The performance of the American high school as an institution is discussed, based on a study of U.S. secondary education conducted by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Attention is directed to students, teachers, the principal, the classroom, and the curricula. Field studies were conducted at 15 public high schools, which were chosen to represent a cross-section of schools. Attention is directed to the core curricula, which consists of courses in English, literature, the arts, foreign language, history, civics, science, mathematics, technology, and health. Additional topics include the following: student aptitude test scores, secondary school course requirements, the importance of literacy, the transition to work and further learning, high school instruction and the conditions of teaching, teacher salaries, teacher preparation and certification, technology and schools, students as volunteers in the school and other institutions, the leadership role of the principal, gifted and high-risk students, college-school connections, school-corporation connections, and the public commitment to excellence in schools. Recommendations for each of these areas are offered, and information on the Carnegie study is appended, along with a bibliography. (SW)