Parents: Ninth-Grade High School GPAs Matter
Freshman year of high school is a big deal for students, socially and academically.
Parents should pay attention to this big transition in their student's life, says Janice K. Jackson, chief education officer of Chicago Public Schools.
Many parents believe their teens need more freedom in high school, says Jackson, a former high school teacher and principal. But she says parents should aim to give their teen increased independence while still providing social and academic support to help students succeed.
How well students perform academically in ninth grade can predict their future success, according to a 2017 study from the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research. The group looked at the freshman-year grades of about 187,000 Chicago public school students from 2006 to 2013.
Parents should consider the following reasons for why a successful freshman year is crucial.
1. Ninth-grade GPA can predict graduation. The Chicago report authors found that freshmen with A's, B's and C's were much more likely to graduate high school than their peers with lower GPAs, says Lauren Sartain, co-author of the study and a senior research analyst at the Consortium.
More than a decade ago, Chicago officials started paying more attention to success during freshman year. After doing so, Jackson says they saw more students complete ninth grade, and that led to higher graduation rates. Among their efforts, school officials use early warning indicator data, such as attendance rates, to determine which freshmen need extra help before school even starts.
Twitter users sounded off below on how ninth-grade success can predict the future.
Because your high school GPA begins with your very first assignments in 9th grade, start strong to finish strong!
-- BAHS Counseling (@BaconCounseling) November 8, 2017
Freshman scores begin formulation of GPA, a credit-based system of grade promotion that middle schoolers struggle to weigh in importance. Poor freshman scores can sink a student's GPA in 1st yr, creating the illusion of a hole they can't climb out of, towards success.
-- YWLAFortWorthLibrary (@ywlalibrary) November 8, 2017
I think 9th grade grades matter because they indicate the level to which a student is acclimating to a high school workload and more complex learning.
-- Mrs. Wendy Ramos (@MrsRamosAP) November 8, 2017
[Parents can follow these steps to help freshmen lay the groundwork for college.]
2. Freshmen GPAs often mirror junior-year grades. The relationship between ninth- and 11th-grade GPAs is super strong, says Sartain. That really illustrates the importance of freshman year, she says, because junior-year grades are often an important factor for college admission.
But freshmen who struggle can still turn around their grades, says Sartain. For example, about half the students in the study with a D-level GPA in ninth grade improved to a C-level GPA by 11th grade, she says.
[Learn how parents can help freshmen get on track.]
Twitter users agree that ninth-grade success can set the tone for high school.
Ninth grade- grades sets the foundation for the rest of your high school career. It's hard to recover from a bad academic freshman year.
-- Achievement Matters (@AchieveMatters1) November 9, 2017
@alipannoni and @USNewsEducation, Gr 9 performance sets the foundation for HS, affording access to rigorous coursework 10-12 and in college
-- Kayla Ritter Rickels (@KRitterRickels) November 8, 2017
3. Academically strong freshmen are more likely to attend college. "It's all about getting that B or better," says Sartain, in terms of the grade freshmen will need to be more likely to start and remain in college.
Ninth-grade marks were also a better predictor than test scores of whether students would be successful in high school and college, Sartain says.
"That's not to say that test scores aren't important, because colleges obviously look at test scores and grades, among other indicators, when making admissions decisions," she says.
Her colleagues at the Consortium have found through other work that high test scores give students access to more selective colleges, she says. "But grades do a much better job of predicting how successful you are in college once you get there."
Freshmen who do well academically have the necessary tools to succeed in high school and beyond, Twitter users told U.S. News.
9th Grade is a time to challenge yourself or try something new. Your exploration will prepare you for college in ways you cannot imagine! https://t.co/M9m9Uh1sa1
-- Jennifer Dart (@jj_dart) November 8, 2017
Students' high school careers are made by their habits. "High school is not about how smart you are it is about how responsible you are"
-- Rudolph Matheny (@Coach_Rudy) November 8, 2017
Strong academic performance early on gives students confidence to take on more challenging coursework throughout high school, encourages grit, and puts them on a path towards college readiness.
-- Cecilia Xia (@csquaredx) November 8, 2017
Putting in the work in ninth grade will really pay off for students, Sartain says, because finishing high school and college is strongly related to career success.
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Alexandra Pannoni is an education digital producer at U.S. News. You can follow her on Twitter or email her at apannoni@usnews.com.
