College rankings not precise marks, academics say

[asteriskea]

<p>Ernest Pascarella weighs in on the rankings debate:</p>

<p>

“The U.S. News and World Report list is basically a list of selectivity with little to do with good practices and higher education,” said professor Ernest Pascarella, the Mary Louise Petersen Chair in Higher Education of the University of Iowa. "The things an institution has to do to improve their rank have nothing to do with the quality of an undergrad education.</p>

<p>“They’re concerned with what an institution looks like, not what they do,” Pascarella continued.</p>

<p>Pascarella said many flaws, such as an almost-annual rise or fall for colleges, diminish the legitimacy of the company’s ranking system.</p>

<p>“How can a college change in ranking every year?” he said. “Maybe they should do a report every 10 years.”</p>

<p>Pascarella suggested employing the National Survey of Student Engagement, a nonprofit educational research organization, to give the rankings greater validity.</p>

<p>The NSSE takes a different approach toward assessing higher-education practices, only allowing participating universities to view ranking information instead of making it available to the public. By not releasing the information to the public, the report allows universities to focus on improving instead of worrying about competition from other schools, said NSSE spokeswoman Jillian Kinsey.</p>

<p>“Schools use the data to assess the effectiveness in terms of widely known practices,” Kinsey said. “An institution wants to know how they’re doing against their peers. How are they doing in the things that matter to them?”</p>

<p>Despite the reputation of U.S. News and World Report’s rankings, Kinsey said she questions the motives of many colleges that solely abide by the company’s report.</p>

<p>“I wonder who highly regards them,” Kinsey said. “The people who are interested in the listing are interested in maintaining their rank.”…</p>

<p>Harvard University sunk to the ranking’s number-two school after serving in the top spot last year, but Harvard spokesman Joe Wrinn said the university does not give much weight to the results. Princeton is ranked first…</p>

<p>“In theory, we always say if they are going to be lists, it’s good to be at the top or near the top,” he continued. “But the main thing for us will always be that students find the university that’s best for them, and leave it at that. The rankings change all the time, but all the good schools are good schools.”

</p>

<p><a href=“http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/10/News/College.Rankings.Not.Precise.Marks.Academics.Say-2832124.shtml?reffeature=currentstoriestab[/url]”>http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/news/2007/04/10/News/College.Rankings.Not.Precise.Marks.Academics.Say-2832124.shtml?reffeature=currentstoriestab&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

[xiggi]

<p>

Harvard University sunk to the ranking’s number-two school after serving in the top spot last year, but Harvard spokesman Joe Wrinn said the university does not give much weight to the results.

</p>

<p>Oh, that sinking feeling.</p>

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<p>

but all the good schools are good schools

</p>

<p>Straight from the horse’s mouth. Case closed.</p>

[WashDad]

<p>The academic wagons pull into a tighter circle in defense against the nation’s third-ranked news magazine…</p>

[xiggi]

<p>

The NSSE takes a different approach toward assessing higher-education practices, only allowing participating universities to view ranking information instead of making it available to the public. By not releasing the information to the public, the report allows universities to focus on improving instead of worrying about competition from other schools, said NSSE spokeswoman Jillian Kinsey.

</p>

<p>Now that is a peach of a position: we’ll serve you better if you remain in the dark about how we compare to others! Why is there ANY reluctance to keep the results from similar surveys hidden from the ultimate clients? Why isn’t the COFHE report published on the web? Why can’t students and families find out how the IM works for financial aid in the same way it is possible for the Federal Methodology? </p>

<p>Does Mr. Pascarella think --or at least the persons quoted in the article-- that the public wants LESS transparency and less information. While a good part of the success of the USNews stems from its People magazine-like yearly unveiling, many readers do appreciate the disclosure of information that is not available without a dedicated effort. </p>

<p>This is yet another sign that in the world of education the students have become more of a product than the … customer.</p>