Curricular Innovations in Building College Readiness: A Comparative Study

Abstract

The responsiveness of education to development is dependent on the extent that the education system prepares the young for the current changing roles of the work environment, requirements, and demands of the world. Accelerating programs are the curricular innovations to prepare students for college academic rigor and expectations. These curricular innovations are compared in terms of their theoretical intents, curriculum, instructor eligibility and training, settings for delivery, student participation, funding, instructional process and assessment. The key objective of these curricular innovations is building college readiness through exposing students to college academic rigor, experience, and expectations. The comparative analysis shows that the International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement programs highly emphasize building college readiness through the advanced college-level standard curriculum and rigorous teaching-learning process before college while they also badge college readiness. Unlike the International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement, the Dual Enrollment is highly focused on building college readiness through exposing the students to the college curriculum and teaching-learning environment before college entry while it also badges college readiness. The former Ethiopian Freshman Program curriculum, the current Preparatory for Higher Education curriculum, was moved down to high school with the intent that it prepares students for college academic rigor and experience. However, it is highly focused on building college readiness without exposing students to college experiences and without badging college readiness. Other strengths and weaknesses of these curricular innovations have also been discussed in the review using empirical research findings.