I just returned from a national meeting on drop-out prevention. Building Effective Practices in Dropout Prevention: A Summit for State and Local Education Agencies involved participants in a collaborative team-based process that included active learning, strategic planning, and the identification of contextually relevant practices in the areas of dropout prevention/intervention, recovery/re-entry, and school completion. I attended as part of a DESE in conjunction with several teams from southwest Missouri school districts that have agreed to take part in a targeted assistance project conducted by the National Drop-Out Prevention Center. 23 states were represented at the summit and several presented their success in implementing drop-out prevention plans. Georgia presented information on their statewide program while Miami-Dade Schools presented information on their county-based efforts.
An abundance of resources were shared to assist schools in addressing the growing problem of rising drop-out numbers and falling graduation rates. The NDPC web site offers access to a 282 page technical report on Drop Out Risk Factors and Exemplary Programs as well as a72 page Drop Out Prevention Guide. The state of Georgia drop-out prevention site provides links to power point presentations covering a variety of topics
Effective Interventions to Keep Youth in School (.ppt)
Engaging Students – Sandra Christenson (.ppt)
Strategies to Improve Academic Success -January 2008, Paul Riccomini (ppt)
Reaching Hispanic Families for Better Outcomes: Part 1 (ppt)
Moving from High School to Post-school Opportunities: Transition Components and Strategies for High School Redesign (ppt)
Another resource is the UCLA Center for Mental Health in schools which offers an Introductory Packet on Drop Out Prevention.
One of the reasons that I was included on the Missouri “guest list” for this conference was the identification of several southwest Missouri districts with elevated drop-out rates, especially among students with disabilities. For me, as for many others in the room, the information presented at the summit represented a Call to Action for all educational agencies, at both the state and local levels, to develop action plans to deal with this growing problem. Increasing drop-out numbers represent both a mounting financial burden to public infrastructures as well as an expanding deficit in the “brain trust” of skills and knowledge to maintain the societal “lifestyle” that we as 21st century Americans are accustomed to.
As a result of this “Call to Action” I am looking at implementing a Drop-Out Prevention Support initiative at the regional level. The initiative will include training and support in developing and implementing Drop Out Prevention action plans at the district level (both long term and short term) while providing a vehicle for networking with schools facing similar problems and challenges dealing with the drop-out issue. Please let me know what you think. What would such an initiative look like and what would it include? Your feedback is essential to successful SWRPDC programming.
Well
While looking at the visible indicator gives us a sense of urgency, our focus must remain on providing high quality engaging instruction that functions within larger systems of excellence. Only when we stop treating the “high cholesterol” and start dealing with the “diet and exercise” will we truly begin to impact the student’s desire to be persistent to graduation.
Great
if you haven’t seen the movie “Precious” yet, it’s a great insight into many of the problems children face in their homes, their neighborhoods, and from friends.
If only we could educate them more. But oh gosh what a tough one to cover. Just my 2 cents.
If you haven’t seen the movie “Precious” yet, it’s a great insight into many of the problems children face in their homes, their neighborhoods, and from friends.
If only we could educate them more. But oh gosh what a tough one to cover. Just my 2 cents.
Chris
Dr Lay
I would like to invite you to speak to our ms and hs staff after school one day. Is it possible for us to learn more about the movement to decrease drop out rates? We struggle with this in our district.
Kimberley Fletcher
PDC chair
While drop-out rates are an ever increasing issue of importance in the 21st century, they continue to be a symptom of larger instructional and educational system issues. While looking at the visible indicator gives us a sense of urgency, our focus must remain on providing high quality engaging instruction that functions within larger systems of excellence. Only when we stop treating the “high cholesterol” and start dealing with the “diet and exercise” will we truly begin to impact the student’s desire to be persistent to graduation.