During the last two years we have developed a precalculus course customized around biology by using the scientific method as a framework to engage and motivate biology students. Historically, the precalculus and calculus courses required for the Suffolk County Community College biology curriculum were designed using examples from the physical…

Inquiry-based, student-lead research may be a pinnacle of high school science education, and the implementation of inquiry themes at all grades is of profound importance. At The Beacon High School in New York City, all seniors, regardless of their scientific proclivity or interest, completed original science research projects as a graduation…

The purpose of this study was to examine the academic preparation of students with disabilities who plan to attend a four year college or university upon graduating from high school in the Participating School System. The study employed a measure of high school academic course rigor developed by Horn and Kojaku (2001) to measure the academic…

Since 2002, the Center on Education Policy (CEP) has collected and reported data on state policies that require students to pass a state assessment in order to receive a high school diploma. The state policies associated with these assessments, also known as high school exit exams, have undergone a number of changes over the past ten years. For…

Since 2002, the Center on Education Policy (CEP) at The George Washington University, a national advocate for public education and improving public schools, has been studying state high school exit examinations--tests students must pass to receive a high school diploma. This year marks the 11th year CEP has reported on exit exams in order to help…

As expectations for students to meet high academic standards have risen over the past two decades, so have the expectations for students to complete, and excel in, more rigorous mathematics courses. Once a course reserved only for the college-bound, algebra is now a graduation requirement for all California students as well as an early…

This study examined the relationship between state policies mandating increased mathematics credits for high school graduation and access to postsecondary education. The purpose of this study was to determine if the state policy intervention of increasing high school mathematics requirements was related to a higher likelihood that students would…

This paper provides information about California High School Exit Examination, a comprehensive standards-based exam. The purpose of the exam is to: (1) Determine prospective high school graduates' knowledge and skill levels relative to those needed for entry-level employment; (2) Determine prospective high school graduates' mastery of the state…

This paper provides information about Oregon State Assessment System. Its purpose is to assess proficiency in the Essential Skills for the purpose of earning a regular or modified high school diploma. Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills is also used for federal accountability purposes under No Child Left Behind. [For the main report,…

The Oregon Statewide Report Card is an annual publication required by law (ORS 329.115), which reports on the state of public schools and their progress towards the goals of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. The purpose of the Oregon Report Card is to monitor trends among school districts and Oregon's progress toward achieving the…

Corbin High School is located in a small, rural community of approximately 8,000 residents in southeastern Kentucky, midway between Lexington and Knoxville, Tennessee. The mission of Corbin High School is to provide opportunities that will help each student prepare for a successful transition to college, the workplace and life. This report…

This is the eighth annual "Keeping Pace" report. When the authors look back on 2011 from some future year, it may be clear in retrospect that 2011 was the year that online and blended learning went digital, transcending their distance-learning or computer-based instruction origins and taking root in classrooms and schools across the…

Mandatory internships are implemented in higher education curricula in order to ease the labour market integration of graduates. This article evaluates the utility of mandatory internships in Germany by assessing the effect on graduates' transition from higher education to work. The authors examine whether these compulsory programmes provide extra…

Too often American schools aim to satisfy the self-actualizing and higher-level needs in Maslow's hierarchy, while ignoring survival and security needs. The new State curriculum seeks to correct that deficit. To graduate, an Oregon student in the Class of 1978 will be expected to demonstrate the competencies to function effectively on the job, as…

A NATIONAL SURVEY WAS MADE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS IN AMERICAN COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES DURING 1965-66. THE SURVEY FIGURES SHOW THAT ONE COLLEGE IN THREE PRESCRIBES FOREIGN LANGUAGE CREDITS FOR ADMISSION AND THAT NINE OUT OF TEN REQUIRE LANGUAGE FOR GRADUATION WITH A B.A. DEGREE. IN 32 ADDITIONAL COLLEGES CERTAIN NONLANGUAGE DEPARTMENTS…