Notes in the Margins: Transfers, ed colleges and The Bard

Obama plans new regulation on colleges of education The Obama administration’s obsession with standardized test scores knows no bounds. The newest example: a plan to spend millions of dollars to reward those colleges of education whose graduates, among other things, are successful in raising their students’ standardized test scores. (The Washington Post)

Small Colleges Get an F in Finance Faced with steep drops in enrollment, many schools are cutting tuition to attract students. (BloombergBusinessweek via NAICU)

More Than 40% of Community College Transfer Students Unable to Transfer Credits Two researchers at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York conclude that a big reason many community college students fail to get a four-year degree is not because of inferior academic preparation, but because the four year colleges they transfer to won’t accept many of their community college credits. (Washington Monthly)

Fewer U.S. Graduates Opt for College After High School Last October, just 65.9 percent of people who had graduated from high school the previous spring had enrolled in college, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said this week. That was down from 66.2 percent the previous year and was the lowest figure in a decade. The high point came in 2009, when 70.1 percent of new graduates had gone on to college. (The New York Times)

Wherefore art the Bard? Not on too many U.S. college campuses Many top American universities don’t require students to study Shakespeare. Many don’t even require a Shakespeare course of their English majors. (The Tampa Tribune via University Business)

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