October 17, 2014: Education News We're Reading This Week
Here is a report from Caralee Adams on the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation’s plans to implement a virtual advising service, published in Education Week (requires subscription).
Education Dive also responded, highlighting the plan to deal with undermatching—an issue in which talented low-income students are unlikely to enroll in schools that meet and challenge their academic needs.
Check out this piece in The Huffington Post on a new National Student Clearinghouse report, which states that “Students from high-poverty public schools are less likely to attend college than those from wealthier ones, regardless of whether they’re from urban, suburban or rural areas.”
While the number of community college students defaulting on their student loans is dropping, it is still much higher than the national average. Community College Week responds to the new U.S. Department of Education data, reminding readers that only 17 percent of two-year students take out federal loans compared to 56 percent in all other higher education sectors, making it difficult to create a clear-cut conclusion.
Sadly, data from the class of 2014 shows no improvement on SAT scores in comparison to last year notes The Washington Post. This year’s average score went down one point to 1497 out of 2400, reemphasizing the need for the revision plan announced by the College Board back in March.
A Michigan State University survey, says Forbes, expects a 16 percent jump in hiring rates for new graduates in 2015. Of those graduates, who will be most likely to be hired? According to the survey’s results, those in the fields of information services, finance and insurance, and “professional, business and scientific services.”
Take a look at “Our Tools Shape Us” by Ainissa Ramirez. The Edutopia writer approves a shift from the teacher-centric model of education to a more technological approach, but warns that “we create our tools, and then our tools create us.” She suggests that we must determine what education should look like and not the tools, regardless of how effective or useful they may be.
Inside Higher Ed’s Carl Straumsheim interviewed Foundation Executive Director Harold O. Levy for his new piece, “Reaching Out With Tech.” Straumsheim and Levy detail how technology can help “connect more low-income students with prestigious colleges and universities.”