David Leonhardt of the New York Times recently wrote an eye opening article entitled “Colleges are Failing in Graduation Rates.” The full article can be found online at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/09/business/economy/09leonhardt.html?_r=1&ref=education.
He mentions that at the University of Massachusetts, only 33% of freshmen graduate within 6 years. It’s an extreme, but somewhat shocking statistic.
In his 2008 report “The Costs of Failure Factories in American Higher Education” Mark Schneider states:
“The international reputation of many “marquee” universities and the high U.S. expenditures on postsecondary education mask a simple fact: American postsecondary graduation rates are low, and the costs of these failure factories to students and the federal government are high.”
Clearly the reasons for the failure are vast. They are explored in detail in William Bowen’s new book “Crossing the Finish Line: Completing College at America’s Public Univerities.”
In reviewing the book, David Glenn of Chronicle of Higher Education states that among the book’s central themes: Large disparities exist in graduation rates by gender, ethnicity, and family income, even after accounting for differences in standardized test scores and high-school preparation. That is not exactly news, but the book grounds those findings in an unusually rich set of data. . . . Mr. Bowen and his colleagues put forward two arguments that are likely to fuel debate for several years. . . . The first argument is that money matters. . . . The second argument is that admissions offices should downplay the SAT and ACT, and instead lean heavily on students’ high school grades”
Thomas J. Kane, of the Harvard Graduate School of Education says “Given rising pressure on state budgets, public higher education must learn to do more with less. Crossing the Finish Line illuminates anachronistic practices, such as an overreliance on test scores in admissions, continuing tuition subsidies to higher income families, and an underemphasis on degree completion. For the nation’s economic future and the dreams of tomorrow’s college aspirants, we must fundamentally rethink the function, pricing, and operation of public colleges.
Crossing the Finish Line is indeed food for thought. However, it also makes the problem seem so large that it’s almost impossible to address.
Certainly changing admission procedures, subsidies and possibly relying less on SAT may make a difference.
But couldn’t an institution, program, or even instructor also really examine if they are truly engaging their students? This isn’t an attack or criticism. It’s simply looking at it from the point of most influence.
Massive changes in policy will naturally take years to occur. However, schools, programs and instructors should really examine how they present their courses, how effective they are, and what can be done better to assist the students in understanding the material, keep them interested, and active in the learning process.
I realize it may sound simplistic, and frankly it is. But if changes are implemented on a course by course level, to help students truly engage in their material, success rates are sure to improve.
As always, I welcome your thoughts.