Search

A study sponsored by the Bureau of Adult and Community Education, Florida Department of Education, was conducted by the Center for Needs Assessment and Planning at Florida State University to compare the success of General Educational Development (GED) and traditional high school graduates in Florida's work force. (GED graduates account for about one in four high school diploma-holders in Florida, compared to about 15 percent nationwide.) A survey form was sent to a representative sample of employers throughout Florida to elicit their perceptions about the performance of GED and traditional high school graduates in the work force. Personnel directors from 101 businesses and agencies in the state, representing a variety of business types and sizes, returned the surveys. The results of the study indicated that in the areas of performance, retention, and dismissal, a majority of employers surveyed believe that individuals with the GED diploma can function, and are subsequently treated, no differently than those persons having a traditional high school diploma as a terminal degree. The study also indicates that GED graduates are promoted at the same rate as regular graduates in less than half of the reporting businesses and suggests further research to determine the reasons for the discrepancy. (KC)

A study sponsored by the Bureau of Adult and Community Education, Florida Department of Education, was conducted by the Center for Needs Assessment and Planning at Florida State University to compare the success of General Educational Development (GED) and traditional high school graduates at Florida's community colleges. Registrars at each of Florida's 28 community colleges were asked to complete a survey designed to gather information concerning students with a GED and those with traditional diplomas. Ten registrars responded to the survey, although they indicated that such data are difficult to obtain. The study found that students with a traditional high school diploma greatly outnumber those with a GED at community colleges in Florida, although all of the registrars indicated that their colleges had an open-door policy for any high school graduate or holder of an equivalent diploma. GED and traditional high school graduates who are admitted spend about the same amount of time to complete degree programs at Florida's community colleges, but the proportion of GED holders actually completing degree programs is smaller than that of traditional diploma holders. The study also found that traditional high school graduates had a slightly higher grade point average (GPA) than GED holders, but that both GPAs fell in the "C" grade range. The study concluded that the results should help to dispel misconceptions held by educators concerning the capabilities of the GED holder in higher education. (KC)