The state of Wisconsin has one of the highest four year graduation rates in the nation, but deep disparities among student subgroups remain. To address this the state has created the Wisconsin Dropout Early Warning System (DEWS), a predictive model of student dropout risk for students in grades six through nine. The Wisconsin DEWS is in use…

This study gathered, analyzed, and compared perspectives of students who were honors-eligible but never began the program, students who began in honors and discontinued their enrollment, and those who were persisting in honors. Broadly speaking (and not surprisingly), the responses of students persisting in honors reflected the most positive…

The Census Bureau has historically grouped high school diploma holders along with those who hold "high school equivalent" credentials. Among these is the credential earned through successfully passing the General Education Development (GED) test. Interest in identifying those with GEDs has recently increased, in part from debate within…

In 1988, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) introduced a proposal to develop a private school data collection that would improve on the sporadic collection of private school data dating back to 1890 and improve on commercially available private school sampling frames. Since 1989, the U.S. Bureau of the Census has conducted the…

The National Governors' Association is urging states to develop a standardized cohort graduation rate definition and to develop data systems with quality data that can in turn be used to produce a reliable indicator. This paper is an examination of one state's graduation rate using the cohort method. The statistics generated are compared to a…

Two methods used to collect follow-up data on vocational education graduates to determine their postgraduate occupational and educational activities are (1) to ask the graduates themselves and (2) to ask the teachers to report the status of their graduates. The objective of this study was to compare data that was collected using each method and…

The 1990 High School Transcript Study provides information regarding current course offerings and students' course-taking patterns in the nation's secondary schools. Since similar studies were conducted of the course-taking patterns of 1987 and 1982 graduates, changes can be studied. Transcripts were collected from 21,589 students who graduated…

A group of high school self-reported dropouts and a group of simulated high school dropouts were compared with graduates in their participation rates, efforts required for data collection, and the overall quality of their responses in the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972. The results indicate that dropouts are less…

A study was conducted to design a set of procedures for complying with the federal mandate for an employer followup of vocational education students. Procedures, designed on the basis of existing literature and federal guidelines, were pilot tested in two ways--one local-program based, the other local-program and state-agency based. The two…

A longitudinal followup study, entitled Project Student Employment Experiences (SEE), examined the long-term employment experiences of former vocational education students, especially special needs population students, and the long-term effects of their training. During the project, researchers collected a 3-year followup information file on their…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Saving Futures, Saving Dollars": Five Percent Increase in Male Graduation Rate Could Lead to Savings of $8…