From the State Board of Education

by Kathleen N. Straus, President, State Board of Education

Now that the Michigan Merit Curriculum has been signed into law, the goal of the State Board of Education, along with the Michigan Department of Education, is to ensure that school districts around the state are supported in their efforts to implement the new high school graduation requirements.

In preparation, the department's Office of School Improvement is in the process of developing and disseminating High School Content Expectations (HSCE) for English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. These content expectations provide educators with a common understanding of what students should know and be able to do in these content areas by the end of high school. To date, English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science HSCE have been developed and are currently being disseminated at rollouts throughout the state. Social Studies HSCE are in development and will be completed in July of 2007.

Using the HSCE as a foundation, Course/Credit Content Expectations and Guidelines will be developed for 21 credit areas such as English 9, Biology, Algebra I, and Physics. These more granular course/credit expectations will help educators design and align high school curricula to meet the new standards and will provide families with a clear understanding of what students should know and be able to do for high school credit. The department has completed and released 13 of the 21 Course/Credit Content Expectations with the remainder to be released over the course of the next year.

Beyond the content expectations, the department will be developing a variety of content expectation companion documents and other publications and tools to assist schools and districts as they begin to implement our new high school graduation requirements.

In addition, intermediate and local school districts and numerous education organizations have joined forces to assist in the implementation of this new law.

All educators, as well as parents, want their students to succeed. While the Michigan Merit Curriculum will require change, it will also provide students the learning opportunity, knowledge, and skills they need to succeed in college and the workplace.

For additional information on the Michigan Merit Curriculum and content expectations, visit: www.michigan.gov/highschool.