Issues and Factors Involved in Credit and Placement for Accelerated Summer Coursework

Abstract

This paper investigates the ways in which students' home schoolzcurrently respond to their participation in university summer programs and the efect ofprogram accreditation on their responses.We also studied the factors that aflect schoolr'policies toward summer coursework. Specil;alb we compared the actions of schook for students who completed coursework in a $st paced, accelerated summer program in 1992, bfore accreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schoolz, to those actions in 1994 afier accreditation. Responses that were analyud included (a) giving course credit; ( S) appropriate placement within the content area; and (c)pLzcement in a specialprogram. It was found that there was a signijkant increascfiom 1992 to 1994 in the number of students whose schoolz took one or more of these actions, mostly due to increases in the awarding of high school credit. An increase in credit given for required rather than elective courses andgreater amounts of credit awarded were observed ajer accreditation. W e also found that most schools do not have policies against awarding credit for outside coursework and that factors thatfacilitate credit include notice of the childi intent to take a summer course and petitions by parentsfor recognition of the course credit. The nature of the outsidc institution and the qualifications of the instructor were not important factors in schooli decisions a bout awarding credit for summer coursework.

Developing the Talents of Academically Gifted High School Students: Issues for Secondary School Administrators

“…Getting credit for outside summer courses is more likely if parents specifically request it (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997); Lynch (1990) reports Only 50 percent of students who achieved proficiency (i.e., scored at or above the mean for high school seniors on a standardized test in the specific content area) in summer fast-paced classes received credit or appropriate placement in their home schools. that 80 percent of the students who asked for credit for a summer course, which was about 50 percent of students in the program, received it, although many schools required students to take a school exam in the subject to demonstrate mastery.…”

“…For programs that do provide comprehensive, detailed information about the content covered and give grades and standardized, quantitative indicators about student performance, such as the Center for Talent Development's summer programs at Northwestern University, credit and appropriate placement still only occur for a minority (40 percent) of participants (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997). And, even among these students, school administrators were not anxious to award credit unless they were notified beforehand of the student's intent to complete a course in the summer program and credit was specifically and vigorously pursued by the student's family.…”

“…that 80 percent of the students who asked for credit for a summer course, which was about 50 percent of students in the program, received it, although many schools required students to take a school exam in the subject to demonstrate mastery. Awarding of credit is facilitated by accreditation of the program by a recognized accrediting body (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997). Such credentials are also associated with a greater likelihood that the summer courses will fulfill high school graduation requirements, and the awarding of greater amounts of credit per summer course (i.e., 2 versus 1 semester) (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997).…”

“…Awarding of credit is facilitated by accreditation of the program by a recognized accrediting body (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997). Such credentials are also associated with a greater likelihood that the summer courses will fulfill high school graduation requirements, and the awarding of greater amounts of credit per summer course (i.e., 2 versus 1 semester) (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997).…”

“…Most schools do not have written policies prohibiting the awarding of credit for outside courses (Olszewski-Kubilius et al, 1997); from the perspective of school administrators, however, there are many obstacles to awarding credit. Most summer programs do not supply enough information about course content to enable school personnel to obtain a clear picture of the scope and breadth of the course or to make a determination about the comparability of the summer course to their own courses.…”