentage of students earning a high school degree. Out of 100 of our ninth graders only 60 will graduate from high school 4 years later, only 41 will enter college, and only 19 will go on to receive a college degree.

This is absolutely shameful. How many of these dropouts end up in prison? Well, 68% of our prison population did not complete High School. Each inmate costs us about $23,000 a year. If we can keep them in school, it will cost us only about $6,700 a year. Clearly as taxpayers we are better off keeping kids in school.

While we have left the low-skill economy behind in North Carolina, we do not have a system of schools that is geared to produce a labor force able to apply reasoning and problem solving skills or able to adapt to different uses of technology. We are still relying on a system that fails to reflect our changing world. We need a school structure that embraces rigor relevance to jobs and the relationships that students need to succeed. It is essential that our high schools respond to the changing business environment and help our young people become a part of the knowledge based economy.

Just a few weeks ago Ann and I attended the National Education Summit on High Schools where Bill Gates talked about this very issue. The Gates Foundation has done significant research in this area. Bill said that today's high schools -- even when they're working exactly as designed-- cannot teach our kids what they need to know today. Bill declared that our high schools are obsolete!

Two clear thoughts that emerged from the summit were, first, high schools should teach every student a college preparatory program. Even students who graduate from high school and don't attend college should be better prepared for tomorrow's knowledge jobs. And, secondly, schools need to be more rigorous.

Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships are the new 3 R's of education. What do these new three R's mean and why are they so fundamental to the future of education?

Rigor: We must provide challenging instruction and we must insist on meeting high standards. Children are not afraid of a rigorous curriculum. Children want to be challenged and they want the learning experience to be engaging. They are willing to think critically and learn how to access information. I have heard that some parents complain that their children are having to work too hard when they first come to Cary Academy, but within a month or two the parents adjust to the amount of work their child needs to do.

Relevance: Making sure kids have courses and projects that relate to their lives and goals, and what could be more relevant than the use of technology in schools. Almost all of us have computers on our desk at work. We don't have to wait, go down the hall and take turns using a single company computer to read our email. Computers should be on every desk of every student. Computers have come down considerably in price. Today a classroom could be equipped for less that $500 a computer. Complete online curriculum is available today to all North Carolina middle and high school students, as well as teaching guides. Technology can make education exciting and extremely relevant. The use of technology allows students to learn at their own pace and keeps them interested in learning. As a consequence, the need for remediation is greatly reduced.

I believe that today's students need to not only access, but master the tools of today's economy. In our information-intensive world today, Information Technology is the vehicle by which knowledge is created, disseminated, and leveraged.

We must equip our children to meet the demands of their world. This requires that the curriculum teach problem solving skills using the tools relevant to the challenges and realities of our times. Technology is often a key component to problem solving regardless of the type of business.

Relationships: We need for schools to offer more personalized instruction and a more supportive environment. How can teachers know their students and build relationships if they have 160 students in a subject area? With smaller schools and classes the teacher can take on the role of a mentor, ensuring that every student is known, valued, and encouraged.

The idea of smaller class size and the use of technology would be very costly to implement all at once, but it can be started in every school. Pick a discipline, perhaps, math or science. I would suggest English. Split the class in two and add another teacher and a computer for every student. The use of a computer in English class gives the student access for research to many of the world's university libraries. It would allow them to write all of their papers and take tests on the computer and then forward these to their teacher for grading and comments. The teacher could return all work electronically to the student. Before you know it, English would become every child's favorite subject.

Julie Ray a professor of education in a recent issue of "Teaching," said that "Research about the learning process has demonstrated that learning occurs when students are actively engaged, have opportunities for interaction with others, are presented with challenging situations, or questions that require critical thinking skills and are surrounded by a nurturing environment".

All of us must continue to emphasize the value of education. We can create a dialog with our children, parents, and schools about workforce needs and opportunities. This should be a deliberate effort to show the connection between education and success. Without understanding the benefits, students are not motivated to continue on in school.

Many of you here are already actively creating or supporting programs and initiatives aimed at achieving excellence in our schools. There are some Great initiatives such as: The New Schools project -- a private - public partnership will focus on creating up to 100 new small high schools across the state. Each school will have more flexibility in its use of time and resources to create a unique approach to learning which is academically rigorous and relevant to the local economy.

The High Five Regional Partnership for High School Excellence -- A partnership of five Triangle school districts and five business sponsors whose goal is to end HS drop outs. Their full page ad should be posted in every class room. It shows the difference in salaries for high school dropouts as compared to HS graduates and college graduates. It will get the students attention.

The Business Education Technology Alliance known as BETA and chaired by our Lt. Governor consisted of more than twenty state leaders in business, education, and government.

One of the twenty recommendations BETA recently made to the State Board of Education and the Education Cabinet was when building schools and classrooms, technology infrastructure should be automatically budgeted for as a utility, just as water and electricity are treated.

The E-Learning Commission was recently formed to enact a virtual high school. If a student needs a course the local high school cannot offer, the student could take the course online with a certified North Carolina teacher.

Governor Easley's Learn and Earn program, which gives students the option of a combined high school diploma and community college associate degree in five years or two years of university credit, provides students with a degree that will allow them to enter the workforce with a marketable skill.

The U.S. Department of Education is funding a major national project called the College and Career Transitions Initiative. In North Carolina, Central Piedmont Community College, Charlotte Mecklenburg School District, and the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce are one of the twelve national site partnerships in this program.

CCTI is bringing together high schools, community colleges, universities, and businesses to help better prepare students for high-growth job areas like information technology, health sciences, Engineering, and teaching.

The good news is we have leadership in North Carolina that is not backing away from this challenge. This is not just an agenda for Governor Easley, the General Assembly, or the Department of Public Instruction. This is an agenda for everyone who calls North Carolina home. We have to build the will for change in our schools.

As citizens of this great state, it is our responsibility to offer every child the best education that we can develop. It is a responsibility and obligation of the highest order. A twenty-first century education for all assures economic prosperity for our children and for our state. It really is a no-brainer --- Education is the best investment for the progress of our children and of our state.