Analysis: High School Students Working Harder Than Previous Generation

Education Week (5/25, Sparks) reports that according to a new analysis of the NCES "The Condition of Education 2012" report, "high school students work harder and are more focused on school than they were a generation ago...and the economic downturn may highlight an opportunity to put more of them on the path to college." The piece notes that the report indicates fewer high school students in the workforce, adding, "federal statistics show that the percentages of students aspiring to [higher education] has risen in recent decades, regardless of parents' education background." The piece cites statistics showing rising attendance rates, adding that the "push for more rigorous coursework, coupled with an increasingly inhospitable employment environment for teenagers, could create some leverage for educators to put more students on track for higher academic achievement."