An expected national ban on the consideration of race in college admissions will threaten the racial and ethnic diversity of students at selective colleges unless these colleges fundamentally alter their admissions practices. This report finds that selective colleges barred from considering race and ethnicity in their admissions decisions may be…

The field of education is moving rapidly toward a standards-based approach to grading. School leaders have become increasingly aware of the tremendous variation that exists in grading practices, even among teachers of the same courses in the same department in the same school. Consequently, students' grades often have little relation to their…

Traditionally class rankings have been used by high schools to determine valedictorians and salutatorians. These rankings have also been used by colleges to make admission decisions and for awarding scholarships. While there is no direct link between college rank and college admission, there is evidence that not using class rank can reduce stress…

A rationale, goals, and the procedure for instituting a quality point system to assess high school students' academic achievement in Gainesville (Georgia) High School are outlined. Hypothetical examples of converting grade point averages to quality point averages in low, average, and high difficulty courses are provided to show the impact of the…

A 1997 Texas law requires universities to admit the top 10% percent of seniors from each Texas high school, opening a door for many Hispanic and Black seniors in schools with high minority populations. Observers are concerned some students may be underprepared for university work. Elite public universities around the country are watching to see if…

Presents the results of a study where students rated audiotape excerpts of vocal instruction that featured teacher approval or disapproval behavior. Correlated this information with the students' grade level, gender, and responses to questions concerning attributes for success. Most students attributed success to internal rather than external…