High-performing educational systems in nations such as Denmark, England and Singapore inspired the trial of the new program in the United States. The system will allow 10th-graders to take standardized tests to prove their mastery of high school curriculum. If they pass, they’ll earn their diplomas and an opportunity to go directly to community college. The tests, known as board exams, will include English, math, science and history. Students who pass the test also will be given the option to continue in college preparatory classes in the last two years of high school if they wish to move on to a more selective college. This all according to The New York Times.

Although the program might help students fully learn the curriculum, the program raises a few concerns. Students participating in the program could enjoy the chance for freedom. Some teenagers are ready for the academic rigors of college by the time they are sophomores in high school, and, if given a chance, might prosper in the college environment. If the students want to move on to college and have shown they are capable, why stop them?

The social immaturity in early high school students might hinder the system from taking off. Immersing them into a college environment so early could cause problems with handling the pressures of school work and life. Although the board exams easily can test the intelligence level of teenagers, there is no accurate way to gauge the maturity levels that might indicate the student is ready to move on to college. The schools still will offer advanced placement and other college preparatory classes for students who aren’t ready for the move out of high school.

Students who aren’t able to pass the tests after sophomore year will continue with their normal high school classes and could take the tests again after their junior and senior years. But removing the students who pass the tests from their peers might stifle discussions in classes and make learning more challenging. Often, the more intelligent students are the ones who ignite the learning process in class and help others learn from their questions and comments.

The plan might devalue the students who cannot pass the board exams on their first try. Will the students be held to a lower standard than those who have passed? Students who struggle with the exams should not see failing a test as a signal they won’t succeed in life. As long as the plan is designed to help those who cannot pass and bring them to an equal level, the system could work.

The best way would be to overhaul the system starting in elementary school. Many of the problems within public education begin in the early stages. If kids fall behind in early elementary years, they are more likely to struggle for the rest of their schooling and might not begin to show it until high school and college.

Although this isn’t the perfect way to fix the United States’ education system, if the potential flaws in the program can be adequately handled and the trial shows the system can work, the new plan might just help students meet requirements.