This paper describes the implementation of a university-wide initiative aimed at providing a holistic view of a student's academic standing by conducting early, formative assessment for all first-year students. It tracks the Early Assessment System as a student support intervention at Stellenbosch University and suggests that the system has been…

We present one of the first behavior-genetic studies of individual differences in school students' levels of achievement in instructed second language acquisition (ISLA). We assessed these language abilities in Australian twin pairs (maximum N pairs = 251) by means of teacher ratings, class rankings, and self-ratings of proficiency, and used the…

The purpose of the study is to compare the student profile characteristics, which were categorized as demographic, prematriculation, and matriculation, between traditional residential and commuter students at a public, research, commuter university. Using status attainment as the theoretical framework, the researchers employed a discriminant…

As high schools offer more pre-Advanced Placement (pre-AP) and Advanced Placement (AP) courses to prepare students for college academics, students often are given quality grade point average (GPA) points to help compensate for the rigorous curriculum. In states where class ranking determines automatic university admission, fluctuations of class…

The College Board Advanced Placement Program allows high school students to take college-level courses and if an appropriate score on an exam is received, college credit is earned. While the program has had its detractors (access in rural and inner-city schools, lack of diversity, pre-selection of talented students, poor articulation with actual…

In order to test two competitive theories, human capital theory and screening hypothesis, this article investigates the effects of minor, class rank and matched job on the starting wages of graduates using data sources from a nation-wide survey of university graduates in China undertaken in 2003 by the Graduate School of Education, Peking…

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…

Results from prior research indicate that a student's academic self-concept is negatively influenced by the achievement of others in his or her school (a frame of reference effect) and that this negative frame of reference effect is not or only slightly reduced by the quality, standing, or prestige of the track or school attended (a "reflected…

Objective: The purpose of the study was to determine whether students consume alcohol in greater quantities when drinking in celebration of an event or holiday versus typical drinking use. Celebratory occasions include tailgating during football games, holidays, and the beginning and ending of academic semesters. Participants: Traditional…

The purpose of this research is to compare students' perceptions of the learning environment in a traditional science classroom and a field study classroom. This mixed methods study used a sequential explanatory design. Phase one was the quantitative phase using two survey tools. A modified version of the "What is happening in this Classroom…

In 2001, the Louisiana Board of Regents adopted the "Louisiana Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education: 2001" as a signal for new accountability standards in Louisiana institutions of higher education. The purpose of this study was to examine the power of the academic criteria utilized by the "Master Plan" to predict…

Texas' 2006 House Bill 1, which required all high schools in Texas to provide students with the opportunity to earn a minimum of 12 hours of college credit prior to their graduation beginning the fall of 2008, changed the high school experience. The goal of the bill was to smooth the transition from high school to higher education. By looking at…

This study examines student's perception of the campus racial climate and interactional diversity at selective undergraduate liberal arts institutions through an examination of data collected in the 2005 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). Student responses are selected from institutions identified as members of a specified group of…

The University of Texas at Austin administrative data between 1990 and 2003 are used to evaluate claims that students granted automatic admission based on top 10% class rank underperform academically relative to lower ranked students who graduate from highly competitive high schools. Compared with White students ranked at or below the third…

This study examines service-learning participation and religiosity for their effect on structural and individualistic attributions for poverty. Research on these factors is either insufficient or nonexistent. The data for this study come from a random sample of college students in a Southeastern state. Results indicate that participation in a…