In this article, we interrogate the policy assumptions underlying a significant South Australian public education re-engagement initiative called Flexible Learning Options, formulated within South Australia's social inclusion policy agenda, beginning in 2006. To this end, we applied Baachi's 'What's the Problem Represented to be?' policy analysis…

Early school leaving is a serious problem for individual students, especially for students with special educational needs (SEN). This study tests predictors of early school leaving, using data collected among 1,047 students from 60 inclusive and regular classes in primary and secondary schools in Austria with 4th- and 7th-grade students aged 9-11…

State Compensatory Education (SCE) is a supplemental program designed to eliminate disparities in (a) student performance on assessment instruments administered under chapter 39 of the Texas EducationCode (1995, amended 2013), and (b) the rates of high school completion between students who are at risk of dropping out of school, as defined by…

This report summarizes the results to date of the ongoing Colorado Study of Students in Foster Care. The Colorado Study is a longitudinal study of educational outcomes of students in foster care and factors that affect these outcomes, which is intended to inform systems-level reform. The research is conducted in partnership with the Colorado…

Tackling early leaving from education and training (ELET) is one of the main education policy targets of the European Union and many of its member states. This paper offers new insights on this issue by studying how so-called at-risk students develop their educational trajectory by embedding their attitudes towards and engagement in schooling…

Ninth grade is a critical juncture for students--and can be a jarring transition. Even students a strong track record in the middle grades can experience academic difficulty, and those who enter high school with poor course grades, weak attendance, or behavior problems are especially at risk. An early misstep can have lasting implications:…

The "2022 Comprehensive Biennial Report on Texas Public Schools" describes the status of Texas public education, as required by §39.332 of the Texas Education Code. The report contains 16 chapters on the following topics: (1) state progress on academic performance indicators; (2) student performance on state assessments; (3) performance…

The purpose of this Mixed Methods study is to conduct a full quantitative and qualitative research methods on a hypothetical K-12 Alternative Education program, wherein ten students have had poor grades and are at-risk of withdrawing. Within a six-part action plan on the quantitative side, students were tested twice, before and after a two-paired…

Background: Students with early-starting conduct problems often do poorly in school; they are disproportionately placed in restrictive educational placements outside of mainstream classrooms. Although intended to benefit students, research suggests that restrictive placements may exacerbate the maladjustment of youth with conduct problems. Mixed…

High school graduation rates remain unacceptably low in the U.S., especially among disadvantaged youth (Chapman, Laird, Ifill, & KelalRamani, 2011; Stillwell, 2010), with troubling implications for future earnings and employment status (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012). Check & Connect (C&C) is an individualized program that pairs…

The "2020 Comprehensive Biennial Report on Texas Public Schools" describes the status of Texas public education, as required by §39.332 of the Texas Education Code. The report contains 16 chapters on the following topics: (1) state progress on academic performance indicators; (2) student performance on state assessments; (3) performance…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of dropout predictors across time. Two state-level high school graduation panels were selected to begin with the seventh and ninth grades but end at the same time. The first panel (seventh grade) contained 29,554 students and used sixth grade predictors. The second panel (ninth grade)…

The purpose of this study was to explore the direct and indirect effects of SWPBIS on high school dropout. This study uses structural equation modeling to describe the web of relationships among important high school level outcomes and SWPBIS in a sample of 883 high schools from 37 states. Results suggest that SWPBIS has statistically significant…

The "2018 Comprehensive Biennial Report on Texas Public Schools" describes the status of Texas public education, as required by §39.332 of the Texas Education Code. The report contains 16 chapters on the following topics: (1) state progress on academic performance indicators; (2) student performance on state assessments; (3) performance…

The District III -- East Area Fine Arts Initiative began during the 2016-2017 academic year in Chavez High School feeder schools, and expanded during the 2017-2018 academic year to Milby High School feeder schools. This expansion extended access to a high-quality fine arts education for approximately 16,301 students across all grade levels within…