Drop-out Rates

Publications

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SYNOPSIS
CITATION
Getting Honest about Grad Rates: How States Play the Numbers and Students Lose.

This document discusses what is needed for accurate graduation rates and provides data on state graduation rates, along with adequate yearly progress information. 

Hall, D. (2005). Getting Honest about Grad Rates: How States Play the Numbers and Students Lose. Education Trust.

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SYNOPSIS
CITATION
Withdrawing from School

This paper describes two models for understanding dropping out as a developmental process that may begin in the earliest grades.

Finn, J. D. (1989). Withdrawing from school. Review of educational research59(2), 117-142.

The Link Between School Attendance and Good Health.

The American Academy of Pediatrics just released a policy statement regarding the negative impact that chronic student absenteeism has on children’s health. They cite numerous ways the two are linked. 

Allison, M. A., & Attisha, E. (2019). The Link Between School Attendance and Good Health. Pediatrics, e20183648.

 

ACHIEVEMENT AND ENROLLMENT STATUS OF SUSPENDED STUDENTS: Outcomes in a Large, Multicultural School District

This article presents the results of longitudinal retrospective analyses on suspensions, achievement, and long-term enrollment status of students in a large, urban school district. Findings indicated that suspended students had substantially lower presuspension achievement than did students in the comparison group, gained considerably less academically throughout 3 years with suspensions, and had high drop-out rates.

Arcia, E. (2006). Achievement and enrollment status of suspended students: Outcomes in a large, multicultural school district. Education and Urban Society38(3), 359-369.

The flip side of the coin: Understanding the school's contribution to dropout and completion.

Using a structural perspective from organizational theory, the authors review aspects of schooling associated with dropout. They then briefly review selected reform initiatives that restructure the school environment to improve student achievement and retention. 

Baker, J. A., Derrer, R. D., Davis, S. M., Dinklage-Travis, H. E., Linder, D. S., & Nicholson, M. D. (2001). The flip side of the coin: Understanding the school's contribution to dropout and completion. School psychology quarterly16(4), 406.

Understanding Dropouts: Statistics, Strategies, and High-Stakes Testing.

This book examines research on the problem of student dropouts and standardized and high stakes testing. Information comes from papers presented at a 2000 workshop in which experts offered their diverse perspectives and technical expertise.

Beatty, A., Neisser, U., Trent, W. T., & Heubert, J. P. (2001). Understanding Dropouts: Statistics, Strategies, and High-Stakes Testing. National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Avenue, NW, Lockbox 285, Washington, DC 20055.

The Effects of High School Organization on Dropping Out: An Exploratory Investigation

This paper examines the effects of school characteristics on both the probability of dropping out and the strongest predictor of dropping out-absenteeism.

Bryk, A. S., & Thum, Y. M. (1989). The effects of high school organization on dropping out: An exploratory investigation. American Educational research journal26(3), 353-383.

Opportunities suspended: The devastating consequences of zero tolerance and school discipline policies. Report from a national summit on zero tolerance.

This is the first comprehensive national report to scrutinize the impact of strict Zero Tolerance approach in the America public school. This report illustrate that Zero Tolerance is unfair, is contrary to developmental needs of children, denies children educational opportunities, and often results in the criminalization of children. 

Civil Rights Project. (2000). Opportunities suspended: The devastating consequences of zero tolerance and school discipline policies.

Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Groups 2018

This report examines key indicators on the educational progress and challenges students face in the United States by race/ethnicity.  The report also has special sections on public school teachers by race/ethnicity and characteristics of post-secondary institutions serving specific minority racial/ethnic groups. 

de Brey, C., Musu, L., McFarland, J., Wilkinson-Flicker, S., Diliberti, M., Zhang, A., Branstetter, C., and Wang, X. (2019). Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Groups 2018 (NCES 2019-038). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved [date] from https://nces.ed.gov/ pubsearch/.

Student Truancy

This Digest examines some of the ways that truancy affects both individuals and society. It identifies factors that may place students at greater risk of becoming truant and lists some consequences of nonattendance, including delayed promotion and graduation, lowered self-esteem, and lessened employment potential.

DeKalb, J. (1999). Student truancy. ERIC Digest

The For-Profit Postsecondary School Sector: Nimble Critters or Agile Predators?

This study describe the schools, students, and programs in the for-profit higher education sector, it's phenomenal recent growth, and it's relationship to the federal and state governments. The study find that for-profit institutions educate a larger fraction of minority, disadvantaged, and older students, and they have greater success at reatining students in their first year and fetting them to complete short programs at the certificate and AA levels. But they also find that the for-profit students end-up with higher unemployment and "idleness" rates and lower earning six years after entering programs than do comparable students from other schools. and they have far greater student debt burdens and default rates on their student loans.

Deming, David J., Claudia Goldin, and Lawrence F. Katz. 2012. "The For-Profit Postsecondary School Sector: Nimble Critters or Agile Predators?" Journal of Economic Perspectives26 (1): 139-64.

Why Urban Adolescents Drop into and out of Public High School.
The author analyzed the economic and social arrangements, school policies and practices, and individual and collective psychologies of adolescent dropouts from a comprehensive high school in New York City.
 

Fine, M. (1986). Why urban adolescents drop into and out of public high school. Teachers College Record87(3), 393-409.

School characteristics related to student engagement.

This investigation examines the aspect of the structural and regulatory environment of schools to identify features that are associated with higher levels of engagement among eighth-grade students at risk.

Finn, J. D., & Voelkl, K. E. (1993). School characteristics related to student engagement. The Journal of Negro Education62(3), 249-268.

Truancy: First step to a lifetime of problems

This brief describes seven promising programs that have developed a coordinated response to reduce truancy and juvenile delinquency.

Garry, E. M. (1996). Truancy: First Step to a Lifetime of Problems. Juvenile justice bulletin.

Public school graduation rates in the United States

This report uses a newly defined version of the Greene Method to calculate graduation rates for the public school class of 2000, comparing results to those of 1998.

Greene, J. P., & Winters, M. A. (2002). Public School Graduation Rates in the United States. Civic Report.

High school dropouts cost everyone something!

There are both personal and societal costs of dropping out. 

Hale, L. F. (1998). School dropout prevention: Information and strategies for parents. National Association of School Psychologists. Retrieved September30, 2005.

Students' Attachment and Academic Engagement: The Role of Race and Ethnicity

In this study, the authors examined whether students of different racial-ethnic groups vary in attachment and engagement and whether properties of schools (eg, racial-ethnic composition) influence these outcomes over
and above individual characteristics. 

Johnson, M. K., Crosnoe, R., & Elder Jr, G. H. (2001). Students' attachment and academic engagement: The role of race and ethnicity. Sociology of education, 318-340.

Dropout Prevention in the Time of COVID-19

Students on the path toward dropping out of high school often exhibit signals that they are at risk well before they stop engaging in school. As school closures due to COVID-19 separate students from structured routines and educational supports, the number of disengaged students may continue to grow.

Kassner, L., Jonas, D., and Klein, S. (2020). Dropout Prevention in the Time of COVID-19. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, What Works Clearinghouse.

Are we closing the school discipline gap?

This report examines data on out of school suspension rates in every school district in the country. 

Losen, D. J., Hodson, C. L., Keith, I. I., Michael, A., Morrison, K., & Belway, S. (2015). Are we closing the school discipline gap?.

Trends in High School Dropouts and Completion Rates in the United States: 2018

This report updates a series of NCES reports on high school dropout and completion rates that began in 1988. The report draws on a wide array of surveys and administrative data sets to present statistics on high school dropout and completion rates at the state and national levels. The report also includes data on the percentage of students who graduate with a regular diploma within four years of starting ninth grade (adjusted cohort graduation rates) and data on alternative high school credentials. 

McFarland, J., Cui, J., Rathbun, A., & Holmes, J. (2018). Trends in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States: 2018. Compendium Report. NCES 2019-117. National Center for Education Statistics.

Trends in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States: 2018

This report provides a detailed analysis of long-term dropout and completion trends and student characteristics of high school dropouts and completers. The first measure examined was the “event dropout rate” which is the percent of students who drop out in grades 10-12 without a high school diploma or alternative credential. The event dropout rate for SY 2015-16 was 4.8%, which translated into 532,000 students.

McFarland, J., Cui, J., Rathbun, A., and Holmes, J. (2018). Trends in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States: 2018 (NCES 2019-117). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved December 14, 2018 from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.

Trend in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States:2018.

This report provides the most recent year of data available for each dropout and completion rate, summarizes long-term trends, and examines the characteristics of high school dropouts and completers. 

McFarland, J., Cui, J., Rathbun, A., and Holmes, J. (2019). Trend in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States:2018. National Center for Education Statistics. NCES 2019-117 US Department of Education.

K–12 education: Discipline disparities for black students, boys, and students with disabilities.

This report examines: (1) patterns in disciplinary actions among public K-12 schools; (2) challenges selected school districts have with student behavior and how they approach school discipline; and (3) actions the Departments of Education and Justice have taken to identify and address disparities or discrimination in school discipline.

Nowicki, J. M. (2018). K-12 Education: Discipline Disparities for Black Students, Boys, and Students with Disabilities. Report to Congressional Requesters. GAO-18-258. US Government Accountability Office.

Losing our future: How minority youth are being left behind by the graduation rate crisis

This report seeks to highlight some disparities to draw the public’s and policymakers’ attention to the urgent need to address this educational and civil rights crisis. Using a more accurate method for calculating graduation rates, they provide estimates of high school graduation rates, distinguished at the state and district level, and disaggregated by race.

Orfield, G., Losen, D., Wald, J., & Swanson, C. B. (2004). Losing our future: How minority youth are being left behind by the graduation rate crisis. Civil Rights Project at Harvard University (The).

Do Charter Middle Schools Improve Students’ College Outcomes?

This study examines the impact of Charter schools on college enrollment. The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE) used college enrollment and completion data for students who (more than a decade ago) entered lotteries to be admitted to 31 charter middle schools across the United States.The results show that admission to a charter middle school did not affect college outcomes. Additionally, the study finds no consistent relationship between the impact a charter middle school achievement and the school’s impact on college outcomes.

Place, K., & Gleason, P. Do Charter Middle Schools Improve Students’ College Outcomes? (Study Highlights) (No. 61bd53574633412b9136328cb4e143ef). Mathematica Policy Research.

11 Million Days Lost: Race, Discipline, and Safety at U.S. Public Schools: Part I

This descriptive summary is one of the first reviews to examine the number of days of “lost instruction” resulting from student suspensions. The study examines the total number of days lost nationwide, disparities among different student subgroups, and differences across individual states. The impact of loss of instruction due to suspensions has a lifelong impact on students, including: lower graduation rates (Rumberger and Losen, 2017), increased involvement in the juvenile justice system (Mowicki, 2018), and arrests as adults Rosenbaum (2018).

 

Russell W. Rumberger and Daniel J.Losen, The Hidden Cost of California’s Harsh School Discipline, The Civil Rights Project at UCLA, (2017) Retrieved from http://www.schooldisciplinedata.org/ccrr/docs/CostofSuspensionReportFinal.pdf

Janet Rosenbaum (2018). Educational and Criminal Justice Outcomes 12 Years After School Suspension. Youth & Society.

Jacqueline M. Mowicki, Discipline Disparities for Black Students, Boys and Students with Disabilities, GAO (March 2018). Retrieved from http://www.gao.gov/assets/700/690828.pdf

Public School Graduates and Dropouts from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2008–09

This report presents findings associated with public high school graduation and event dropout counts for the 2008–09 school year. These data were collected as part of the Common Core of Data Survey Collection, a universe collection of public schools operating in the United States and associated other jurisdictions. 

Stillwell, R., Sable, J., & Plotts, C. (2011). Public school graduates and dropouts from the common core of data: School year 2008–09. (NCES 2011-312). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved from http:// nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2011312

Predicting high school graduation and dropout for at-risk students: A multilevel approach to measure school effectiveness.

This paper predicts high school graduation and dropout for at-risk students in one of the largest school districts in the United States using the 2007-2010 Florida high school graduation cohort.

Subedi, B. R., & Howard, M. (2013). Predicting high school graduation and dropout for at-risk students: A multilevel approach to measure school effectiveness. Advances in Education2(1), 11–17.

The consequences of dropping out of high school.

This paper outlines the consequences that these young people face after leaving high school. 

Sum, A., Khatiwada, I., McLaughlin, J., & Palma, S. (2009). The consequences of dropping out of high school. (Paper 23). Retrieved from Center for Labor Market Studies Publications website: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/d20000596

Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment

Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2013). Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment. [Table A-4]. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab4.htm

A uniform, comparable graduation rate: How the final regulations for Title I hold schools, districts, and states accountable for improving graduation rates

The final regulations establish a uniform and more accurate measure of calculating high school graduation rate that is comparable across states; strengthen public school choice and supplemental educational services requirements; and increase accountability and transparency.

U.S. Department of Education. (2008). A uniform, comparable graduation rate: How the final regulations for Title I hold schools, districts, and states accountable for improving graduation rates. Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/reg/proposal/uniform-grad-rate.pdf

Student Engagement at School: A Sense of Belonging and Participation: Results from PISA 2000

This report examines students’ sense of belonging and participation at school, two of the most important measures of student engagement.

 

Willms, J. D. (2003). Student engagement at school: A sense of belonging and participation. Results from PISA 2000. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

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