This fact sheet provides information and references on U.S. high school students and high school requirements. Statistical data covers: demographic distribution (2003-2004); number of high schools and average high school size; high school student achievement; SAT scores, 2004-2005; school funding; high school graduation rate; and high school to…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 requires that public elementary and secondary school systems be held accountable for achieving high levels of educational proficiency for all students. While achievement testing is the central component of state accountability systems under NCLB, these systems must include graduation rates as an academic…

One of the most important indicators of educational performance is the high school dropout rate. Reducing dropout rates and improving high school graduation rates are important goals for both educators and policymakers. Yet there is a great deal of controversy about how best to measure dropout and graduation rates. This issue of EL Facts provides…

In September of 2008, the Pennsylvania Board of Education requested that the Deputy Secretary for Postsecondary and Higher Education in the Department of Education conduct research to document whether, and to what extent, the cost of postsecondary education in the state of Pennsylvania constitutes a significant barrier to college access,…

The United States Census Bureau projects that about 50 percent of the U.S. population will be black, Hispanic or Asian by 2050. As the nation's population changes, trends in the education of minority students and the characteristics of the schools they attend are especially important for today's education advocates. The Facts for Education…

This report examines enrollment and graduation trends at eight Texas institutions, highlights promising programs and strategies for serving Latino students, and offers policy recommendations for improving success rates for the state's Latino students. The analysis was prepared as part of Excelencia's Accelerating Latino Student Success (ALASS)…

The chronic academic underperformance and student failure of most American urban high schools are actually created by the antiquated way that schools evaluate student academic performance and award (or deny) course credits. When the school leaders in a small inner-city high school in Chicago began to question the "received wisdom" of…

The examination of historical trend data on the number and percent of students lost from public school enrollment prior to graduation from high school is becoming increasingly important since distinct trends are emerging on a regional basis. This study examines regional trends in Texas on the number and percent of students lost from public high…

Documenting that there are 62 U.S. colleges and universities where the six-year graduation rates for Black undergraduate students have recently outpaced those of their White peers, the report by the Washington, D.C.-based Education Sector, an independent education policy think tank, has pointed out that schools where underrepresented minorities…

Over half of all racial/ethnic minority students matriculating at 4-year colleges fail to graduate within 6 years. One explanation for those low graduation rates is minority students' inability to find membership in the cultures and subcultures of their respective campuses. This study was focused on understanding the role of ethnic student…

A decade-long push by states to make high school students pass an exit exam before getting their diplomas has stalled as politically sensitive student-failure rates contribute to a growing public backlash against high-stakes testing. Though 26 states have adopted such mandates--most of them since 2000--that number has remained static since last…

This study examines 4 years of small school reform in Chicago, focusing on schools formed by converting large traditional high schools into small autonomous ones. Analyzing systemwide survey and outcome data, the authors assess the assumptions embedded in the reform's theory of change. They find that these schools are characterized by more…

Using national transcript data, the authors examine inequality in access to an advanced curriculum in high school and assess the consequences of curricular intensity on test scores and college entry. Inequalities in curricular intensity are primarily explained by student socioeconomic status effects that operate within schools rather than between…

Published annually since 1997, Newark Kids Count tracks key trends in child health and well-being in New Jersey's largest city with the latest statistics available. Newark Kids Count includes the latest statistics, along with five-year trend data, in the following areas: population and demographics, family economic security, affordable housing,…

In 1991, Michigan's Technical Planning Subgroup of the Resource Group on National Education Goal 2 (high school completion) recommended the development of a voluntary state/local student record system and compilation of a compendium of current state practices and current plans for state/local system development. Governor Carroll Campbell, Jr.…