I am one of the small percentage of americans who has graduated with an associate's degree at a community college. As a community college student I had a two year stint as a campus representative and also as a tutor in my campus' math tutoring facility. I have had experiences working with students with things from math to giving them advice on how to succeed in college. I have also worked with college administration and faculty by voicing my opinions, and most importantly the opinions of the students I represented.

And what was the thing I heard most from students? "High school did not prepare me for college." I couldn't agree more after two years of working with recent high school graduates and seeing how many did not have some of the most basic skills in order to be successful in college. They sure know how to use their calculators, but many do not have the critical thinking skills or study skills that are so vital to success in college. It really concerns me when a student cannot even define what a function is, it also concerns me when I see so many students that have nothing to show after 12 years of public education.

So why not encourage more community colleges and high schools to communicate with eachother towards a goal of aligning their curriculum? More students would be successful in college if high school outcome expectations were set higher and they were taught those critical thinking and study skills so vital to success in the world of higher education.

Maybe we should stop preparing our K-12 students for a tests and more for the REAL WORLD. Then maybe they will be successful in college.