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Dropouts reflect on why they left sc . . .
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Dropouts reflect on why they left school, how schools can help students graduate
States should consider raising the age when
students can legally leave school from 16 or 17
to 18, says a report commissioned by the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation that is based on
interviews with 467 dropouts aged 16 through
25.
"Students identified 'too much freedom' as a
key factor that enabled them to drop out of
school, and attendance is a strong predictor of
dropping out," says the report, The Silent Epidemic
Perspectives of High School Dropouts
(www.gatesfoundation.org).
"Typically in 10th grade, a 16-year-old student
has new found authority under law to make
a choice," the report says. "We question the
soundness of this policy, particularly since our
nation guarantees, and provides substantial resources
for a public education through 12th
grade.
"Our educated guess (and hope) is that raising
maximum compulsory school age requirements--
specifically raising the legal dropout age
to 18--would . . . have a significant effect on
reducing the dropout rate." The key, says the
report, is to couple the change "with welltrained
staffs, more manageable caseloads,
working with other government agencies to support
parents and guardians who struggle to keep
their children in school, and efforts to address
the issues that caused students to leave school."
While some states do not allow students to
drop out until they are 18, there are also many
exemptions with a school district's or parents'
permission or for employment, the study notes.
Dropouts cited these personal reasons for
leaving school:
- 32% needed a job;
- 26% became parents; and
- 22% had to care for a family member.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation report,
based on interviews with a diverse population
of dropouts in 25 urban areas, suburbs and
towns across the country, is a valuable resource
for educators and administrators who want to
gain insight into the dropout problem and who
want to work to improve the graduation rates at
their schools.
Classes not interesting
When dropouts themselves discussed why
they had left school in one-on-one interviews
and also in four focus groups, nearly 47% said
that "classes were not interesting." This was
among the top reasons cited by youths with high
GPAs. and who said they were motivated to
spent time with other youths who were not
interested in school.
Among other comments by dropouts were
that they would have worked harder if more was
demanded (67%) and that they lost interest in
school in 9th or 10th grade (71%).
When asked what schools could to improve
students' chances of staying in school:
- 81% said there should be more opportunities
for real-world and experiential
learning so that students could see a
connection between school and a good
job;
- 75% wanted smaller classes and one-onone
attention by teachers;
- 55% felt that more help is needed for
students who have problems learning;
- 70% believed more tutoring, summer
school and extra time with teachers
would have improved their chances of
graduation; and
- 81% said they wanted better teachers.
One study cited in the report ("The Distribution of
Dropout and Turnover Rates among Urban and Suburban
High Schools." Sociology of Education 73 2000:
55-56) found that if students perceive their
teachers to be of higher quality, they are less
likely to drop out.
Absenteeism warning sign
"Dropping out of high school is not a sudden
act, but a slow process of disengagement,
often both academically and socially," the study
says. Some 59-65% of youths missed class often
the year they dropped out and 33-45% missed
class often the year before they dropped out.
Missing too much school was the second most
often cited reason for dropping out.
"Students described a pattern of refusing to
wake up, missing school, skipping class, and
taking three hour lunches--and each absence
made them less willing to go back."
In the Philadelphia focus group one
dropout, who only attended school once a week,
said that his best days in school were when he
worked hard and could talk about what he
learned at home. When asked why he only went
to school once a week, he said it was because he
had too much freedom in the school environment.
"The streets would call you," he said.
"Being there listening to somebody talking to
you all day, writing on the board, and then you
start looking outside at the streets… . We got to
leave for lunch in my school. And then once we
got out there, smelled that fresh air… ."
In the focus groups, participants talked
about the lack of rules--of being late for school,
skipping classes and hanging out in the hallways
with no consequences. One Baltimore youth
said, "Like in the middle of the year, I just
started going out with my friends, and I never
went to school. It's like I forgot about it."
Too much freedom
"'Too much freedom' seemed to relate to
the most basic conditions in the school--lack of
order, discipline and rules, making sure students
attended class, and even limiting chaos that
made students feel unsafe," the report says.
When asked what their schools could do to
keep students in school:
- 68% said keep students from skipping
classes;
- 62% said maintain classroom discipline;
- 57% said help students feel safe from
violence.
What schools can do
To encourage students to stay in school, the
youths recommended that schools ensure that
students have a strong relationship with at least
one adult in the school.
"These young people craved one-on-one
attention from their teachers, and when they
received it, they remembered it making a difference,"
the study says. "Participants in the focus
groups recounted that some of their best days
were when their teachers noticed them, got
them involved in class, and told them they were
doing well."
Increase parental involvement
The dropouts said schools should improve
communication with parents and increase
parental involvement. Less than half said their
school contacted their parents or themselves
when they were absent (47%) or when they
dropped out (48%), the report says.
"Studies have shown that students with
parents who are engaged in their lives--by monitoring
and regulating their activities, talking
with them about their problems, encouraging
individual decision-making and being more involved
in the school--are less likely to drop out
of school," the report says.
The majority of parents were not aware of
their child's grades or that they were about to
drop out, the youths said. The youths suggested
that increased parental involvement could influence
students to come to school every day and
attend classes. Communication between parents
and schools is critical to identifying and addressing
problems early, the report says.
Recommendations for change
Based on the feedback in four focus groups and
in interviews with 467 dropouts, the foundation
made these additional recommendations for
change, especially in districts that have a high
dropout rate:
Offer more school choices Students in the
survey wanted classes more relevant to their
interests and work lives and also wanted smaller
classes and schools. The Foundation concluded
that alternative high schools, theme-based
schools, such as ones that focus on science or
the arts, or even schools with a rigorous curriculum,
could help keep more students in school.
Create Individualized graduation plans
One way to increase involvement of parents, the
study suggests, is by developing individualized
graduation plans for each student, particularly
those at risk of dropping out. These plans would
help the parents become more aware of the
specific requirements for their high school students
and would also help them advocate for
their child.
Create early warning systems Schools
and districts need to develop early warning systems
to identify students who are less likely to
succeed in school, the study says. This system
should take into accounts students who transfer
from school to school.
One clear trigger is
absenteeism. "Every day, schools should have a
reliable list of the students who failed to attend
school and should notify parents or guardians
immediately and take appropriate action to ensure
students attend school and have the support
they need to remain in school," the study
says.
Improve accuracy of graduation rates No
Child Left Behind has placed a new focus on
graduation rates, but the accountability provisions
need to be monitored and enforced, the
study says. "It's not unusual for a school to
report a 10% dropout rate when the number of
graduates is 70% lower than the number of
ninth graders who enrolled four years earlier,"
the researchers say. "Schools often have little or
no information about what has happened to a
student who disappears, and they tend to make
optimistic guesses." Top five reasons for
dropping out of school:
Classes were not interesting 47%
Missed too many days of school 43%
Friends not interested in school 42%
Too much freedom 38%
Failing in school 35%
"The Silent Epidemic Perspectives
of High School Dropouts"
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
March 2006 www.gatesfoundation.org
Published in ERN March 2006 Volume 19 Number 3
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