Two new studies say career academies yield positive results Career academies schools within schools that offer students academics organized around broad career themes help to keep likely dropouts in high school, but they have yet to improve standardized math and reading scores, according to a new national study. The reductions in dropout rates and increases in school engagement are an impressive accomplishment. However, academies produced more modest results for other students and didn't improve standardized test scores compared to students not in academies, the study said. I think that's the most notable facet. MDRC adds that what's more important is that at-risk students appear to benefit from being among other students.
Academies have limits, the study notes.
Another study seems to support MDRC's conclusions that academies show strong benefits, but also limitations. A new study of a group of students from career academies in a large urban school district shows that they have higher academic achievement, need less remediation and graduate college at higher rates than local students who didn't attend academies. Center at California State University in Hayward note that the students still required a significant amount of remediation and have low college graduation rates. The HIRE Center examined postsecondary educational outcomes and activities of youths from a single academy who applied to a medium-size, urban, comprehensive university in California between 1990 to 1998. The data show that while academy students accounted for only about 19 percent of district students, they comprised a quarter of the district's applicants to the college and 24 percent of district students accepted for admission.