In response to the national problem of overrepresentation of Hispanic students in general education classes, this study addressed Hispanic access and enrollment in Advanced Placement (AP) coursework in Virginia, a growing destination state for many Hispanic families and students. Through a secondary data analysis of the Civil Rights Data…

The aim of this article is to present the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme and briefly outline its core components, followed by a review of what authoritative reports identify as skills for the future, esteemed by universities and the job market. There is a striking match between these skills and IB outcomes; thus, DP graduates perform…

Enriched high school curricula like the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Diploma programs are endorsed as "pathway programs" for postsecondary-bound students. Program participation is perceived to have benefits that appeal to a broad stakeholder group of universities, administrators, teachers, students, and parents. In…

In the past decade, developmental education has come under increased examination by stakeholders. Founded as an avenue for learners with academic deficits to meet educational goals, developmental education has helped many students. However, many more learners fail to succeed due to institutionalized difficulties, chief of which is a no-credit…

Standardized testing for college admissions has grown exponentially since the first administration of the old "College Boards" in 1901. This paper surveys major developments since then: the introduction of the "Scholastic Aptitude Test" in 1926, designed to tap students' general analytic ability; E.F. Lindquist's creation of…

In an effort to answer the "Educational Call to Arms", our national public schools have turned to Advanced Placement (AP) courses as the predominate vehicle used to address the lack of academic rigor in our public high schools. Advanced Placement is believed by many to provide students with the rigor and work ethic necessary to…

The authors conduct open-ended surveys of 530 students and teachers in three publicly funded schools with different approaches to providing a high-ability "school-within-a-school:" a gifted program, an international baccalaureate program, and a high-ability program with a science focus. Overall, the authors find that teachers and students in all…