This individual profile provides information on Virginia's high school exit exam standards and policies. Some of the categories presented include: (1) State exit exam policy; (2) Type of Test; (3) Purpose; (4) Major changes in exit exam policy since the 2009-10 school year for financial reasons; (5) Subjects tested on exam; (6) Grade exam first…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine time and efficiency to undergraduate degree completion. Four dependent variables were examined including semesters enrolled, semesters elapsed, graduation efficiency index (GEI), and alternative GEI. Many independent variables were assessed to determine if they had a correlation to time or…

This guide is a training and supportive tool for use by local education agencies (LEAs) in the state of Alabama that are utilizing the Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Information-INow-INFocus information system software. The Graduation Tracking System (GTS) utilizes existing STI technology to capture student information pertaining to…

This study aimed to find out the sources of foreign language student teacher anxiety experienced by Turkish EFL student teachers throughout the teaching practicum using qualitative data collection tools. 150 student teachers completing their teaching practicum as part of their graduation requirement at Anadolu University Faculty of Education…

The goal of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools (CYFS) is to the conduct of high-quality interdisciplinary research to promote the intellectual, behavioral and social-emotional development and functioning of individuals across educational, familial and community contexts. The Center creates the context for…

Expanding economic opportunity in Texas depends on our state's ability to increase the college graduation rate for the thousands of college freshmen arriving on campuses each year. The pending budget bills would hamper college access for thousands of Texans through severe cuts to successful financial aid programs, including TEXAS Grants (Towards…

"Exito" means "success" in Spanish, so it is a fitting name for a dropout prevention program. Set in a large neighborhood high school in a low-income, largely Latino section of Philadelphia, Exito supports ninth- and tenth-grade students who are at risk of dropping out of school by providing them with afterschool programming…

As states struggle to boost economic growth and create new jobs, colleges must change to help meet the demand for talented workers. Boards of public institutions need new metrics to determine how well they are meeting statewide workforce goals. States must focus more on measuring higher education's effectiveness and efficiency, especially when it…

Since 1983, the Washington State Institute for Public Policy has conducted applied research as a nonpartisan agency of the state legislature. Over the years, discussions in the state have turned toward emphasizing "evidence-based" programs and policies in decision making, and research requests of the legislature have evolved to reflect…

Although the value of school-community partnerships is unquestioned, the reasons for success and failure are not sufficiently understood. This mixed-methods case study examines 60 years of partnering at one urban high school, using Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory to better understand the effect on student development as measured by…

This article considers the impact of recent political decisions on the provision of teacher education and the continuing development of teachers in England. It tracks how successive governments have changed the requirements necessary to become a teacher as circumstances have changed in the country and considers the impact of these changes on…

Following a national trend, state policy has focused on accountability measures such as high-stakes high school exit exams, standards-based reforms, and graduation curriculum requirements. Yet the effect of these accountability policies on students' readiness for college is relatively untested. In a multilevel model (students within states), the…

More than half of all Denver Public Schools (DPS) students who start in the ninth grade do not graduate within four years. If DPS is to significantly impact this graduation crisis, it must prioritize the implementation of systemic and research-based strategies around prevention, recuperation, and recovery of off-track students. With a 100 percent…

This paper calculates the public savings (financial benefits) from greater public investments in the education of African-American males. Over one-fifth of each age cohort of black males in US is not a high school graduate. We identify five interventions that would--based on credible research--increase the graduation rate; we also report the…

States are increasingly focusing the mission of their elementary and secondary education systems on preparing all students for success in postsecondary education and 21st century careers. As standards have increased, so too have graduation requirements. Today, 20 states and the District of Columbia have adopted such high school graduation…