Literature on retention for first-year students appears to focus on the emotional, interpersonal, and financial problems these students face when beginning their post-secondary education. The article accepts the importance of these issues and their effect on retention. However, the article suggests that there are other issues that should be…

Schools are raising standards to improve academic and technical achievement and intellectual growth for all groups of students, particularly at-risk students. This newsletter contains tools and strategies that school leaders and teachers are using successfully to help students meet higher expectations. It organizes the techniques into five…

Because the phenomenon of delayed graduation--the practice of prolonging the college career beyond the normal 4 years of undergraduate study--is so widespread researchers speculated that "continuers" might have certain common characteristics which would differentiate them as a group from "completers." The objective of this…

The critical issue discussed in this document is the extent to which changes now occurring in the field of education--in state laws, administrative actions, and educational practice--are informed by valid research and experiences. Questions are raised about the adequacy of the informational base of the main reports on excellence and reform, and…

The relationship between dropping out of high school and substance use was explored using the 1984 National Longitudinal Survey of Young Adults. Relevant research literature is reviewed. Cross-sectional data indicated that high school dropouts were more involved with cigarettes and illicit drugs than were graduates and that those who obtained a…