Patrick plan would let 16-year-olds graduate

The school overhaul plan Governor Deval Patrick is to unveil next week includes a proposal to allow high school students as young as 16 to take an international evaluation test that would allow them to graduate, the Associated Press learned yesterday.

A report from the year-old Readiness Project will also include recommendations to make credits universally transferable through the state college, community college, and university system. It also features a dual-enrollment program that would allow high school students to receive credit for classes taken on college campuses, a senior administration official familiar with the report said.

Overall, the goal is to personalize education rather than continuing to rely on the more formulaic approach in which all students progress from elementary school through high school and undergraduate education.

"We're moving to a mastery-based system, where you move not by banking seat-time, but by virtue of your mastery of the skills and knowledge needed for the next phase of your education," the official said.

Patrick created the statewide Readiness Project shortly after taking office last year. The initiative involves more than 200 educators, business leaders, and community leaders who were charged with developing a 10-year strategic plan for the future of education in Massachusetts.

The state currently has no set graduation age, but for all practical purposes, local and state education requirements dictate that most students stay in high school until they are 18 years old and have completed Grade 12.