Despite efforts at reforming the public schools in Michigan, the indices of performances are consistent with the rest of the nation:
High school seniors in Michigan scored lowest in six years on College Admission Tests in 1989. (USA Today, September 13, 1989)
Of the nearly 14,000 students who began ninth grade in Detroit's public schools in September 1989, it is estimated that 40 percent will drop out before graduation. But for those who do finish, only a relatively small number leave school with the kind of academic and social skills that make them attractive to college recruiters and employers. (The New York Times, September 27, 1989)
According to a study by the Business Education Alliance of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce, about 6,000 of 7,000 recent high school graduates had math and reading skills below 11th grade levels.
Only 68.5 percent of 10th grade students in Michigan attained at least 75 percent of the mathematics objectives measured by the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP) for 1987-88. (Condition of Michigan Education 1989, Michigan State Board of Education)
Only 29 percent of 10th grade students in Michigan attained at least 75 percent of the MEAP Science objectives in 1987-88. (Condition of Michigan Education 1989, Michigan State Board of Education)
In 1990, 28 percent of Detroit Public School seniors flunked an eighth grade basic skills test and 50 percent of their second graders were found to be not academically prepared to advance to the third grade.