A GED simply keeps students at the same level as their dropout peers

Students who earn a GED are in the same economic boat as those who drop out of college.

That’s according to new research, and it’s concerning in districts where high school graduation rates are falling and GED enrollment rates are climbing.

One of our favorite education reporters, Claudio Sanchez, looks at the job prospects of those with a GED in a recent report.

About 750,000 dropouts take the GED each year, but most of them are finding it a meaningless pursuit. Young men and women who apply at places ranging from Burger King to Walmart to Best Buy are turned down because they don’t have a high school diploma. Only 1 in 10 GED holders goes on to graduate from college.

"The GED is a credential. Is it adequate for gainful employment and a living wage in the United States of America today? I do not think so," said John Deasy, Los Angeles Schools superintendent.

The district’s adult and career education leader, Ed Morris, is even more brazen.

"If I were prepared today with a GED, and that's what I had as an 18-year-old, I'd be scared to death of the future," he said.

The makers of the GED are looking to redesign the test, splitting it into two focus areas: one on rigorous high school academics and the other on career and college readiness.

But those of us in the education world have seen the research that shows that GED holders do no better in the workforce than their dropout peers.

We need to provide the flexibility for students facing pregnancy, bullying or transience to allow them to graduate with a diploma from their high school. That piece of paper, and the work behind it, shows employers that a graduate is ready to handle the workload of a job and opens the doors to a higher education.

What do you think of the GED? Is it a direction you would encourage dropouts to take? Do you have stories to share of those who have earned a GED and succeeded or failed in the workplace?