America’s High School Graduates: Results of the 2009 NAEP High School Transcript Study

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The National Center for Education Statistics has just released the results of the 2009 High School Transcript Study, performed by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

The High School Transcript Study presents information about the types of courses that high school graduates in the class of 2009 took during high school, how many credits they earned, what grades they received, and how their course-taking patterns related to their performance on the 2009 NAEP mathematics and science assessments.

The Transcript Study also presents information on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) course taking; possible ways in which students found time to earn more credits (summer school, online courses, and high school courses taken in middle school); and the course-taking patterns of students with disabilities and English language learners.

NAEP conducted the High School Transcript Study by collecting transcripts from a nationally representative sample of over 37,000 high school graduates from over 700 public and private schools.

Highlights of the results include:

• In 2009, graduates earned over three credits more, or about 420 additional hours of instruction during their high school career, than high school graduates in 1990.

• A greater percentage of 2009 graduates completed more challenging curriculum levels, midlevel and rigorous, than 1990 or 2005 graduates.

• A greater percentage of female graduates compared to male graduates completed a midlevel or rigorous curriculum.

• Male graduates generally had higher NAEP mathematics and science scores than female graduates completing the same curriculum.

• In 2009, graduates from all four racial/ethnic groups reported in NAEP (Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, Hispanic, and White students) earned more credits and higher grade point averages.

• More graduates from all racial groups completed a rigorous curriculum than they did in 1990. However, racial gaps in the percentage of graduates completing a rigorous curriculum persist.

• The percentage of White and Asian/Pacific Islander graduates who completed a rigorous curriculum increased more than the percentage of Black or Hispanic graduates completing a rigorous curriculum increased.

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