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Improving STEM Graduation Rates in the U.S.

STEM education is becoming more important for nations that desire to foster their innovative flames for higher economic development.   The problem is that the U.S. is falling behind many countries in their approach to the basics of scientific development. Research by Soldner, et. al (2012) offers some solutions for encouraging STEM students to continue their goals until graduation.  One out of seven American students, one out of two students in China and one out of three students in Singapore are   engage in core STEM education such as science, math, and engineering (National Academies, 2007). The shift marks an unsustainable path for American innovation and ingenuity that may rear its ugly head 30 years down the road. As a nation, we are losing our dominance on multiple fronts starting deeply in our educational progressiveness.  Students who start college in the STEM fields often leave for other fields based on a whole range of reasons related from skill to interest. M

Alternative System for Assessing Student Graduation

Student data and success rates are a hot topic for university administrators. States and universities are seeking methods of accurately tracking data to better determine a whole host of issues ranging from legislature to funding. Six educational associations and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have been working on an alternative system they believe will be more accurate in its reflection of higher education graduation rates.  New methods of tracking student success rates have been developed through using a sign-up service called the Student Achievement Measure (SAM). Some universities may be attracted to the alternative methods of tracking student success rates. The National Student Clearinghouse will keep track of posted data for transfer students, two-year colleges and part-time students.  Some universities and states have argued that reliance on the Federal Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System is not as accurate as once thought. Students that start at o