A holistic analysis of the dropout problem is presented in this collection of essays, which critically examines a variety of research traditions. The book examines the major groups within the dropout population, factors within schools that contribute to dropping out, and the larger social and economic context within which dropping out occurs. Articles include: "Dropping Out: Can Schools Be Expected to Prevent It?" by Gary G. Wehlage; "Bein' Wrapped Too Tight: When Low-Income Women Drop Out of High School," by Michelle Fine and Nancie Zane; "Dropout Issues and Problems in Rural America, with a Case Study of One Central Appalachian School District," by Alan J. DeYoung with Karen Huffman and Mary Ellen Turner; "Dropping Out of Academics: Black Youth and the Sports Subculture in a Cross-National Perspective," by R. Patrick Solomon; "Social Services in High Schools," by Eleanor Farrar and Robert L. Hampel; "Urban Teachers and Dropout-Prone Students: The Uneasy Partners," by Charles Payne; "Competency Testing and Dropouts," by Amelia E. Kreitzer, George F. Madaus, and Walt Haney; "Reducing Student Alienation in High Schools: Implications of Theory," by Fred M. Newmann; "The Individual in Collective Adaptation: A Framework for Focusing on Academic Underperformance and Dropping Out among Involuntary Minorities," by John U. Ogbu; and "American Realities: Poverty, Economy, and Education," by Michael W. Apple. (LMI)