U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings pointed out last month that New Jersey requires four years of physical education in high school, but only three years of math.

Her call for stronger high school math and science courses came in a speech to 150 education and business leaders at Fairleigh Dickinson University's College in Florham Park. It was her first visit to New Jersey since her appointment by President Bush last year.

Spellings told the gathering that America's high schools are not keeping pace in a competitive world.

Promoting President Bush's high school reform plan, Spellings touted annual testing in high schools, increasing access to Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses and putting math and science professionals in classrooms.

"A high school diploma should be a record of achievement, not a certificate of attendance," Spellings said.

Only one state in the nation — Alabama — requires high school students to take four years of math and science, Spellings said. Math is essential in forming a mind capable of problem solving and critical and creative-thinking skills, said Spellings, the first education secretary to serve while being a parent of school-aged children.

And, she said, 1 million students across the country drop out of high school each year.

"Whether filling white collar or blue collar jobs, employers today need workers with "pocket protector" skills — creative problem solvers with strong backgrounds in math and science," Spellings said.

Spellings rejected the notion of critics who claim standardized testing has resulted in "teaching to the test" in many classrooms.

"There is no teaching to the test," Spellings said. "Testing has always been a part of the teaching enterprise since Socrates. At some point there has to be a measurement — a day of reckoning where you stand and deliver and prove what you know."

Asked after Spellings' presentation whether New Jersey would consider increasing the math and science requirements for high school students, state Acting Education Commissioner Lucille Davy said it was a priority.

"We must move in that direction," said Davy, who attended Spelling's talk. "No matter what field students are going into, they need critical thinking and problem-solving skills and that gets developed in math and science."

As for the proposal to expand annual testing to high schools, Davy said the state is already looking at end-of-course exams that could be given in specific subjects, such as Algebra II. The grades could be included on student transcripts and considered for college placement.

"Testing is a means of achieving goals and gives educators data they can analyze and then use to make decisions about whether they need to change instruction," Davy said.

Arthur Ryan, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, said in an interview after Spellings' talk that testing alone will not be enough to improve high schools. Curriculum standards need to be more rigorous, an investment in teachers is needed and children need to understand that by working harder in school they have a greater chance of being successful in work or college, he said.

"We need to get more kids adept with math and science," Ryan said. "The fact is that working on the factory floor doesn't mean working with your back anymore, you're working with computers."

Spellings, who also visited Robert Treat Academy Charter School in Newark, had her visit to the Garden State sponsored by the Educational Testing Service and New Jersey United for Higher School Standards. Her remarks followed a report on a national survey of public sentiment on high school reform by ETS.

Of 2,250 adults surveyed by ETS, a total of 319 were from New Jersey. A majority of those surveyed in New Jersey, 51 percent, said that high schools are in need of major changes or a complete overhaul. On the flip side, 43 percent said they believed high schools work well and should be kept the same.

Bush's reform plans call for hiring 70,000 more math and science teachers and recruiting 30,000 math and science professionals to become adjunct high school teachers.

In addition, to measure student progress, Bush has called for expanding to high school the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which tests students in basic literacy and math in grades three through eight. The 2001 law, which calls for all students to be on grade level in literacy and math by 2014, is facing reauthorization next year in Congress.