Afternoon Announcements: April 26, 2012

Happy Thursday, you’re almost at the weekend. Don’t fret, it’s coming. For now, get caught up with the latest education news headlines.

High school drop outs continue to be the focus here at the Alliance for Excellent Education and is drawing increasing attention from various media outlets. From PBS, learn how Shelbyville Indiana fixed its dropout problem with “Dropout Nation:’ Turnaround. Six years later, Shelbyville's graduation rate jumped to 90 percent, but how did they turn things around?

Despite years of effort, high-school dropout rates remain stubbornly high. College tuition is rising and the prospect of shouldering heavy debt discourages some high-school graduates from enrolling in college or sticking with it. The Wall Street Journal elaborates on how the education slowdown is threatening the future prosperity of the United States.

After years of cuts to public school budgets across the country, National Public Radio reports that many districts are relying on parents to pay for classroom supplies, extracurricular activities and even teacher salaries. But some worry that uneven distribution of funds will widen disparities between schools and between districts.

According to the New York Times, critics of high stakes standardized tests have started an Internet campaign to petition for an overhaul of mandated testing.