This issue of Policy Insights draws on findings from WICHE's report Accelerated Learning Options: Moving the Needle on Access and Success, to lay out some of the important policy issues that decision makers might consider when adopting new state policy related to accelerated learning or modifying policies already in existence. The publication…

Sternberg's theory of successful intelligence was used to create augmented exams in Advanced Placement Psychology and Statistics. Participants included 1895 high school students from 19 states and 56 schools throughout the U.S. The psychometric results support the validity of creating examinations that assess memory, analytical, creative, and…

Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) courses continue to receive national recognition for their rigorous curricula, and many colleges and universities award credit to students who score well on end-of-course exams in AP classes. Research suggests that students are better prepared for college if they take these courses and…

The racial, ethnic, linguistic, and economic diversity within urban areas necessitates the creation of scholastic environments that are responsive to the varying academic and social needs of the student population. This qualitative study investigates ways in which teacher and administrator behavior and the school environment contribute to the…

Reviewing the history of Advanced Placement, this writer discusses the pro's and con's of a program that offers a school many advantages but has its problems, too. (Editor)

Reported are methods of accelerating and individualizing science and mathematics curricula for extremely gifted junior high school students as developed by the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) and the Intellectually Gifted Child Study Group. Given are examples of acceleration such as allowing the student to take more advanced…

This paper reports the replies given by secondary school teachers and supervisors on a survey asking for their views on (1) the comparative merits of the descriptive materials for the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) and the Advanced Placement Program (APP), and (2) the manner by which the two testing programs are now made available to…

Provides a report of committee activities and meeting minutes. Included is information on the development of the Advanced Placement Program in Economics, the use of foreign students as teaching assistants, the assessment of student learning, and the status of the "Journal of Economic Education." (JDH)

The article presents findings from a national investigation of the educational opportunities available to gifted students, and reports on advanced placement in terms of teacher selection and training, grading, student motivation, and the recently developed junior advanced placement. (CL)

Recounts the inception, philosophy, and successes of Cleveland Ohio's Major Work Program, a course of study founded in 1922 for gifted students. (JW)

Advanced Placement Human Geography (APHG) has grown steadily from 3,272 tests at the first test administration in 2001 to 14,139 tests in 2005. This paper examines the dynamics of growth throughout the United States through numbers of students and numbers of high schools involved in the program. APHG is discussed relative to the establishment of…

When students already are achieving at high levels, it can be easy for teachers to become complacent. However, Mountain Brook Schools in suburban Birmingham, Alabama, has developed a culture committed to continuous improvement that has resulted in an excellent system becoming outstanding. The key is professional development. Professional learning…

This publication brings together much of the information one might need to understand and discuss higher education issues. While this publication does not attempt to answer every question that may come up in discussions about higher education, it highlights the most often-asked questions about institutions, faculty, students, costs, budgets,…

Policymakers and education leaders in Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states have been working since 2002 to meet all 12 "Challenge to Lead" Goals for Education. At the same time, SREB states have had to struggle with the toughest economic challenges in decades. Even so, SREB states have succeeded in achieving many of the goals…