It’S A Hard Knock Life
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Transcript of It’S A Hard Knock Life
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High School Dropout RetentionMary K. Kirk
November 29, 2006
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Objectives
• To familiarize with statistics about graduation dropout and retention
• To learn warning signs of at-risk youth
• To learn when kids leave school
• To understand what can be done to prevent students from leaving school
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Who Drops Out of School?
• According to the Department of Education, the dropout rates are as follows:
• Native American Students (12.2%)
• Hispanic Students (7.8%)
• African American Students (6.5%)
• Caucasian Students (4.0%)
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Conflicting Numbers About Graduation Rates
• According to Dr. Lawrence Mishel of the Economic Policy Institute, the dropout rate is roughly nine out of eleven (82-83%). However, the dropout rate among minorities is three out of four (75%).
• This is based on 4,000,000 that could have graduated in 2003. However, only 2,700,000 actually graduated.
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Racial Gap• The racial gap has
improved but we still have a long way to go.
• In the 1960s, only 40 percent of African American Students graduated with a high school diploma. Now we have doubled that.
• There are many different formulas to compute dropout rates. However, the ballpark estimates are roughly accurate.
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To Include GED?
• There is now a movement to include GED graduates as part of the graduation rate.
• GED graduates have the same opportunities that high school graduates have:– Enter college
– Join military
– Obtain job/job training
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To Include GED?
• However, many of the
same problems stay
with them after
completing the GED.
Including all of the GED
graduates in graduation
rates would be
misleading.
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Who Is At Risk?
• Repeat One or More Grades
• Low Socioeconomic
Background
• Speak English as a Second
Language
• Become Pregnant or Make
Someone Pregnant
• Frequently Absent/Truant
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Top 10 Reasons Kids Leave School
1. Poor Attendance
2. Enter GED Program
3. Employment
4. Low or Failing Grades
5. Age
6. To Get Married
7. Pregnancy
8. Suspension/Expulsion
9. Did Not Meet Graduation Requirements
10. Enter Alternative Program (i.e. Job Corps)
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When Do Kids Leave School?
• Between the ages of 15 to 17 years of age
• According to Arkansas law, all students must be enrolled in school somewhere until the age of 18. They can enter a GED program at the age of 16 with the consent of both district and parent.
• However, many use home schooling rules to get around mandatory education.
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My Experience
• Students enter GED programs after they reach the age of 16 in the state of Arkansas.
• Many of these students have the same experiences:
•
Truant/absence
s
• In trouble at
school/do not
fit in
• Not
passing/not
going to
graduate
• Retained at
• In trouble with the
law
• FINS cases
• Pregnant or have
child on the way
• Poor
• Mental health
issues
• Employment
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Grouping Reasons
I group the reasons students leave school into three major classifications:
Social
• Juvenile Delinquency
• FINS
• Drugs
• Mental Health Issues
School
• Absences/Truant
• In trouble/do not fit in
• Not passing/not going to
graduate
• Retained at least one
yearFamily
• Pregnant or have child on
way
• Poor
• Employment
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Social Issues
Juvenile Delinquency• Innovation
• Retreatism
• Ritualism
• Conformity
• RebellionFINS• Control
• Parental responsibility
• Abuse
Drugs• Rise in drug use
• Acceptance of drug use
Mental Health Issues• Diagnosed mental health issues
• Undiagnosed mental health issues
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School IssuesAbsences/Truant• Lack of parent control
• Students do not want to be there
• Students do not feel safe
In trouble/do not fit in• Problems with discipline
• Feel like outcasts/bullying
Not passing/not going to graduate• Not enough credits
• Not passing and do not want to fail
Retained at least one year• Are behind and will reach 19 or 20 before
graduate
• No structured programs to catch up
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Family Issues
Pregnant or have child on way
Throw-away Children/Kindling Theory
Poor• Children as possessions
• Society/school is “against them.”
• Cannot afford to go to school
Employment• Must have job to contribute to family
• Need job to “escape” family
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Need to Improve Middle School Transition
• Most students drop out at critical transition points.
• Research shows that students who participate in programs that help them transition from middle school were less likely to drop out.
• Maryland schools have instituted schools-within-schools, 9th grade academies, smaller learning communities, and other strategies (Legters & Kerr 2001).
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What Can Be Done to Prevent Dropping Out?
• Service learning
• Conflict resolution
• Out-of-school experiences
• Community collaboration
• Family involvement
• Reading and writing programs
• Individualized instruction
• Mentoring/tutoring
• Learning style/multiple intelligence strategies
• Career education/workforce readiness
15 identified Strategies - National Dropout Prevention
• Systemic renewal
• Professional development
• Early childhood education
• Alternative schooling
• Instructional technologies
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What Can Be Done to Prevent Dropping Out?
• Organization/administration
• School climate
• Service delivery/instruction
• Instructional content/curriculum
• Staff/teacher culture
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory has characteristics of successful dropout prevention programs (Woods 1999):
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The Most Important Tool To Prevent Dropout
• YOU
• Mentoring is critical to keeping students in school.
• The student must have someone that he or she can identify with.
• The students who leave school (dropout) normally have lost hope in his or her school success.
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Methods Used in GED to Retain
Remember important dates in the
students’ lives
• Birthdays
• Christmas
• Illness in student and family
• Let the students know how much you
care
• McDonalds, Pizza Hut, etc. will give free
stuff that you can give to students
• A handwritten note to let the student
know that you were thinking of them can
really make a difference.
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Methods Used in GED to Retain
Self-addressed and stamped postcards
• The student can send new address
• If the student feels the connection, he or she will
keep in touch.
• The students want their birthday cards. You
might be the only person who remembers their
birthday. This happens more often than you
would think
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Methods Used in GED to Retain
Communication, Communication, Communication
• Calls whenever the student is not there, not just the call to alert the parent that he or she is absent.
• Cards to let student know you are thinking about him or her.
• The students need to feel important to someone. Make yourself that person. Be respectful and keep the communication lines open. The students who come to me know that I will always be up front and honest with
them. This means a great deal to them.
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Conclusion
• There are many things that can be done to retain students.
• However, most of the solutions are administrative changes and are beyond what a counselor or teacher can do.
• Becoming a trusted mentor is the most cost effective and successful strategy that can be effective.
• Mary’s story.