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Showing posts from August, 2012

Vouchers and College Attendance: Puzzling Findings Deserve Much Caution

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Several months ago I described the problems in a stud y that seemed to have great policy relevance, but little empirical support for its contentions.  Sadly, examples of studies like these abound in education, and another is currently making headlines.  " Vouchers Boost Blacks' College Enrollment Rates ," claim the stories-- and boy do the effects seem large! A "24 percent increase" in college attendance among black recipients of those vouchers-- what a dream. And it must be an accurate statement, right, since this was an experiment? Well, not necessarily. Too many practitioners, policymakers, and even researchers are far too inclined when they hear the words "randomized trial" to ignore the usual concerns about the reliability and validity of estimated program effects.  After all, it's "gold standard," and touted by the Institute of Education Sciences as being the most valid to get a sense of how well programs work. Unfortunately, its us

A New Walker Report on Wisconsin Higher Education

Don't you just love last-minute breaking news when you're trying to head out the door on vacation? Come on.....!  THIS JUST IN. Tim Sullivan, businessman, has issued a blueprint prepared for Governor Scott Walker that includes some significant plans for higher education. Among its highlights: The skills gap demonstrated by highly-esteemed economists , as well as leading Wisconsin organizations with sizable expertise in business and higher education is apparently a "myth. "  Writes Sullivan, "there are opportunities available if people know where to look and can see the value." (p.101) Sure, he admits his is no scientific study-- after all, he is doing policy analysis by anecdote, drawing on his experiences at his own company-- but gee, he's sure confident there's a myth out there to be busted! The costs of Wisconsin Technical Colleges are too high because they are doing too much--namely, wasting time on liberal arts college transfer, "spending

Making the Pell Grant Memorable

In a new policy brief just released by the Scholars Strategy Network at Harvard University, I make the case that the emotional meanings of financial aid can and should be enhanced to promote student success.  Sociologists and psychologists have long known that money has social value and that this can be increased through social connections.  The creators of the GI Bill understood this and took advantage of it by ensuring all recipients understood where funding for that program came from and what it meant. The same must now be done for the federal Pell Grant.  In fact, it could be done for all grant programs.  Governors, mayors, legislators, and yes, presidents, should get involved in conveying a strong, supportive message to the millions of needy yet promising students struggling every day to make it through college. PS. Just got the following response on Twitter. @ saragoldrickrab TRUTH. as # Pell Recipient, I had no idea why I received 3K for my education.. just thankful w. no on

Wisconsin Needs to Educate, Not Incarcerate

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Yet another policy brief highlights what realists know:   Wisconsin policymakers are presiding over poor policy decisions that threaten to undermine taxpayers' decades-long investment in the state's human capital. Far from saving our children from lifetimes of debt, those on the neoliberal Left and the conservative Right advocating for either "freeing" state universities from the limitations of state funding in pursuit of market models, or diminishing state spending in a time of austerity, are accomplishing the same goal:  driving up the costs of college attendance and reducing the overall educational attainment of our state's workers. Forty years ago our grandparents elected officials who invested $14 per $1000 of personal income in higher education.  Today, we elect jokers who put in just $5.  What happened? Figure courtesy of Tom Mortenson, Postsecondary Education Opportunity Let's admit it: we aren't leaders anymore, we're laggards. Yes, Wisconsin