H.S. Courses Seen as Disconnected From College Demands

A new study from the U.S. Department of Education underscores the need for much stronger ties between the curriculum that students take in high school and what is expected in their first year of college.

Its conclusions are based on an examination of factors that influence whether young people eventually earn a four-year degree.

Titled “The Toolbox Revisited: Paths to Degree Completion From High School Through College,” the study follows a nationally representative sample of students from the high school class of 1992 to their mid-20s in December 2000. It uses data from students’ high school and college transcripts to track the academic trajectory of students who attended a four-year college at any time, including those who started...