The Northeast Louisiana University (NLU) Dropout Intervention Strategy Program (1990-1991) was designed to train administrators and teachers in junior high schools to recognize, treat, and relate to at-risk students who have been identified as potential school dropouts. The 13 participating schools were identified as having potentially high…

Information is provided on factors associated with the effectiveness of continuation high schools in California. This Phase 2 report (following a Phase 1 study of 54 schools) is based on information gathered from 10 schools that were selected as among the more effective in the state at retaining students in school and graduating them.…

Portfolio evaluation process promotes thinking while it minimizes multiple-choice mentality. Some educators find that reviewing with the students what they learned, with consideration for the structure of knowledge, provides self-confidence for the pupils' next try. They need self-confidence to critique each other's work, before the teacher…

An intervention program was implemented to reduce absences, stimulate responsibility for assignments, and increase participation in extracurricular activities among disengaged ninth-grade students (N=18). Older students served as role models and peer mentors as they sought to establish that freshmen could control their own success or failure in…

A guide for secondary school practitioners provides strategies for motivating limited-English-proficient (LEP) students to continue their education at least through the secondary level. The guide is based on the project handbook from a Kenwood, Oklahoma community-based dropout-prevention project. The guide begins by presenting dropout statistics,…

Assesses the applicability of several related models of student retention/attrition to community colleges. Presents the results of a longitudinal study of freshman-year retention and performance, revealing that certain pre-enrollment variables coupled with first-semester academic performance data can help institutions identify potential dropouts.…

Mexican immigrant youth lag behind other immigrant groups in educational completion and achievement, but many resilient Mexican immigrant youth have overcome tough odds to succeed. This digest examines the research about resiliency and some promising programs for Mexican American youth. Resiliency theory identifies protective factors present in…

Introduces a framework for high school retention efforts based on the findings from a study of 84 young Mexican American women who were first in their families to attend college. The framework provides the means for bridging educational gaps by supporting the strengths of these young people and by reducing barriers to educational achievement.…

Although every school must develop its own dropout prevention programs, the framework for multifaceted solutions can be similar, involving a systemic approach consisting of the following: (1) identification and intervention policies; (2) interventions by educational leaders, teachers, and parents; (3) academic and support programs; and (4)…

Dropout Reduction through Education, Achievement, and Motivation (Project DREAM) was designed to serve the needs of Latino immigrants who had scored at or below the 40th percentile on the Language Assessment Battery. The design-incorporating plans for group and individual guidance sessions to help students improve their interpersonal skills. It…

The SUCCESS program of the Des Moines (Iowa) public schools serves children, youth, and families experiencing conditions that put them at risk of not achieving the goals of their educational programs or thriving in their families or communities. SUCCESS integrates community resources within the school system in family resource centers. The…

Early interventions and educational expectations that promote access, quality education, and the right to career options are necessary parts of any dropout prevention program. This report suggests that preventing school failure and empowering students to succeed should be the goals of such programs. It discusses student underachievement and…

This report attempts to demonstrate that dropouts follow a path inverse to the one that students follow to academic excellence by presenting a review of literature pertaining to dropouts and students at risk. It examines the process by which at-risk students are separated from academic excellence, and attempts to understand the factors behind…

This report discusses the improvement initiatives in Boston (Massachusetts) middle schools triggered by the work of the Boston Compact to promote education-business collaborations to improve the public schools and provide better job and college-going opportunities for Boston students. Section 1 describes a study that was initiated to learn whether…

The 1982-83 school year was the second year of the New York City (New York) Public Schools Promotional Gates Program. Under this program students in grades four and seven who failed to attain their promotional criteria (in both reading and mathematics) were retained for a year of intensive remedial instruction. This report is the result of a…