1. Dropping Out of High School
Causes, Consequences, and Solutions
By Blaise A. Russo
October 2013

2. 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.

3. Gather the Evidence
High School Dropouts: A Review of Issues and Evidence
‎‎ ‎
The Declining American High School Graduation Rate: Evidence
The New Gender Gap gender-gap‎

4. Gather the Evidence
Who Drops Out of School and Why - Gevirtz Graduate School of ...
By the Numbers: Dropping Out of High School | Dropout Nation - PBS
Do Dropouts Drop Out Too Soon? International Evidence From ...

5. Identify The Causes Characteristics 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 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.

6. Identify The Causes
Predictive 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
The student’s feeling that no adult in the school cares about his or her welfare

7. Identify The Causes Reasons 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

8. Identify the Consequences
Earnings Potential
Public Assistance
Single Parents
Prisons

9. Evaluate an Existing Policy
Current 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

10. Develop Solutions Agree 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. –
dropouts/#sthash.LFH3JAWD.dpuf

11. 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