Calculation of Graduation Rates Differ
By NANCY ZUCKERBROD

If Congress doesn't get the job done, Education Secretary Margaret Spellings says she'll consider using her authority to require states to report high school graduation rates in a more uniform and accurate way.
"I think we need some truth in advertising," Spellings said in an interview, referring to the hodgepodge of ways states now report graduation data....

...Spellings pointed to a two-year-old agreement by the nation's governors to adopt a common method of calculating high school graduation rates.
It calls for states to develop systems that track individual students throughout school and record whether they transfer, drop out or graduate. In general, students who graduate on time and with regular diplomas would count toward a state's graduation rate. Research indicates students who take extra time to graduate or get alternatives to diplomas, such as a GED, generally don't do as well in college or the work force.

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