Background: New demands are imposed by rapid change in the education system; these, in turn, cause stress. Previous studies have suggested that the degree of stress experienced by students is affected by characteristics of education, teachers and the students themselves. Purpose: To identify student and teacher characteristics that determine the…

The purpose of the current study is to investigate the feasibility of accounting for student performance in advanced high school coursework through the adjustment of high school grade point average (HSGPA) while separating out variables that are independently considered in the admission process, e.g., SAT/ACT scores, community affluence, type of…

This paper evaluates the effectiveness of the semester and the credit programs of high school education in Kuwait in terms of their graduating students' preparedness for continued and successful academic performance in programs of higher education. Students' percentile graduation rank from high school and their performances in the English, math…

The federal Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, or GEAR UP, project strives to equalize low-income students' access to higher education by increasing their participation in rigorous coursework, providing expanded opportunities for low-income students and parents to learn about postsecondary educational opportunities…

The American high school is a growing institution, and now includes more than 19,000 public high schools; 2,500 private high schools and academies; and more than 300 preparatory departments of universities and colleges. To a large majority of secondary students, the modern high school is their final school; to others it is a preparatory school, an…

College-based programs that motivate underachieving teenagers to graduate and pursue further education is part of a menu of initiatives Guilford County, North Carolina, has introduced to meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of students in its middle and high schools, where racial and ethnic diversity and poverty have been on the rise. As…

During the last quarter of the century several universities including those in Michigan, Illinois, and Texas launched initiatives to ensure that high schools' academic standards prepared students for admission to the state university. This paper illuminates affiliation programs that foreshadowed the accreditation movement. Not only did affiliation…

One of the most intractable problems facing urban schools is the low performance of middle school-aged children. This is particularly true for the 13,360 students who attend the Baltimore City Public School System's (BCPSS) traditional middle schools, which serve only 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. Not one of these 21 middle schools met…

Many students rely heavily on their interests when making college and career choices. Understanding how interests develop and relate to academic achievement will help high school counselors and other educators determine both when and how to help students prepare for college and a career. Students make more informed educational and career plans if…

In 2004, Commissioner of Education D. Kent King appointed a statewide task force to study Missouri high schools and make recommendations on strengthening the ways they help students prepare for life after high school. The State Board of Education adopted the following recommendations in 2005 and 2006. The State Board of Education increased minimum…

Part of the third-largest school district in the nation, 77 percent of Chicago's nearly 427,000 public school students are poor, as defined by eligibility for participation in free or reduced-cost lunch programs. Many are members of minorities; many have limited proficiency in English. To make a successful transition to college--even to graduate…

Challenge to Lead sets ambitious goals to help states ask the right questions to improve student access to college through better alignment of the policies that govern the transition from high school to college and careers. To help answer them, this special report provides a one-page summary of each SREB state's policies, programs and requirements…

"R&D Alert" covers issues affecting schools in the Western Regional Educational Laboratory's four-state region--Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah--and throughout the United States. WestEd researchers and assistance providers have been focused on secondary education for many years. This issue of "R&D Alert" goes beyond describing the problem…

This report uses the phrase, "College Readiness" to refer in a general sense to the level of preparation a student needs to be ready to enroll and succeed--without remediation--in a credit-bearing course at a two-year or four-year institution, trade school, or technical school. Increasingly, however, college readiness also means "workplace"…

This study focuses on 11 African American undergraduate seniors in a biology degree program at a predominantly white research institution in the southeastern United States. These 11 respondents shared their journeys throughout the high school and college science pipeline. Participants described similar precollege factors and experiences that…