Enhancing GED Instruction to Prepare Students for College and Careers

Nearly 40 million adults in the United States lack a high school diploma or GED.  Although employment and economic outcomes for individuals with only a high school diploma are poor, the outcomes for those with only a GED are worse. Such poor results for GED recipients have led some to redesign their GED programs in hopes of better outcomes.   A new report from MDRC reports the findings from a recent random assignment study of a redesigned GED program at LaGuardia Community College of the City University of New York. The report shows the impact of LaGuardia Community College’s GED Bridge to Health and Business program, an initiative designed to prepare students to pass the GED exam and encourage them to continue on to college and training programs. Initial results show that students enrolled in the Bridge program were more likely to complete the GED prep course, more likely to pass the GED exam, and more likely to enroll in college than students enrolled in a traditional GED prep program.

Among the report’s other findings:

• 68% of Bridge students completed the GED preparation course, compared to 47% of students in the traditional GED prep program.
• Bridge students were twice as likely to pass the GED exam as students in the traditional program (52.8% compared to 22.4%).
• Bridge students enrolled in college at much higher rates than students in the traditional GED prep program.
  • 24.7% of Bridge students enrolled in a CUNY community college compared to 7.2% of GED prep students.
  • Additionally, Bridge students persisted at higher rates; 12% continued into the second semester while only 3% of GED prep students returned for another semester.
• The report’s authors attribute the positive outcomes of  success of the Bridge program to key design features of the Bridge program:
  • An original curriculum that emphasizes concepts from the fields of business and health care, relates to students’ aspirations, and helps them work through real-life problems.
  • Individual and group advising and full time master’s-level educators who made themselves available outside of class time.
  • Additional in-class hours to prepare for the exam and receive personal attention from instructors.
  • In-depth transition advising helps students make a plan for a college or career program and stay on top of assignments and deadlines.