SPECIAL REPORT
Enhance
Why Students
Drop Out
A
pproximately one-third of
all high school students
in the United States fail to
graduate.' For blacks and
Hispanics, the rate rises
to 50 percent. Why are students drop-
ping out in droves? No one knows
better than the students themselves.
A recent study by Civic Enterprises
for the Bill and Melinda Gates Founda-
tion examined the views of diverse
youth, ages 16-25, wbo
had failed to complete
higb sebool.^ The Silent
Epidemic: Perspectives oj
High School Dropouts lists
students' reasons for
leaving school and suggests
actions tbat scbools, states,
and tbe federal govern-
ment can take.
The Top Five
The dropouts in tbe study identified
five major reasons for leaving school.
Tbey were bored v>'ith school (47
percent); had missed too many days and
could not catch up (43 percent); spent
time with people who were not inter-
ested in school (42 percent); had too
much freedom and not enough rules in
ibeir lives (38 percent); and were
failing (35 percent).
A majority of students said that they
were not motivated to work hard, but
that they would have worked harder
bad their teacbers demanded more.
Seventy percent believed tbat they
could have graduated if tbey had tried.
Many students gave personal
reasons for leaving school, which
included the need to get a job, parent-
hood, or ba\ing to care for family
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members. Nearly half (45 percent)
noted that earlier schooling had poorly
prepared ibem for bigb school.
Close to three-quarters ofthe students
(71 percent) indicated that tbey started
becoming disinterested in higb school as
early as 9th and 10th grades. Students
noted that they would often go to scbool
late, take long lunches, or skip classes or
school entirely Parents didn't oversee
their child's attendance. Only one-fifth of
parents were "very"
0 \ involved in their child's
schooling. Many were
involved for discipline—
;ind not instructional—
purposes. working professionals who wanf •
Most students expressed make a difference in education. I
part-time, completely online progr
regret for ba\ing dropped
that provides a personalized approach
imt of scbool. Fighty-one in meeting your needs, whether you
jiercent said that gradu- are seeking a principal's certificate, a
ating from high scbool m . i s t c ' s i.l!'L|io i[i e d u c a t i o n , or a w a y
was important lo success to enhance your teaching and leader-
in life. Seventy-four percent said tbat if ship skills.
they could relive the experience, they
THE SUPERINTENDENT LETTER
would bave stayed in school. OF ELIGIBILITY PROGRAM can be
rotnpleted in seven semesters at y-*-^
What Could Help :!iat are convenient for you. j
Most dropouts blamed tbemselves— For more information contact us 9
ratber than their schools or teacbers— 866-595-6348, e-mail: calugo@cup.i
for dropping out. Nevertbeless, tbey or visit us at wwwxup.edu/go.
suggested five actions that schools
California Univer.sily of Pennsylvania is accfJ
could take to improve students' chances by the Commission on Higher Education of the
of completing scbool: Middle Slates Assoctat.ron of Colleges and
Schools and the Natiofial Council for
• Make school more engaging
Accfediiation of Teacher Education. Pennsylj
through real-world, experiential Di'par(intent of tducation-approved progra|
learning. Students want to see tbe
connection between scbool and work.
• Improve instruction and supports
for struggling learners. These include
better teachers, smaller classes, more
indi'vddualized instruction, more California Univeraity of R-nnsylvania
tutoring, and extra time with teachers.
ASSOCIATION FOR SUPERVISION AND CURRICULUM 91

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92 F.iii ( A I u i N A i . Li.,'\niKst 2007
• Improve school climate. A majority
of students believed that schools need
•;\ i L.
greater supervision and classroom disci-
pline. More than half said schools
should do more to protect students
from violence,
• Ensure that students have a rela-
tionship with at least one adult in the
school. Only 56 percent of students said
that they could go to a staff person for
help with school prohlems; only 41
percent said that they could talk to an
adult in school ahout personal prohlems.
• Improve communication hetween
parents and schools. Fewer than half of
students said that their schools
contacted them or their parents when
they were ahsent or had dropped out.
Next Steps
The report suggests a multipronged
approach to dealing with the dropout
epidemic. Schools and communities
Elementary school should promote experiential leaming.
smaller leaming communities, and alter-
native schools. They should strengthen
communication with parents to ensure
that students come to school. Schools
also need to develop districtwide early-
warning systems—tracking absen-
teeism, for example—to identify
Middle School students at risk of dropping out and
provide more supports.
States should raise the legal dropout
age to 18 and develop data systems that
accurately reflect graduation and
dropout rates. The lederal govemment
should review the Current Population
Survey and other data it collects to
Higl) School ensure its accuracy. In addition, it
should provide incentives under No
Child Left Behind for schools to raise
test scores and graduation rates. Finally,
the government needs to evaluate
dropout prevention programs and help
disseminate best practices.
The report suggests that a transforma-
tion is required in the way we view
dropouts. We should see dropouts "not
as problems to be solved, hut as poten-
tial to be fulfilled." Bl
' Swanson, C. B. (2004). Who graduates?
Who doesn't? A statisUcal portrait ofpuhtic high
Sihoaigraduation. Ocuioj200l. Washington,
DC: The Urban Institute,
 ^ 77it' Silent Epidemic: Perspectives oj High
School Dropouta is available at www.gates
fou nciation, or^nr/downl oads/edThe
SllcniEpideniic3-06FlNAL.pdf.

Amy M.Azzam is Senior Associate

Editor, Educational Leadership;
aazzam@ascd.org.

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