9-12

President Obama Speaks About Educational Attainment and College Preparation for Hispanic Students and English Language Learners

On March 28th, President Obama participated in a televised town hall meeting at Bell Multicultural High School in Washington, D.C. with students, parents, and teachers to discuss Hispanic educational attainment. The event was part of Univision's "Es el Momento" (The Moment is Now) initiative, which is focused on creating a college-bound culture in the Hispanic community.

Between the school years of 2006–07 and 2019–20, the number of Hispanic public high school graduates is projected to increase 60 percent.[1] As Obama stated during the town hall meeting,

High School Positive Behavioral Supports and Interventions

Positive Behavioral Supports and Interventions (PBIS) is a school-wide system of discipline that utilizes tiered behavioral interventions to encourage social and academic success.  As with academic tiered intervention, PBIS is characterized by universal supports for all students in the school, coupled with secondary supports and intensive tertiary intervention for students based on need.

What Does the Research Says About Expanded Learning Time Initiatives?

In a recent interview, President Obama said: “We now have our kids go to school about one month less than most advanced countries. And that month makes a difference.” A recent research synthesis, the first on this topic, has shown that there is some research to support expanded learning time initiatives. The authors of the synthesis screened approximately 1,390 studies related to expanded school year and 818 studies related to expanded school day in elementary, middle, and high schools. Due to the limited number of studies published on the topic, the synthesis included studies with varying rigor of their design. The synthesis focused on the 15 studies which included academic outcomes. Of these studies, three included high schools, and the other 12 studies focused only on elementary and middle schools.

Doing What Works: Another Example of a High School Using Data to Improve Instruction

The U.S. Department of Education’s Doing What Works Web site has a wealth of information on high schools that have put practices designated as “working” into place. This blog describes one of the schools featured on the site. MacArthur Ninth Grade School is located outside of Houston, TX in the Aldine Independent School District. The school enrolls a majority of Hispanic students (83%) and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (79%).

Using Data to Increase the Number of High School Graduates Going to College

Three years ago this month, the Consortium on Chicago School Research (a partner organization of the National High School Center) released a report that identified a relatively simple approach to increasing college-going rates among Chicago Public Schools (CPS) high school graduates.

What Works Clearinghouse's Dropout Prevention Recommendations

Graduating students who are college and career ready is a national priority. The U.S. Department of Education included high school dropout rates as an eligibility criterion for the School Improvement Grants, and earlier this year, provided $46,610,682 in funds for high school improvement through the High School Graduation Initiative

Providing Increased Learning Time Opportunities to High School Students

Each year, an increasing number of high schools provide longer school days, longer school years, or partner with community-based organizations for out-of-school academic support to close achievement gaps. This number is expected to keep climbing with the new budget proposed by President Obama, which includes $600 million for School Turnaround Grants (increased learning time is a requirement under SIG).

College Board Issues Report on Status of Advanced Placement in the United States

The College Board has recently released the 7th Annual AP Report to the Nation, which details states’ efforts over the last year to increase Advanced Placement (AP) coursetaking, particularly among traditionally underserved student populations.

Report highlights include:

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