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 one college but finish at another are left out of the total data mix and this skews graduation
rates. States are seeking better methods of tracking and using student data
to adjust their own policies.
Part of the reason this has become such a concern is that
the older methods of enrolling a student in one university and expecting them
to stay there throughout their entire educational process is unlikely. Students are more
transient, work full-time jobs, and may take courses online when compared to fifty years ago. Focusing only on
enrollment and graduation from the same university leaves out a larger
percentage of people that bounce in, out, and transfer as they complete their
degrees.
The advantage of a more comprehensive system is that it can
influence both state and federal legislation as it offers a more comprehensive picture
of graduation rates and the educational experience. For example, students who are first generation college students may not have the same financial resources as other families. Their educational approach may include a number of transfers and a few semesters out of school where such students deal with life issues. The traditional tracking system would simply drop them. With a new system it is
possible to track the entire educational process and reflect more accurately
their educational paths.
Another issue is that government funding is increasingly being tied to
these federal statistics. Those universities that have an important role in
serving non-traditional students may appear in a negative light only because
the right information is not being collected. Non-traditional students are more
likely unable to stop working, move into a dormitory, and have
wealthy parents who finance their education while paying their bills. This means their
successes will not be tracked, understood, or counted if they don’t fit under a
traditional tracking model.
