Using data from two Toronto student cohorts that entered high school five years apart, this study uses descriptive and multivariate techniques to examine short-term change in the predictors of four possible pathways after high school: confirming a place in university, confirming a place in college, applying but no admittance, or not applying at…

This brief is an addendum to an earlier report, "Getting on Track to Graduation" (see ED613890) published in May 2018 by the Philadelphia Education Research Consortium (Crofton and Neild, 2018). Focusing on two cohorts of first-time ninth grade students (the Classes of 2019 and 2020), Getting on Track to Graduation examined the extent to…

In recent years Tennessee policymakers have focused on improving the college outcomes of high school graduates. For example, the Tennessee Promise scholarship established in 2014 offers two years of community or technical college free to eligible high school graduates (Tennessee Promise, 2015). Given such policy developments, it is important to…

This study examines Algebra II completion and failure rates for students entering Texas public high schools from 2007/08 through 2014/15. This period spans the time when Texas students, beginning with the 2007/08 grade 9 cohort, were required to take four courses each in English, math (including Algebra II), science, and social studies (called the…

In 2014, the state of California implemented the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) in order to align state assessment and accountability policies with the newly adopted Common Core State Standards (CCSS). At the heart of the new performance and accountability system is the Smarter Balanced Assessment. The Smarter…

Relying on the data from Utah System of Higher Education (USHE), Utah State Board of Education (USBE), and National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), this report examines college participation rates of Utah high school graduates (cohorts 2008-2017), with a focus on the gap in college participation between Caucasians and minorities. The report also…

Debates about the national high school graduation rate have heated up as various national high school graduation estimates based on the Common Core of Data (CCD) and the Current Population Survey (CPS) do not coincide with one another partially due to different assumptions about graduation age. This study found that (a) while graduation rate by…

I investigate the determinants of high school completion and college attendance, the likelihood of taking science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) courses in the first year of college and the probability of earning a degree in a STEM field. The focus is on women and minorities, who tend to be underrepresented in STEM fields. Tracking four…

Dropping out of high school is related to a number of negative outcomes. For example, the median income of persons ages 18 through 67 who had not completed high school was roughly $26,000 in 2013. By comparison, the median income of persons ages 18 through 67 who completed their education with at least a high school credential (i.e., a regular…

Do schools reduce or perpetuate inequality by race and family income? Most studies conclude that schools play only a small role in explaining socioeconomic and racial disparities in educational outcomes, but they usually draw this conclusion based solely on test scores. We reconsider this finding using longitudinal data on test scores and…

This study investigated the dual enrollment outcomes associated with a 2005 policy change intended to expand dual enrollment participation in Virginia. Results indicated that overall access to and participation in dual enrollment courses increased following the policy change. However, data showed this increase was not uniform, and minority groups…

The nation has achieved an 82.3 percent high school graduation rate--a record high. Graduation rates rose for all student subgroups, and the number of low-graduation-rate high schools and students enrolled in them dropped again, indicating that progress has had far-reaching benefits for all students. This report is the first to analyze 2014…

PISA 2012 results indicate that school systems that group students based on ability levels tend to have lower performance than those that do not divide students by ability. One way some in the United States have sought to increase equity of opportunity is to mandate enrollment of students in college-preparatory mathematics, i.e., Algebra 1 in…

Nationally, more than one million youth drop out of high school each year. One in four young people do not graduate with their age mates. Thus, in recent years, national leaders have directed sustained attention to what they term the "dropout crisis," particularly in high schools that are graduating less than two-thirds of their…

New York City's elite public specialized high schools have a long history of offering a rigorous college preparatory education to the City's most academically talented students. Though immensely popular and highly selective, their policy of admitting students on the basis of a single entrance exam has been heavily criticized. Many argue, for…