According to a recent study, state mandates for tougher academic standards do not necessarily lead to more and better course content. Although more lower- and middle-achieving students are enrolled in academic classes, these courses are at the basic, general, or remedial level and fail to meet reform commission goals. (MLH)

Study of an adult degree program used enrollment data 1986-96, course progression data 1990-95, and surveys of 140 enrolled and 250 not enrolled students. Three-fourths of those who graduated 1988-94 did so within three years; retention was most difficult in the self-directed and research phases; women's graduation rate was higher. (SK)

It is surprisingly easy for today's students to change grades, falsify documents, or create bogus diplomas. Explores the extent of the problem and offers ideas on ways in which colleges can protect themselves and society from the consequences of educational fraud. Addresses staff training, distribution of information regarding fraud, and improving…

Predictability of graduation from the Community College of the Air Force was studied in a sample of 518 master sergeants. Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) electronics scores and gender were significant predictors; age, ethnicity, major, and ASVAB mechanical, administrative, and general scores were not. (SK)

The French government's decision in 1985 to have 80 percent of high-school students reach the "baccalaureat" level by century's end and to create a new secondary school degree (the "baccalaureat professionnel") are among the most broadly influential and successful education reforms since the beginning of the Fifth Republic.…

Describes how what happens in the most elite institutions of higher education in the United States creates the body of knowledge and attitudes by which most colleges are judged. Among the issues for which this phenomenon is apparent are those of grade inflation, graduation rates, and core curricula. (SLD)

Discusses the origins and practices of Lavender Graduations, events in which the lives and achievements of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender college students are celebrated. Examines results of an evaluation survey, reviews implications for practice, and provides suggestions for future research. (Contains 19 references.) (GCP)

A Georgia high school got on the block-scheduling bandwagon after discovering that their students were having difficulties meeting new state graduation requirements and wanted more electives. After receiving extensive retraining and working on a block-scheduling plan for graduate credit, teachers successfully made the transition. (MLH)

Analysis of 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data for school-to-work participation found that it does not appear to influence behavior associated with college attendance. It does appear to increase subjective probabilities of obtaining a high school diploma and perceived likelihood of future labor market activity. (Contains 15…

New York school superintendent describes his efforts to develop an alternative diploma especially for non-native-English speakers. (PKP)

Universities assume that the conceptions of research represented in their policies and plans are universally applicable. However, if individual postgraduate research students experience significant tension between their understandings about research and those of the institution, and this tension impedes on-time completion, then the institutions…

With the reality that school districts and states are now being required to report high school graduation rates under the "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) Act, the accuracy of dropout data is becoming a major issue. For more than a decade, the official dropout figures came from a consensus definition used by the National Center for…

This paper examines college commencement, a formal campus exiting ritual orchestrated for students as they conclude their academic careers. The manuscript is focused on a single commencement ritual that illuminates the power of rituals to transmit cultural norms and provides an anthropological perspective that benefits scholars, practitioners, and…

Federal law mandates that universities reveal their graduation rates purportedly to inform policy makers and constituencies about efforts to support educational attainment for students and athletes. These rates are widely used to compare universities. Analysis of 10 years of graduation rates across all major athletic programs concludes that…

Although recent research suggests that congruence between students and their academic environment is critical for successful student outcomes, little research has been done on student college major choice. Using Holland's theory of careers, we analyze college major choice using a multinomial logit model. We use the CIRP Freshman Survey and…