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AN INVESTIGATION WAS MADE INTO THE DETERMINATION OF THE EDUCATIONAL AND VOCATIONAL CHOICES OF PUBLIC SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. SIX INDIVIDUAL STUDIES WERE CONDUCTED, EACH DEVOTED TO SPECIFIC QUESTIONS INVOLVING DETAILED OBJECTIVES, PROCEDURES, ANALYSES, FINDINGS, AND SPECIFIC IMPLICATIONS. THE QUESTIONS WERE--(1) HOW STABLE ARE VARIOUS REPORTED DETERMINANTS OF COLLEGE ATTENDANCE AS MEASURED IN THE FRESHMAN YEAR AND IN THE SENIOR YEAR, (2) HOW STABLE ARE VARIOUS REPORTED DETERMINANTS OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDY SPECIALIZATION AS MEASURED PROSPECTIVELY IN GRADE 9 AND RETROSPECTIVELY IN GRADE 11, (3) WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MAJOR FACTORS WHICH ACCOUNT FOR THE DECISION TO ATTEND COLLEGE, (4) HOW DO STUDENTS WHO WILL NOT GRADUATE IN 4 YEARS FROM THE COLLEGE THEY ENTERED AS FRESHMAN COMPARE ON MAJOR FACTORS IN COLLEGE ATTENDANCE WITH THOSE WHO REMAINED IN THE SAME UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGE TO SENIOR STATUS. SUBJECTS WERE DRAWN FROM 1,627 PUBLIC SCHOOL PUPILS WHO WERE IN GRADE 9 IN THE SPRING OF 1960 AND 1,596 STUDENTS WHO WERE STATE UNIVERSITY FRESHMEN DURING 1960. STUDIES CONDUCTED WERE DESCRIPTIVE, LONGITUDINAL, AND COMPARATIVE. CRITERIA OF EDUCATIONAL-OCCUPATIONAL STATUS ON FOLLOWUP AS COMPARED TO EDUCATIONAL STATUS 3 YEARS EARLIER DETERMINED ASSIGNMENT TO CONTROL AND EXPERIMENTAL GROUPS. DEPENDENT MEASURES INCLUDED REPORTED DETERMINANTS, MEASURED ABILITY, EDUCATIONAL-OCCUPATIONAL PLANS, AND SELECTED SOCIAL-PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN INCONSISTENT AND CONSISTENT GROUPS WERE TESTED FOR SIGNIFICANCE. THE STABILITY OF EACH ITEM WAS MEASURED BY INDICES OF RELATIONSHIPS AND ITEMS, AND SCALES WERE CORRELATED WITH EDUCATIONAL-OCCUPATIONAL STATUS IN THE FOLLOWUP. (HB)

THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED THE ROLE OF VALUES IN THE SELECTION OF AN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM BY PUBLIC SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. A QUESTIONNAIRE WAS ADMINISTERED TO A SAMPLE OF 25 PERCENT OF ALL SIXTH-GRADE STUDENTS, 75 PERCENT OF THE STUDENTS IN GRADES 9 AND 12, AND 75 PERCENT OF THOSE ENROLLED IN ADULT EDUCATION CLASSES IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. ALSO, FRESHMEN AND SENIORS AT LAND-GRANT UNIVERSITIES WERE INCLUDED IN THE SAMPLE. DATA WERE COLLECTED ON EACH STUDENT'S BACKGROUND, PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS, AND RESPONSES TO THREE CHECKLIST QUESTIONS CONCERNING VALUES, EXTERNAL INFLUENCES, AND INTERESTS WHICH HELPED TO DETERMINE EDUCATIONAL AND POST-EDUCATIONAL CHOICES. THE PRESENT STUDY SUGGESTS THE IMPORTANCE OF PROVIDING SPECIFICALLY FOR THE UNCERTAIN STUDENT AT ALL LEVELS IN DESIGNING CURRICULUMS, PROGRAMS, AND COLLEGES. PERHAPS SO-CALLED EXPLORATORY PROGRAMS ARE THE ANSWER, PROVIDING FOR RELATIVELY EASY TRANSITION TO PROGRAMS WITH NECESSARILY RIGID SEQUENCES. ARRANGEMENTS FOR RAPID RETREADING MIGHT BE DESIRABLE FOR THE SOPHOMORE WHO WANTS TO TRANSFER FROM ENGLISH TO CIVIL ENGINEERING OR FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR WHO SHIFTS HIS OBJECTIVES FROM APPRENTICESHIP TO COLLEGE. UNFORTUNATELY, THE APPARENT DESIRABILITY OF EDUCATIONAL REVERSIBILITY SEEMS TO BE COUNTERBALANCED BY AN INCREASING RIGIDITY IN ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT A MORE TIGHTLY CONSTRUCTED THEORY WOULD BE HIGHLY DESIRABLE IN CONTROLLING AND UNDERSTANDING EDUCATIONAL CHOICE AND IN CONTRIBUTING TO KNOWLEDGE OF THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF DECISION MAKING. (JL)