Michigan high school students are going above and beyondthe required math curriculum, likely an effect of the state’s graduationrequirements, finds new research from Michigan State University.
The Michigan Merit Curriculum, which went into effect with the class of 2011 and requires students to take four years of math, at least up to algebra 2, also seems to be influencing more students to enroll in college.
“Our research indicates that the policy is working in terms of providing more opportunities to the most disadvantaged students,” said Soobin Kim, author of the study and a researcher in the MSU College of Education. “It has been successful in equalizing access to algebra 2, which is a well established predictor for postsecondary readiness.”
The researchers, including MSU faculty members Barbara Schneider and Ken Frank, found students from low-income schools were particularly affected by the curriculum, completing on average a full semester more of math.
Although 28 states now have similar requirements for mathcourse-taking in high school, the MSU researchers’ work is among the first toexplore whether the policies improve course-taking patterns and collegeenrollment outcomes.
Like other states that have passed similar policies,Michigan’s set of course-taking expectations are intended to make learningopportunities more equitable and prepare young people for success in collegeand the workforce.
The study, published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis in March, also found Michigan students are now more likely to enroll in four-year colleges.
And those effects were greatest for students who were already better prepared based on their eighth-grade test scores.
The researchers used transcripts from a representative sample of 129 Michigan high schools to analyze patterns of course-taking for more than 300,000 students over 10 years — allowing for comparison before and after the policy change. The researchers also matched their data to college enrollment information for each student from the National Student Clearinghouse.
Among subject areas, they focused on math because studentstend to follow a standard sequence of courses with less variation from schoolto school.
Previousresearch found the Michigan Merit Curriculum had little to noimpact on students’ ACT scores or graduation rates.
Both studies were conducted by the Michigan Consortium forEducation Research, a research partnership between MSU, University of Michiganand the Michigan Department of Education, which has received $6 million ingrant funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
The massive dataset, created through the partnership, willcontinue to generate new insights.
Kim said more information is needed about how higherexpectations lead to changes for students, and that requires looking inclassrooms — at factors such as academic preparation prior to high school,class size and characteristics of classmates and teachers.
“This is just the beginning,” he said. “One policy will notchange outcomes for all students in the same way. It takes time to explore eachfactor but it’s our job to study them with diligence.”