Dropout

This 2011 National Center for Education Statistics Congressionally-mandated report covers all aspects of education in America, with 50 indicators that include findings on enrollment trends, demographics, and outcomes. This report also features a closer look at postsecondary education by institution level and status (public, private not-for-profit, or private for-profit), describes the current state of postsecondary education, and how it has been changing in recent decades.

This report from the Alliance for Excellent Education discusses possible reforms to ESEA using New York City’s Multiple Pathways to Graduation initiative as an example of how to create flexible policy to help high school students graduate college and career ready. The author examines the effects of federal policy on off-track students and provides recommendations that include increased focus on policies that address the needs of off track students and new metrics for school performance that take into account improvements among at risk students.

This study, published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, finds that students who are not proficient in reading by the third grade are four times more likely to leave high school without a diploma than proficient readers. The longitudinal study of about 4,000 students breaks down the likelihood of graduation for students with different reading skill levels and different poverty backgrounds, and finds that 22 percent of children who have lived in poverty do not graduate from high school, compared to 6 percent of those who have never been poor.

This policy brief by the National Education Policy Center discusses the characteristics, benefits, and challenges of Linked Learning, a school framework in which academic content is integrated with career and technical education (CTE), and the two content areas are contextualized in real-world situations.

This report from Jobs for the Future examines the GED as a pathway to postsecondary success. Authors John Garvey and Terry Grobe note that although 60 percent of GED test takers express a desire to further their education beyond the GED and nearly half of all GED holders go on to postsecondary education, only 4 percent earn a degree. They argue that GED test takers are poorly prepared for college, partly because the GED narrowly focuses on passing the minimum standards of the exam, rather than building comprehensive literacy and numeracy skills.

This brief, sponsored by Alliance for Excellent Education, Civic Enterprises, and the Data Quality Campaign, discusses the importance of using data at various levels within the education system. The authors describe the use to of data in identifying students at risk of dropping out as well as in identifying if students are college and career ready. The brief also identifies challenges, including making sure that data is accessible while protecting privacy, and linking data across systems.

This report from the Coalition for Community Schools discusses how eight high schools across the country are decreasing dropout rates as community schools. The author examines how these schools have been increasing achievement and preparing students for careers, college and life through focused leadership, robust partnerships, and critical programs and services. Case studies on each of the schools are included, highlighting background, programs and services, partnerships, leadership, and results.

This issue brief, sponsored by the Alliance for Excellent Education, discusses using multiple pathways to prepare students for college and career. The author examines the effects of California’s multiple pathways programs on high school students, concluding that multiple pathways can increase high school graduation rates, engagement, achievement, and college and career readiness. The author also provides recommendations that include addressing federal laws, funding stream structures, and policies that inhibit multiple pathway programs.

This technical manual developed by the National High School Center provides instructions on how to use the Center’s Early Warning System Tool v2.0.

This report from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Educational Laboratory details the characteristics of 58 dropout prevention programs in nine districts in the Mid-Atlantic region. The goal of this report was to collect information on dropout prevention programs to be added to the dropout database developed as part of an earlier Northeast and Islands REL study. The report presents characteristics of the dropout programs reviewed, though the authors acknowledge that only one of the programs in the report has been reviewed by the What Works Clearinghouse.