Running head: INTERVENTIONS AGAINST THE DROPOUT PROBLEM IN AMERICA

Interventions Against the Dropout Problem in America Fernandel Salomon Harvard University Extension School

1 INTERVENTIONS AGAINST THE DROPOUT PROBLEM IN AMERICA Interventions Against the Dropout Problem in America

What is one of the biggest problems plaguing the American public high school/ post-secondary system? Dropouts. What is dropping out? Dropping out is the act of leaving the school system prior to the expected, and appropriate completion, shortening their education, and expected knowledge needed to successfully transition into society and the workforce. Why is this of great concern? This is a problem because it has a chronic effect socioeconomically for the individuals, the communities, and states in which they reside. In the global economy in which we live in where technology is ever changing and advancements are being made across disciplines, the United States needs to have an educated mass in order to be competitive in the world marketplace. Dropouts are impeding that competitive edge, thus this problem necessitates attention, policy, and intervention. I am going to show you through the review of empirical research what the understood causes are for this problem. I will also show you what is being done through policy, programs and practices and their effects on the student population as well as the school districts in lowering the dropout rate. I will show you as well the negative implications that the dropout problem has on Americas economy, future, and global competitiveness. There is always room for improvement, and thus I will show you the reader what improvements in the battle against the dropout problem would mean for the country and its prosperity. I will show you well-documented, current cases that are positively impacting students, schools, and communities across America. Finally, I will

2 make a recommendation based on the research findings as to where we should be headed in this fight against the dropout problem.

Defining the dropout problem It is expected of students in America to complete 12 years of schooling, including 4 years of compulsory education in order to proceed into adulthood, and progress into higher education learning such as undergraduate, graduate and doctoral education. The four years of compulsory education are called the high school years. Year one (9th grade) is the freshmen year, year two (10th grade) is the sophomore year, year three (11th grade) is the junior year, and year four (12th grade) is the senior year. In the United States, statistics show that there are over 27% of students that are not completing high school. With approximately 7,000 students who are dropping out every school day according to Boostup.org. This equals to nearly 1.3 million students who dont graduate (yearly) (Boostup.org, 2012).

Why is this of great concern? It is understood that historically all students have not been able to graduate from high school, and yet America has enjoyed world leadership in practically all aspects of science, technology, entrepreneurship, security and beyond. Why is dropping out such a problem now? The Alliance for Excellence in Education explains, As we all know, in the past many students didn't finish school and still went on to do well in life. However, those days are gone (The Alliance for Excellence in Education, 2012).

3 What The Alliance for Excellence in Education is referring to is todays world. Our world has seen such great advancements in the past thirty, twenty, or even just the past five years in technology. We have cellphones that can do more than the original computer vacuums that was once only available to large tech companies and research facilities. We have high speed internet, and social media that lets people and businesses connect across the globe with almost no hassle at all. The current global economy is supported by this technology. Countries can only expect to thrive only if they are educating its people to comply to, research and develop such technologies. The Alliance for Excellent Education states, By 2018, over 60 percent of jobs will require some education beyond high school. However, recent projections have estimated we (America) will fall far short of meeting this demand if we continue with our current high school and postsecondary graduation rates (The Alliance for Excellence in Education, 2012).

What have we learned thus far, and what is being done across the country to alleviate this problem? Causes, Effect, Policy, and Intervention According to empirical research by researchers Kimberly L. Henry, Kelly E. Knight and Terrence P. Thornberry a School Disengagement Warning Index shows that the percentage of youth engaged in delinquency and problem substance such as official arrests, and serious violent crimes lead to dropping out in high school. The researchers state, in terms of prevention, measuring early school disengagement may be more beneficial, compared to assessing dropout alone (School Disengagement as a Predictor, 157).

4 One of the biggest causes of dropping out is believed to be chronic absenteeism. Chronic Absenteeism is a student being absent more than 10% or more during a school year for any or no excuse. If a student has missed a month or more of school the previous year this is also considered chronic absenteeism, according to Robert Balfanz of Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. education system is designed for students to attend school every day. Being absent places students at a disadvantage for they are unable to capture the full scope of the curriculum. Also, they often have low motivation for obtaining an education, and do poorly academically. According to CNN, and a study by John Hopkins University approximately 5 to 7.5 million students from kindergarten to the 12th grade/senior year (expected year of postsecondary completion) are chronically absent. This is like missing one school day of out every ten. Maryland is one of six states tracking the issue. In the state of Maryland, approximately 11% of the student population equaling to 85,188 children are chronically absent. Robert Balfanz of John Hopkins University says, Its sort of a hidden problem, like bacteria at a hospital. It actually creates havoc, but we dont know it because we are not measuring it (CNN.com, 2012). It is understood that schools must report absences to state and the federal government. So why then is chronic absenteeism tracked by only six states? A report on absenteeism entitled: The Importance of Being in School: A report on Absenteeism in the Nations Public Schools explains, A school can have average daily attendance of 90 percent and still have 40 percent of its students chronically absent, because on different days, different students make up that 90 percent (Balfanz & Byrnes, 2012). This means

5 that absence on a school level is measured but not chronic absenteeism of individual students.
As part of the No Child Left Behind re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), most states choose to report the average daily attendance of elementary, middle schools, as the second required accountability measure, along with achievement tests in mathematics and English in grades 3 -8. Chronic Absenteeism typically has not been included as a common variable in the various federal student and school surveys (Balfanz

& Byrnes, 8).

Absenteeism is tracked by only six states, and the sheer lack of understanding of its effect undermines policies for change. It is estimated that a national rate as high as 15% of students are chronically absent. This means that 5 million to 7.5 million students are chronically absent (Balfanz & Byrnes, 3).

Which students are affected? The national statistics show that race is not a clear factor and that all States are affected. Among the statistics according to Everyone Graduates Center, White students are currently at a 22% dropout rate, Hispanic students are at a 42% dropout rate, Black students are at a 43% dropout rate, Asian students are at a 17% dropout rate and American Indian students are at a 46% dropout rate in America. This means that half of Blacks, American Indians, and Hispanics will not have the general education to meet the basic requirements of society, and the workforce.

Who is to blame? Clearly some may say the failing students themselves are at fault, but there are factors that lead them astray. Socioeconomic Barriers can make high school graduation

6 very difficult to obtain. According to the Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings Currently, about 10% of the nations high schools generate about half of the nations dropouts (Whitehurst &Whitfield, 8). These schools are often located in inner cities, with many low-income students attending. In these schools often coined as dropout factories according to the study by all4ed.org, have only 60 percent or fewer of freshmen progress to senior year on time (all4ed.org, 2012). This means that graduating is neither the norm nor the expectation in those schools.

Policy Alternatives Of the nations high schools there are 61 schools that hold students who are extremely chronically absent. We find a population of 250 or more students who are not in school for over a month in the school year. Absenteeism is detrimental in sheer number in certain high-poverty school districts. The Importance of Being in School report states, Oregon and Rhode Island (two of the six states) close to 1 in 5 students does not attend school regularly and misses essentially a month or more of schooling in a year. In some high-poverty school districts this can climb to more than 1 in 3 students. There are even high schools where 75 percent of the students do not attend regularly (Balfanz & Byrnes, 3). New York Mayor Bloomberg created Chronic Absenteeism Task Force to lead preventative measures to the dropout problem. More than30,000 students in New York get wake-up and get-to-school calls from Michael Jordan, Whoopi Goldberg or one of the Yankees ( Balfanz & Byrnes, 35). Phone calls to students in the morning, tutoring, and celebrating positive behavior have led to an 83% decrease in absenteeism at Browne Education Campus in Washington, DC., a 45% decrease in absenteeism at

7 Miami Jackson High School according to the Importance of Being in School empirical research ( Balfanz & Byrnes, 35).

EWIs Data gathering needs to improve. With only six states addressing the issue, the effort to curb chronic absenteeism which leads to a high number of dropouts remains a challenge and an opportunity for improvement. Analyses of data from Chicago show that course performance in the ninth grade was the strongest predictor of the likelihood that students would graduate, and by far the strongest predictor of course performance. Even moderate amounts of absenteeism had strong impacts ( Balfanz & Byrnes, 25). EWIs or Early Warning Indicators are providing insights for policy interventions. According to empirical research by Associate Professor Martha Abele Mac Iver at the Center for Social Organization of Schools, early warning indicators such as chronic absenteeism, failing one or more core courses, and suspensions of three or more days in their last year before high school (8th grade) if at an 81% EWI then student has a 69.6% certainty of not graduating (Mac Iver & Messel, 21-23).

Early intervention Early intervention is at the forefront of the fight against the dropout problem. Research Dr. Robert Balfanz has found indicators that predict the high likelihood of dropping out, he calls it the ABCs Attendance, Behavior, and Course Performance (Frontline PBS 2012, 1). The data shows that attendance, behavior, and course performance in middle school (the years prior to high school) will determine the

8 likelihood of a student dropping out of high school. Balfanz states, The process of dropping out begins in middle school (Frontline PBS 2012, 2). This is where habits that lead to propping out are formed. In New York City Middle School 244 they have adapted an upfront prevention based on the ABC data. Principal Dolores Peterson of Middle School 244 says, Every week at the school, statistics are collected and reviewed by a team of counselors and teachers. The students most in need are flagged and their assigned counselor organizes an intervention (Frontline PBS, 2012, 2). A student by the name of Omarina Cabrera is a recipient of these interventions. Her mom got evicted when she was in middle school, her dad passed away, she was beginning to be chronically absent, then the interventions occurred. She is now on time in school, doing superbly well in her academics and has recently been accepted to an elite boarding school in Massachusetts. The ABC system can be tailored to any grade to intervene and ensure a support to success model.

The Grad Nation Marshall Plan Awareness and interventions across the country are continuing to lower dropout rates nationwide. The Civic Marshall Plan to build a Grad Nation, a national movement launched by Americas Promise Alliance in 2010 is reporting promising results towards ending Americas dropout problem. The Grad Nation Marshall Plan establishes clear benchmarks and goals for schools, non-profit organizations to adopt in order to obtain a 90% graduation rate nationwide by 2020. The initial results show great promise. The nations graduation rate increased three and a half percentage points from 2001-2009, and inched up half of a percentage point to 75.5 percent from 2008 to 2009

9 (Balfanz, Bridgeland, Moore, Fox, 6). The problem of dropout factories (as discussed on page 5 under: Who is to blame?) the schools which produce 40 % of dropouts yet only represent 10% of public high schools have decline by 23%. There were 457 fewer dropout factory high schools in 2010 than in 2002 (Balfanz et al., 6). Furthermore during the school year 2009-2010 dropout factories fell from 1,634 to 1,550 (Balfanz et al., 7). This resulted in 790,000 fewer students that were associated with those schools. The overarching success data that we can see is that the speed of decline is increasing. This change is happening across the country. The Report states, Tennessee and New York continue to lead the nation with double digits in high school graduation rates over the same period (Balfanz et al., 5). Dropout factories have declined particularly within suburbs and towns and in the South, and at a more accelerated rate within cities in recent years (Balfanz et al., 5). Finally, a small intervention that has brought big returns: The compulsory school attendance age the age that states allow high school students to dropout. The Building a Grad Nation reports:
Of the states with graduation rates above the national average, 63 percent have a compulsory school age law of 17 or 18. The majority of states now have a compulsory school age of 17 or 18 and in the past decade alone, 12 states such as Indiana, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island have updated their laws by increasing the legal dropout age. Some states, such as Tennessee and West Virginia, are following the recommendations of the National Conference of State Legislatures and creatively linking the compulsory law with enforcements (Balfanz et al., 9).

Can solving the dropout problem help improve Americas prosperity?

The Alliance for Excellent Education estimates that if the 1.3 million high school dropouts from the Class of 2010 had earned their diplomas instead of dropping out, the U.S. economy would

10
have seen an additional $337 billion in wages over these students' lifetimes. And that's only for one year-the country can expect to lose well over $300 billion in potential earnings next year as well, due to dropouts from the Class of 2011. If this annual pattern is allowed to continue, 13 million students will drop out of school during the next decade at a cost to the nation of more than $3 trillion (all4ed.org 2012).

Simply stated: The Best Economic Stimulus Package Is a High School Diploma (all4ed.org 2012) Recommendations I recommend continued research in better understanding the causes of dropping out. As we can see, the key implications of the readings suggest that research is enabling us to better understand the problem of dropping out and what the numbers mean, as in the case of the chronic absenteeism. The support for early interventions and early warning indicators (EWI) serve as a good source for understanding the problem and developing properly tailored intervention programs detailed to state, districts, individual schools, and even individual students. Middle school years are the foundational years to high school. Therefore we must engage and prepare our students for high school readiness taking preventative measures prior to high school. A key policy decision that I would recommend would be the acceptance by all states in recording, reporting, and responding to chronic absenteeism. Chronic Absenteeism undermines all present and future policies because if the students are not in school, then they cannot learn nor graduate. As General Colin Powell, Founding Chair of Americas Promise Alliance says, We have to continue to make good progress, but we also have much work ahead to achieve our goal of a 90 percent high school graduation rate (Building a Grad Nation, 2).

11 Bibliography
Alliance for Excellence in Education.Search: Impact, United States, Students. Retrieved October 25,2012http://www.all4ed.org/about_the_crisis /impacthttp://www.all4ed.org/about_the_crisis/students/grad_rateshttp://www.all4 ed.org/files/UnitedStates_hs.pdf http://www.all4ed.org/files/Volume12No18.pdf Balfanz, R., Bridgeland, J. M., Moore, L. A., Fox, J., Civic, E., & Johns Hopkins University, E. (2010). Building a Grad Nation: Progress and Challenge in Ending The High School Dropout Epidemic. Civic Enterprises, BALFANZ, R., & BYRNES, V. (2012). The Importance of Being in School: A Report on Absenteeism in the Nation's Public Schools. Education Digest, 78(2), 4-9.

Boostup.org.The Facts. Retrieved October 08, 2012http://boostup.org/en CNN 2012 (http://schoolsofthought.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/07/schools-battle-chronicabsenteeism/?iref=allsearch) Report on Absenteeism: http://new.every1graduates.org/theimportance-of-being-in-school/ Frontline PBS. Middle School Moment, July 17, 2012, 10:21 pm et www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/education/dropout-nation

Martha Abele Mac Iver & Matthew Messel 2012. Predicting High School Outcomes in the Baltimore City Public School Volume v ii. The Senior Urban Education Research Fellowship Series Whitehurst, G. J., Whitfield, S., & Brookings Institution, B. (2012). Compulsory School Attendance: What Research Says and What It Means for State Policy. Brookings Institution,