Post-Secondary/Transitions/Dropouts
Many adolescents who struggle with reading and writing become discouraged, give up and quit school. Others graduate from high school, but still lack the literacy skills needed to succeed in work and life. The articles in this section include information on how to prevent students from dropping out, as well as information on effective intervention programs for students who have already left or graduated from school.
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America's Perfect Storm: Three Forces Changing Our Nation's Future
Kirsch, I., Braun, H., Yamamoto, K., and Sum, A. Copyright ©2007 by Educational Testing Service.
According to America's Perfect Storm, current labor market trends, demographics, and student achievement data are combining to create a "perfect storm" that could inflict lasting damage upon the nation's economy and upon its social fabric, as well. Simply put, if the middle and high schools continue to churn out large numbers of students who lack the ability to read critically, write persuasively, and communicate effectively, then the labor market will soon be flooded with young people who have nothing to offer, and who cannot handle the jobs that are available. "[T]here will be tens of millions more adults," the ETS report concludes, "who lack the education and skills they will need to thrive in the new economy," raising the specter of joblessness and despair on a scale not seen since the Great Depression. If that future is to be avoided, the authors argue, the nation's secondary schools will have to begin immediately to help many more students to reach much higher levels of literacy than ever before.
Career Planning Begins with Assessment: A Guide for Professionals Serving Youth with Educational and Career Development Challenges
Timmons, J., Podmostko, M., Bremer, C., Lavin, D., & Wills, J. (2005). Career planning begins with assessment: A guide for professionals serving youth with educational & career development challenges (Rev. Ed.). Washington, D.C.: National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, Institute for Educational Leadership. Available at www.ncwd-youth.info/resources_&_Publications/manuals.php.
How do you determine when a youth would benefit from assessment to determine the presence of a disability, and where can you find good career-related assessments? This guide, created by the National Collaborative on Workforce & Disability for Youth, answers those questions and contains in-depth information on the types and uses of assessment; special considerations when testing; and organizational concerns, such as collaboration agreements, ethics, confidentiality and legal issues. It also includes quick reference charts, tables, and sample forms that aim to save time for counselors, career advisors, and other professionals who work directly with youth.
Cities in Crisis
Swanson, Christopher B. Copyright © 2008 by Editorial Projects in Education Inc. All rights reserved.
According to Cities in Crisis, the graduation rate for U.S. urban school districts is 60% and the rate for students in the 50 largest cities in the U.S. is only 52%. The gap between suburban and urban districts is nearly 15%. While the 50 largest schools districts educate roughly 13% of public high students in the country, these districts account for 23% of students failing to graduate with a diploma each year.
Closing the Expectations Gap 2007
Reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2007, Achieve, Inc. Retrieved Oct. 17, 2007 from http://www.achieve.org/node/844.
Achieve, Inc. undertook this survey of state-level high school reform as part of its American Diploma Project. In an effort to examine progress toward aligning high school work with the demands of higher education and the workplace, the study evaluated graduation requirements, academic standards, assessment, accountability (i.e. holding high schools accountable for their graduates’ college readiness); and data systems that can follow students longitudinally from pre-K through college.
Ready or Not: Creating a High School Diploma that Counts
Reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2004, Achieve, Inc. Retrieved Oct. 17, 2007 from http://www.achieve.org/node/552.
This report of the America Diploma Project — a partnership of Achieve, Inc., The Education Trust, and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation — outlines the English and math skills high school graduates must possess to be successful in college and career, and offers a set of benchmarks to help school systems establish graduation requirements that will ensure that a diploma signifies mastery of these competencies.
Rigor at Risk: Reaffirming Quality in the High School Core Curriculum
ACT. (2007). Rigor at Risk: Reaffirming Quality in the High School Core Curriculum. Retrieved Nov. 5. 2007, from http://www.act.org/path/policy/pdf/rigor_report.pdf.
While more students are taking a rigorous core curriculum, too many still find themselves ill-prepared to handle college. ACT scores have consistently shown that students who take a core curriculum of four years of English and three years each of math, science, and social studies are much more likely than those who don't to be prepared for college. This report examines whether additional courses may be necessary and finds that schools should not simply add more courses, but improve the quality and rigor of the existing core course offerings. The also report contains "action steps" that states and schools can take to improve the core high school courses.
Still At Risk: What Students Don't Know, Even Now
(2008) ©Common Core. All rights reserved.
This report reveals some damning statistics about U.S. teens' lack of knowledge of history and culture. For example, one-third do not know that the Bill of Rights guarantees the freedom of speech and religion and forty-four percent think The Scarlet Letter was either about a witch trial or a piece of correspondence.
The authors' attribute much of this ignorance to a curriculum focused on basic reading and math skills and preparation for high-stakes testing, but parental educational also has an impact on student knowledge-students with a college-educated parent scored significantly better than those without.
When Girls Don't Graduate We All Fail
National Women's Law Center. (2007). When Girls Don't Graduate We All Fail: A call to improve high school graduation rates for girls. Retrieved from http://www.nwlc.org/pdf/dropoutreport.pdf.
When girls drop out of high school, their earnings drop dramatically lower than those of women who have diplomas, or even of male drop outs. Also they are more likely to need government services, such as medical care. Who are these girls, why are they leaving high school, and what can be done to support them through finishing their education?
