Special Ed Students in NYC Lag in Entering Mainstream
Jennifer Medina, NY Times

New York City lags behind the rest of the state in placing special education students into mainstream classrooms.  While other school systems across the state have significantly increased the number of students who attend classes in schools with mainstream students, the number of students in separate schools - spending all their time with other special education students - has been mostly stagnant in the city, according to a report released by the state's Board of Regents.

Prepare for the SAT Test, or Play With Your iPod? Have It Both Ways
Maria Aspan, NY Times

High school students cramming for the SAT test have traditionally relied on thick books full of practice exams, sharpened No. 2 pencils and intensive tutoring sessions. But now a traditional test preparation company is offering some options for the iPod generation.

Spellings Favors Wiggle Room for Schools
Greg Toppo, USA TODAY

U.S. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings on Wednesday proposed "a more nuanced" way of evaluating schools under President Bush's No Child Left Behind school reform law - one that would differentiate between schools that are close to meeting state math, reading and science standards and those that are 'chronic, chronic underperformers."

Blacks in VA, MD Schools Outdo U.S. Peers in AP
Daniel de Vise, Washington Post

Black students in Maryland and Virginia high schools are far more successful in Advanced Placement testing than their peers in nine of the 10 school systems in the nation with the largest black populations, according to a Washington Post analysis.

Voucher Use in Washington Wins Praise of Parents
TimesDaily.com

Students who participated in the first year of the District of Columbia's federally financed school voucher program did not show significantly higher math or reading achievement, but their parents were satisfied anyway, viewing the private schools they attended at taxpayer expense as safer and better than public schools, according to an Education Department study released earlier this week.

Let's Hear Candidates' Plans for Education
Richard Whitmire, The Des Moines Register

Alarmed by the large number of freshmen needing to take remedial classes, California State University came up with an innovative test aimed at high school juniors planning to go to college. What CSU found on that 2006 test caused only further alarm: 45 percent failed the math test, and 75 percent the English test.

Upward Bound Amendment is Unfair, Education Department Says
Kelly Field, The Chronicle of Higher Education

Supporters of Upward Bound are divided over an amendment approved by a Congressional committee this month that would provide $30-million in additional money for the program, which supports projects that prepare low-income high-school students for college. Nearly 30 percent of the Upward Bound programs at historically black colleges that had received grants in the 2006 fiscal year did not receive new grants in the most recent award cycle.

College Seems Out of Reach to Most Latinos
Tyche Hendricks, San Francisco Chronicle

The California Department of Education says that only 1 in 7 California Latinos graduates high school in four years, and completes the necessary course work required to enroll in a four-year college.

Public Colleges Release Accountability Plan to Measure Their Performance
Karin Fischer, The Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription required)

The two associations that represent the nation's public colleges are likely to vote this fall on a voluntary accountability system that would allow the public to compare similar institutions.

Black College Enrollment in South Rising
Justin Pope, AP Education Writer

As thousands of students graduate from college, thousands more are signing up - and many are signing up online. By next year, 1 in 10 college students will be enrolled in an online degree program, according to Eduventures, the leading research and consulting firm for the education industry.

Community Colleges Draw Four-Year Grads
Lanita Withers, News-Record.com

Almost 11,000 students pursuing an associate's degree or a diploma in the N.C. Community College System in 2006 had a bachelor's degree. More than 2,500 students had a master's degree or higher. This article offers some reasoning behind the trend.

Japanese Universities Use Spas for Recruitment
Martin Fackler, NY Times

Japan has one of the oldest and most established systems of higher education in Asia, but today its universities are scrambling to find new ways to attract students.  New University recruitment tactics include halving tuition, hot springs, karaoke rooms, and swimming pools.

UK: Tuition Fees Fail to Put Off Applications
Anthea Lipsett, EducationGuardian.co.uk

Applications to university have not dropped as a result of higher tuition fees, according to a new analysis of variable fees from Universities UK published on Tuesday.

Cost, Rivals Force Offshore Reversal
Catherine Armitage, The Australian

Australian universities are withdrawing en masse from offshore teaching operations for lack of profitability and fear of reputational damage.

August 2006 Census Released
Australian Bureau of Statistics

After many years of planning, collecting, and processing the millions of Census forms, the first release of 2006 Census data is here.

SFU Launches New Field Schools in India
Simon Fraser University Press Release

Simon Fraser University will launch two new field schools in India in 2008 as part of its continuing efforts to strengthen academic, business and cultural relations with South Asian communities at home and abroad.

Maritime Universities Brace for Big Drop in Student Numbers
Kelly Shiers, The Chronicle Herald

The hallowed halls of higher learning may appear a little emptier in the coming years, as a study predicts university enrolment in the Maritimes could drop by as much as 14 per cent over the next decade. The study found that the number of undergraduate students in Maritime universities has dropped 4.5 per cent since 2004-05, when enrolment was at an all-time high. Undergraduate enrolment this year, at just under 62,000, was at about the same level as it was in 2002.

Part-Time Undergraduates in Postsecondary Education: 2003–04
National Center for Education Statistics

This report uses data from the 2003–04 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS: 2004) to profile part-time undergraduates enrolled in U.S. postsecondary institutions in 2003–04.

Two Kinds of Part-Time Students
InsideHigherEd.com

A report released Wednesday by the U.S. Education Department provides a detailed look at the characteristics of part-time college students — and most of the results won’t surprise those who work with these students.

The Educational Policy Institute is an international non-profit think tank dedicated to the study of educational opportunity. The Week in Review is a weekly publication that highlights the top news stories, reports and statistics related to academic preparation and access and success in the US, Canada, and beyond. The publication also features a commentary written by either President Watson Scott Swail, EdD or Vice-President Alex Usher.

To submit comments, news releases, or submissions, please email Dr. Watson Scott Swail at wswail@educationalpolicy.org or call (757) 430-2200.