Students' different educational pathways were examined in relation to their disengagement during adolescence. The participants were Icelandic youth (N = 832) who were followed from age 14 to 22. Based on their academic achievement at age 15 and educational attainment at age 22 they were classified into groups that took expected versus unexpected…

This is the final report in a five-year evaluation of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP). This report features analyses of student achievement growth four years after the authors carefully assembled longitudinal study panels of MPCP and Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) students in 2006-07. The MPCP, which began in 1990, provides…

This article presents excerpts from this year's graduation speeches. These are from (1) J.K. Rowling, author, at Harvard University; (2) Mary E. Lyons, president of the University of San Diego, at the College of St. Catherine; (3) Samantha Power, journalist and professor of public policy at Harvard University, at Pitzer College; (4) E.J. Dionne,…

States have come a long way in building longitudinal data systems in just three years, but dire budget conditions will not make it easy to finish them. Forty-two states can now report uniform graduation-rate data. All but two states can match test records for individual students from year to year. And 29 states track individual students'…

Performing research can be an overwhelming and challenging endeavor. It's easy to get confused just from collecting, reading and deciphering textbooks and journal articles. Getting organized and mapping out the entire process would be extremely helpful and more importantly provide a path for accomplishing the research project. This paper will…

Successful completion of the Living Environment, one state's high school biology course, is a state graduation requirement. The academically at-risk students enrolled in one suburban public high school had been disproportionately unsuccessful at achieving a passing grade in this course. In response, a constructivist biology curriculum was created…

An expanding ethnicity gap exists in the number of students pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers in the United States. The National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering revealed that the number of minorities pursuing STEM degrees and careers has declined over the past few years. The specific origins of…

This study assessed if there were differences in the academic performance, persistence, and degree completion for Associate in Arts transfer students in selected majors who enrolled in the different campuses of a multi-campus university. This causal comparative study analyzed historical student enrollment data from a large, urban, public, research…

The study analyzed 2005 posttest data compared to 2008 posttest data to determine student end of school year academic achievement outcomes across three academic levels (above average, average, and below average chemistry potential) and two teacher homework evaluation methods (assigned but not graded and assigned and graded) on teacher prepared…

While "ability" has long featured prominently in economic models and empirical studies of labor markets, economists have only recently begun to consider how personality and attitudes--noncognitive factors--influence behavior both from a theoretical and empirical standpoint. This dissertation incorporates noncognitive factors into…

The purpose of this study is to understand how a policy that provided college-prep coursework for low-skill students may affect instructional organization within schools, and how such effects on instructional organization may have unintended consequences on academic outcomes of high-skill students who were not targeted by the policy. The author…

This "First Look" presents findings from the 2004/09 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:04/09), which collected information over a period of 6 years that describes the enrollment and employment experiences of a national sample of undergraduates who began their postsecondary education for the first time in the…

Increasing college degree completion is an important goal. As Latino representation in U.S. higher education grows, a reality check of institutional practices that support Latino students' access, persistence, and graduation is needed. This brief examines financial aid strategies aimed at increasing enrollment, academic success and degree…

A recent report titled "Divided We Fail: Improving Completion and Closing Racial Gaps in California's Community Colleges" shows that student outcomes in the state's community colleges are inadequate to meet the projected demand for college-educated workers in the labor market. The report also documents the serious problem posed by the…

Today, the United States spends about twice as much on higher education as the average developed nation, but many other countries are doing a better job of graduating more students at substantially lower expense. To provide more high-quality degrees and credentials at lower cost, colleges and universities must become high-performing institutions.…