The past eight years have seen an unprecedented level of education policy activity focused on issues of teacher quality. Policies have been developed at federal, state, and institutional levels, and include increased institutional reporting of teacher candidates' test scores, the mandate for Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT) in the No Child Left…

This study of 570 (309 men and 261 women aged 16 to 60 years) undergraduate students in a small, regionally accredited, Southern church-related college was conducted to determine whether or not the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is a valid predictor of academic success for students who entered college late in life (after age 30 years). Data…

This study examined voluntary and involuntary withdrawal rates of students of various racial origins at York University in Ontario (Canada). Data were obtained from three surveys of first-year students conducted in 1993, 1994, and 1995, and involving 1,864 students. Information on Ontario Academic Credit (OAC) marks, first year grade point…

As part of the baseline studies necessary for a new strategic plan for the Saginaw (Michigan) public schools, the relationship of grade point averages (GPAs), student absence, and Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) results were studied relative to the amount of shared variation common to each. All possible correlations were studied at…

This study investigated the efficacy of noncognitive variables and academic background for the prediction of college grade performance and persistence. A total of 7,377 new first-year college students participated in the study, completing demographic questionnaires at the start of the school year. Data were also collected on American College Test…

Multiple regression analysis was used to examine scores on the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) and pre-pharmacy grade point averages (GPAs) as predictors of academic success in pharmacy school. Separate analyses were made for White (n=471), Black (n=54), and Asian (n=96) subgroups, as well as for the total sample of 643 students who entered…

This study examined the academic and social experiences of first-year female and visible minority group science students at "Big U," a large multi-racial and multi-cultural commuter university, located in a central Canadian city. In 1992, a total of 498 incoming science students were surveyed in September, November, and February-March of…

The focus of these two reports is on students who transferred from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), and who were studied as a part of the Maryland Longitudinal Study. Results found included the following: (1) transfers in the Representative Group (containing members of all ethnic groups) were equally likely to be male or female; in…

Entrance scores on the Mathematics Achievement Test, Level I, and Scholastic Aptitude Test (verbal and mathematical), and high school rank for 2,189 students entering engineering as freshmen at The University of Texas at Austin during the years 1974-1977 were used in regression equations as predictors of academic achievement and retention for…

This study addressed the factors of Graduate Record Examination scores (GRE), race, gender, and undergraduate grade point average (GPA) as predictors of success on the Texas state administrator certification examination. The paper was presented as the entry point for expected discussion of the effects of high stakes accountability policies on the…

This quantitative case study explores how race, family background, attitudes, and behaviors are related to achievement disparities among middle school and high school students in Shaker Heights, Ohio. The purpose is to inform the search for ways of raising achievement and reducing disparities. The focal measure of achievement in this study is the…

In an effort to understand the dynamics of the status attainment process, the effects of significant-other influences were analyzed in terms of sexual and racial differences. Data were derived from a proportionate, stratified, random cluster sample of Louisiana high school seniors. High schools were stratified on the basis of residence…

A study of 12,388 entering medical students investigated the predictive validity of the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) by comparing prediction errors for grade point average across racial/ethnic and gender groups. Results show no prediction errors for gender, overprediction of performance for racial/ethnic group, particularly Asians and…

This study examined the effectiveness of curriculum-focused diversity initiatives on a college campus by determining the relationships between GPA, social class, year in school, residential status, racial diversity courses taken, and cross-racial friendships on the level of social distance between Whites-Blacks, Whites-Hispanics, Hispanics-Whites,…

Part 1 of this study investigated possible causes of the observed decline in correlations between SAT scores and freshman grade-point average (FGPA). Working with a database of 38 colleges, the study found that the comparability of course grades received by entering freshmen declined in the 1980s. Three new measures of grade comparability-variety…