Friday, January 17, 2014

Keeping the GED on the Clock

Student numbers are now totaled from the last days of the 2002 GED test series and, not surprisingly, it was a record year in student numbers and student achievement. This past December's deadline seemed to push students harder than years and years of reminders from grandparents, spouses, friends, and tech college instructors.

During a typical academic year, our technical college graduates about 175 GED students. That's a nice, steady stream of students who then transition to better jobs or the college classroom: win, win, win. This past year was not typical because of the end of the 2002 series. During the first half of the current academic year (starting June 2013 and ending December 2013), when the GED Closeout Campaign was at full force, 341 students completed the series with us. That's almost double the typical 12-month total in just half the time: win, win, win, boing.

In a few days, I look forward to begin working with a new group of students on the new GED 2014 test series: realigned content, updated questions, computer-based testing, instant (practically) grading. All that is, again, to the good. What worries me is the lack of a deadline this spring: no clock ticking. Without one, I fear too many students will fall into the same trap as those who rushed to complete in December.

So, along with the new test series, I think we also need a new schedule of deadlines. Rather than rely on a vague, unspecific closeout deadline every decade or so, the new GED tests should have expiration dates built into them. Let's say, for example, that test scores are only good for three years. If a student isn't able to convert a test score into a credential within three years, then the test expires and needs to be retaken. The students would lose the fee and the time it took to study for the test -- a little push toward timely completion.

Three years should give students plenty of time to complete the series. Exceptions can be given to those who need them, but for most, a built-in deadline would provide a game clock by which they measure their progress. The expiration deadlines would force students to complete the new 2014 series sometime, I hope, before a last second rush in December of 2026.

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