Dropping Out of High School

Causes, Consequences, and Solutions By Blaise A. Russo

October 2013

Define The Problem

The high school dropout problem is a severe epidemic for the United States, nationwide.

Only 71 percent of students graduate from high school.

High School students are dropping out at alarming rates every day across the country.

Gather the EvidenceHigh School Dropouts: A Review of Issues and Evidence

http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/recordDetail?accno=EJ369707

The Declining American High School Graduation Rate: Evidence

http://www.nber.org/reporter/2008number1/heckman.html

The New Gender Gap http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2003-05-25/the-new-gender-gap

Gather the EvidenceWho Drops Out of School

and Why - Gevirtz Graduate School of ...

http://education.ucsb.edu/rumberger/book/

By the Numbers: Dropping Out of High School | Dropout Nation - PBS

Do Dropouts Drop Out Too Soon? International Evidence From ...

Identify The CausesCharacteristics of Students Who Drop Out

Socioeconomic Background. National data show that students from low-income families are 2.4 times more likely to drop out of school than are children from middle-income families, and 10.5 times more likely than students from high-income families.

Disabilities. Students with disabilities are also more likely to drop out. The National Transition Study estimates that as many as 36.4% of disabled youth drop out of school before completing a diploma or certificate.

Race-ethnicity. Hispanics and African Americans are at greater risk of dropping out than whites. Hispanics are twice as likely as African Americans to drop out. White and Asian American students are least likely to drop out.

Academic Factors. National research also indicates that academic factors are clearly related to dropping out. Students who receive poor grades, who repeat a grade, or who are over-age for their class are more likely to drop out.

Absenteeism. Students who have poor attendance for reasons other than illness are also more likely to drop out. Clearly, students who miss school fall behind their peers in the classroom. This, in turn, leads to low self-esteem and increases the likelihood that at-risk students will drop out of school.

Occupational Aspirations. Young people’s perceptions of the economic opportunities available to them also play a role in their decision to drop out or stay in school. Dropouts often have lower occupational aspirations than their peers.

Identify The CausesPredictive Factors. The following individual-level factors

are all strongly predictive of dropping out of high school:

Grade retention (being held back to repeat a grade)

Poor academic performance

Moves location during high school

High absenteeism

High absenteeism

The student’s feeling that no adult in the school cares about his or her welfare

Identify The CausesReasons young people give for dropping out:

Didn't like school in general or the school they were attending

Were failing, getting poor grades, or couldn't keep up with school work

Didn't get along with teachers and/or students

Had disciplinary problems, were suspended, or expelled

Didn't feel safe in school

Got a job, had a family to support, or had trouble managing both school and work

Got married, got pregnant, or became a parent

Had a drug or alcohol problem

http://www.dosomething.org/actnow/.../background-high-school-dropouts

Identify the Consequences

Earnings Potential

Public Assistance

Single Parents

Prisons

Evaluate an Existing PolicyCurrent Policy

Reinforce the Right to a Public Education

Count and Account for Dropouts

Use Graduation and On-Track Rates to Trigger Transformative Reform

Invent New Models

Accelerate Preparation for Postsecondary Success

Provide Stable Funding for Systemic Reform

http://www.jff.org/sites/default/files/DropoutBrief-090810.pdf

Develop SolutionsAgree or Disagree? Each state prepare teachers and high schools to identify students’ strengths and allow them to opt

into work-study programs or vocational training. This is working in many states, and students are succeeding in these non-traditional contexts.

Raise the age in which students can finish school. In nineteen states, they can drop out at 16 years old. Why not require them to stay until 18? This way, they stay in school, but move down a suitable track toward their career desires at 16.

Celebrate the most needed jobs in our society and encourage the right students to move in those directions, even if they’re blue-collar jobs. One man said: “We spent so much time celebrating GETTING the corner office, we forget how to build it.”

Expose students to role-models from career fields that have loads of openings and career opportunities. Often students move in directions they know something about. Put the right people (alum?) in front of them and watch what happens. –

http://growingleaders.com/blog/four-solutions-to-school-dropouts/#sthash.LFH3JAWD.dpuf

Select The Best Solution(Feasibility vs. Effectiveness)

Can we help dropouts: Thinking about the Undoable

As Strong as the Weakest Link: Urban High School Dropout