For 24 consecutive years, the Public Policy Forum has compiled and analyzed data from southeastern Wisconsin's public school districts in order to better inform policymakers and the public about the effectiveness of the region's K-12 education system. This analysis of the 2009-10 academic year, like many of the previous reports, indicates cause…

This study focused on the relationship between students' Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) performance in AP English Language, Biology, Calculus, and U.S. History, and their subsequent college success. For each AP Exam studied, students were divided into three groups according to their AP Exam performance (no AP Exam taken, score of 1 or 2, and a…

This research study focused on the relationship between student outcomes (indicated by Advanced Placement enrollment, Advanced Placement course grades, Advanced Placement exam scores, Advanced Placement exam passing rate) and student demographic factors as well as student support programs (such as AVID, an AP Incentive Program, and a summer AP…

A new test of Advanced Placement Physics, explicitly designed to balance both content and cognitive-processing skills, was developed using Sternberg's theory of successful intelligence. The test was administered to 281 AP Physics students from 10 schools during the 2006-2007 school year. Six empirically distinguishable profiles of strengths and…

This special issue presents the "Education Week's" annual report on education technology, "Technology Counts." This special issue includes the following articles: (1) Breaking Away from Tradition (Michelle R. Davis); (2) Research Shows Evolving Picture of E-Education (Debra Viadero); (3) Advanced Placement Secures Online Niche (Michelle R. Davis);…

Pressing Forward: Increasing and Expanding Rigor and Relevance in America's High Schools is organized to place secondary education, specifically the goals of preparing young adults to be college and career ready, in contemporary perspective, emphasizing the changing global economy and trends in policy and practice. High school students must be…

This article analyses intergroup differences in education, with particular emphasis on schools offering one or more of the International Baccalaureate programmes ("IB World schools"). Experiences of human difference are often interpreted in terms of culture, and the notion of intercultural understanding is valued in many international schools. Yet…

Throughout 2003-04 five cohorts of students in their final year of school studies in various Malaysian colleges and a group of students completing an Australian university foundation year in Malaysia sat the International Student Admissions Test (ISAT). The ISAT is a multiple-choice test of general academic abilities developed for students whose…

Superior high school business students should be given the same opportunity to participate in advanced placement programs as that given to those with more traditional academic interests. (JOW)

As Internet technology encroached on the public school classroom about a decade ago, Kim Ross, superintendent of the Houston School District in Houston, Minnesota, saw an opportunity. At first, he and his administrative team simply wanted to offer students in the district of 1,300 access to more classes via the web than what a district that size…

More students are taking Advanced Placement tests, but the proportion of tests receiving what is deemed a passing score has dipped, and the mean score is down for the fourth year in a row. Data released here this week by the New York City-based nonprofit organization that owns the AP brand shows that a greater-than-ever proportion of students…

For years, only a handful of the highest achievers graduated from high school with college courses on their transcripts. However, as states strive to blur the line between high school graduation requirements and college expectations, such dual-enrollment courses are quickly becoming part of a broader strategy to help more students become…

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…

This Brief summarizes the final report from the "Accelerating Student Success through Credit-Based Transition Programs" study. That study, which was initiated by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), examined the ways that CBTPs may help middle- and low-achieving students enter and succeed in…

A survey of former Advanced Placement students from the high schools of Mesa, Arizona, showed they felt very positive about their experiences and found them helpful to their college work, though many felt insufficiently prepared for the Advanced Placement tests and believed improvements were needed in the program. (PGD)