Grade inflation is causing student's hard work to be undervalued. As high grades get easier and easier to achieve, the highest grades can only go up so far. The difference between excellent and decent is compressed. Everybody wins is a system that guides and shapes the mindset of most American students--except a small number of kids who lose out…

This study examined the relationship between a non-Power Five Cinderella team in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament and institutional financial and admissions factors. The purpose of this study was to examine what, if anything, changes for a non-Power Five school who makes the March Madness tournament as compared to those similar…

Existing research finds minimal gains from attending elite US secondary schools. This paper estimates the causal effect of attending a selective public boarding school, an institutional model increasingly used by states to serve academically gifted students. Regression discontinuity estimates using multiple admissions thresholds show math score…

Through multilevel analyses of Educational Longitudinal Study and National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)-Barron's data sets, this study examined unequal chances for college enrollment for students from different high school types and locations. The study shows that students from more privileged high school sectors are able to maximize…

Successfully navigating the road from elementary to high school only means that planning for college is the next route on the destination to post-secondary education. With the most elite colleges' acceptance rates hovering around 5-8 percent, it's never too early for parents to start educating themselves and their child about college planning.…

Stress is simply the body's response to changes that create taxing demands. When one cannot cope with it, these cause distresses. Stress is not always bad. The manageable stress motivates individuals to achieve what he/she wishes to achieve. When one can cope with stress it is called "eustress" which is good. Education in many countries…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Global Competitiveness Report: United States's Slide Continues in Annual Ranking; Falls to Number Four; (2) New…

Are America's schools broken? "Education Hell: Rhetoric vs. Reality" seeks to address misconceptions about America's schools by taking on the credo "what can be measured matters." To the contrary, Dr. Bracey makes a persuasive case that much of what matters cannot be assessed on a multiple choice test. The challenge for…

This paper examines why Americans are so preoccupied with the "U.S. News and World Report" ("USNWR") annual rankings of colleges and universities and why higher education institutions have become equally preoccupied with them. It discusses the rankings categories (academic reputation, student selectivity, faculty resources,…

Since 2000, the "Measuring Up" report cards have evaluated the progress of the nation and individual states in providing Americans with education and training beyond high school through the bachelor's degree. The purpose of the series is to assist the nation and the states in improving higher education opportunity and effectiveness.…

In recent years, conflicting reports have circulated about the number of colleges and universities that have made standardized tests optional, rather than required, for admission. The National Center for Fair and Open Testing, or FairTest, has widely publicized a list of 391 colleges and universities that, it claims, do not require admissions…

Analysis of the joint submission of Scholastic Aptitude Test scores by 10,704 high school seniors shows that relatively few colleges compete with each other in local student markets. This suggests that state and institutional policies for adapting to demographically induced enrollment declines will be severely constrained by the competitive…