A Potpourri of News
By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute The more I write this weekly column, the more I feel like I’m shifting towards VH1’s “The Best Week Ever,” wanting to make fun of every lawmaker in the US and Canada (not that there aren’t many more lawmakers around the world we couldn’t make fun of). But I’ll try and behave myself and not … Continue reading A Potpourri of News
Rankings, Rankings, and More Rankings
By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute In this week’s news, Kevin Carey and Thomas Toch (see “College Rankings: Higher Education’s Battle Royal”) discuss the upcoming US News and World Report Rankings Guide, which will hit the newsstands in a few weeks. Unfortunately, Carey and Toch take a purely populist view of the rankings and related issues. And this has set me … Continue reading Rankings, Rankings, and More Rankings
The Teaching Challenge
By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute In this week’s news, we feature a new study by the DC-based Alliance for Excellent Education, which finds that over $1.4 billion is spent at US two-year institutions for developmental (remedial) education. The issue of remediation continues to become an increasing challenge for educational institutions in the US and Canada. Critics of remedial programming suggest … Continue reading The Teaching Challenge
Does P-16 Work?
By Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute I had the opportunity to present at the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s P-16 Summit yesterday morning in Austin, TX. The conference brought together 600 stakeholders from around the state to discuss how to “do” P16 better. The P-16 discussion has grown in the last few years with the acknowledgement that there needs to be … Continue reading Does P-16 Work?
The Hill is Alive (Finally)
By Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scholar, Educational Policy Institute There was a potpourri of activity on Capitol Hill this week. From the passing of the College Cost Reduction Act (CCRA) of 2007 (and it seems like the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 was only yesterday…), to a firm stand by Ted Kennedy on loan agencies and the “inducement” scandal, this has been a busy … Continue reading The Hill is Alive (Finally)
The Swail Letter on Higher Education 