Community College Enrollment Rising

According to a National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) report, many more people are going to college now than 40 years ago. Enrollment at four-year institutions has grown steadily over the years, showing a 126 percent increase from 1965 to 2004. In comparison, community college enrollment has swelled by nearly 433 percent in the same period. Why such high enrollment numbers for a community college? Dr. Cathy Morris, district director of institutional research at Miami Dade College (MDC), notes that, like many other community colleges, MDC is a “multi-campus college in an urban environment with many low-income and second-language residents. We are accessible, affordable, and offer opportunity to many residents who would not otherwise be able to pursue an education."


A Culture of Evidence

Our knowledge about the effectiveness of a college education is limited because postsecondary education is not currently driven by hard evidence. The Educational Testing Service’s (ETS) paper, A Culture of Evidence: Postsecondary Assessment and Learning Outcomes, outlines accountability models and metrics for measuring the performance of colleges and universities, proposes a comprehensive national system to determine the nature and extent of college learning, and reviews principles of fair and valid testing. The proposed data-driven approach to understanding the quality of two-year and four-year college education includes the use of direct, valid and reliable measures of student learning, and is mindful of the need for a simple, clear system and a common language.


Economic Benefits of College

Postsecondary education remains one of the most beneficial investments that individuals can make in themselves and that society can make in its people. A 2006 supplement to Education Pays 2004: The Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals and Society, released by the College Board, documents the monetary and non-monetary benefits of higher education, and provides international comparisons for college participation and success. In an age of widespread concern about the rising cost of college, this update provides a needed reminder of the earnings premium associated with higher education and the ways in which an educated population strengthens society.


Teachers and At-Risk Schools

Teacher preparation programs that address the diversity and the challenges that teachers may face in high-poverty, low-performing schools are crucial to improving teacher effectiveness in the classroom and increasing student learning. This edition of the TQ Research and Policy Update,from the National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, addresses the topic of preparing teachers to teach students in at-risk schools. In-depth articles explore how teachers currently are prepared and offer strategies for preparing and supporting teachers differently for the realities they will face in the nation's most challenging schools.


Closing the Gap: Early Childhood Education

Early intervention is a critical bridge to closing the achievement gap, or preventing it from occurring. High quality, holistic and universally available pre-kindergarten is perhaps the most cost-effective of the early intervention approaches. Holistic child development programs address factors critical a child’s ability to learn that contribute to but are not measured strictly by academic achievement, including the health and emotional well-being of the child and family. In this article, ASCD outlines the most promising interventions and necessary features of a comprehensive early childhood program.


More Students Aspire to Continue Education

Using questionnaire and test data collected in 1980, 1992, and 2002, a report by the National Center for Education Statistics reports information on similarities and differences between U.S. high school sophomores over time, with a focus on cohort demographics, academic programs and performance, extracurricular activities, life values and educational/occupational aspirations. The report finds that the percentage of high school sophomores expecting to obtain a four-year college or postgraduate degree increased from 41 percent to 80 percent. Simultaneously, those who identified English as their native language declined from 95 percent to 86 percent. Math and reading scores over time are also presented.

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