Troubling Dropout Rate Statistics in the U.S.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A new study says your child is less likely to
graduate from high school than you were. And it finds that most
states aren't doing much to hold schools accountable.
The children's advocacy group "Education Trust" says dropout
rates aren't moving: One out of four students drop out of high
school. In fact, it says the U.S. is now the only industrialized
country where young people are less likely than their parents to
earn a diploma.
Under the No Child Left Behind Law, states set their own goals
for high school graduation rates. Research suggests many of them
have set the bar low.
Next week Education Secretary Margaret Spellings is expected to
change that, in part by imposing new rules forcing states to use a
common tracking system agreed to by governors in 2005.