Examines dropout rates in small village high schools. Reports that the shift from boarding schools to small village high schools has dramatically reduced the dropout rates of rural Alaska native students. Suggests related characteristics are small size, personalized atmosphere, sense of community, and individualized instruction. (DHP)

The next wave of educational reform proposals is targeting the persistent dropout rate and the declining level of adult literacy. Evidence of an intergenerational link between these two issues suggests the need for new models of education, holistic analysis of educational disadvantage, and family and community interventions. (SK)

Two Baltimore, Maryland, institutions, Northwestern High School and Towson State University, formed a partnership to open university resources to the high school and to encourage teenagers to reconsider their opportunities. (MLF)

After installing a Computer Assisted Instruction system, officials in Escambia County, Florida, are decreasing the high dropout rate and giving at-risk students the skills to survive in the work world. (Author/TE)

After many years of focusing on providing black students with access to postsecondary education, attention is being refocused on retaining students through graduation. Critics say that enrollment rates, not commitment, dictate retention efforts and that such programs are isolated, not institutionwide efforts. Some institutions are sharing dropout…

Evaluates the use of hypermedia in a management training course for Executive Directors of Cities in Schools (CIS) drop-out prevention programs. The course was taught at the National Center for Partnership Development at Lehigh University's College of Education in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. (AEF)

School boards should require districts take the following actions: (1) make programs for at-risk students an ongoing priority; (2) assign the same quality of staff for at-risk programs as for other programs; (3) hold staff members, students, and administrators strictly accountable; and (4) insist that all district departments give equal services…

Examined effects of counseling program to promote career maturity among youth with learning disabilities and other youth at risk of becoming dropouts. First study involved low-achieving students in integrated career program; second used adolescents with learning disabilities. In both studies, students in intervention condition, in contrast to…

A General Educational Development (GED) certificate is not rigorous enough to substitute for a high school diploma and does not help the recipient economically or in college. Either stronger standards should be developed for GEDs, or dropout-prevention programs should be intensified. (SK)

An alternative dropout-prevention program is examined from the students' perspectives. Findings from interviews and observations suggest that the program is effective in keeping the students in school but does little to help the students develop daily living and social skills. Policy implications are discussed and suggestions for future research…

Provides preliminary results from a study of students' and teachers' views of factors that influence students to leave school at an early age. Ethnic, racial, and gender factors are discussed, and recommendations for teachers and advisors when dealing with students are provided. (MAK)

Young adults (N=277) with and without learning disabilities or emotional or behavioral disorders were interviewed regarding their school and post-drop out experiences. Findings indicate that factors such as disability status, when individuals drop out, and self-perspectives influence education participation. Strategies for helping students who…

A study involving 313 parents participating in 13 Even Start family literacy programs found parents gained self-confidence in their ability to learn, engaged in more literacy activities as they progressed, began to visit their children's teachers regularly, and had high expectations of their children succeeding in school. (Contains references.)…

This study refined and applied an integrated model of undergraduate persistence (accounting for both behavioral and perceptual components) to examine first-year retention at a private, highly selective research university. Results suggest that including behaviorally based measures of involvement improves the model's explanatory power concerning…

One of the critical goals of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) federal legislation is to raise student achievement. The first thing to do, is ensure that the students are actually in school. If students leave school prematurely, schools will not be able to help them master the skills thought to be necessary in the workplace or in future education.…