High School Dropout Research
Growing Trends in High School Drop-outs
One of the major concerns of education is the rate of students who are dropping out of school. Statistically, the dropout rate has decreased from a national average of 15 percent in 1972 to 10 percent in 2003, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, which rated 16-24 year olds (Child Trend, 2003). Though, there has been signs of a decrease, drop out rates continue to be a concern to the public because of the potential consequences and financial costs to the government. On the academic level, many schools are incapable of handling the new “faces” in the education realm. Thus, it forces many students to leave school without a diploma. The drop out rates appears to be an attribute of primarily bigger cities and districts that are composed of high minority enrollment. With the introduction of the No Child Left Behind Act, information about these schools is now available (Swanson, 2004). In order to curtail the rate of drop-outs, schools need more resources, better teachers, parent/community involvement, and financial means to accommodate their pupils so that these same students don’t end up being a greater financial risk to the public. There are plenty of examples of successful high school dropouts, such as Henry Ford and Albert Einstein. However, they remain to be exceptions. High school dropouts, including those who earn GEDs, earn less money than those who earn a high school diploma. One of the reasons is that they “tend to come from lower-income families than conventional high school graduates. Their parents were less likely to have completed high school” (Murnane & Tyler, 2000). It is difficult for parents who did not complete school to assist a child with his/her homework. Many have to work 2/3 jobs just to maintain food on the table, decreasing the amount of time that could be spent with one’s child. “Low-income parents are less likely to participate in their children’s
One of the major concerns of education is the rate of students who are dropping out of school. Statistically, the dropout rate has decreased from a national average of 15 percent in 1972 to 10 percent in 2003, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, which rated 16-24 year olds (Child Trend, 2003). Though, there has been signs of a decrease, drop out rates continue to be a concern to the public because of the potential consequences and financial costs to the government. On the academic level, many schools are incapable of handling the new “faces” in the education realm. Thus, it forces many students to leave school without a diploma. The drop out rates appears to be an attribute of primarily bigger cities and districts that are composed of high minority enrollment. With the introduction of the No Child Left Behind Act, information about these schools is now available (Swanson, 2004). In order to curtail the rate of drop-outs, schools need more resources, better teachers, parent/community involvement, and financial means to accommodate their pupils so that these same students don’t end up being a greater financial risk to the public. There are plenty of examples of successful high school dropouts, such as Henry Ford and Albert Einstein. However, they remain to be exceptions. High school dropouts, including those who earn GEDs, earn less money than those who earn a high school diploma. One of the reasons is that they “tend to come from lower-income families than conventional high school graduates. Their parents were less likely to have completed high school” (Murnane & Tyler, 2000). It is difficult for parents who did not complete school to assist a child with his/her homework. Many have to work 2/3 jobs just to maintain food on the table, decreasing the amount of time that could be spent with one’s child. “Low-income parents are less likely to participate in their children’s