The High School Dropout Rate: The Problem, Its Consequences, and Some Possible Solutions

How extensive is the problem?

Many different methods are used to calculate the dropout rate, making it difficult to compare dropout rates at the local, state, and national levels. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) promotes the use of standard definitions for event and status dropout rates, the status completion rate, and averaged freshman graduation rate. However, individual researchers frequently use their own formulas to calculate the dropout rate, contributing to the difficulty of making cross-study and cross-level comparisons.

According to NCES

• Nationwide, almost 5 percent of high school students dropped out of school between October 2003 and October 2004.
• Approximately 75 percent of students who enrolled in grade 9 in 2000 graduated with a high school diploma in 2004.
• Across the 50 states, dropout rates range from 2–11 percent per year according to The Annie E. Casey Foundation's state-by-state analysis of dropout rates.

Why do students drop out?

On the Front Lines of Schools, a report from Civic Enterprises funded by the AT&T Foundation, cites these reasons for students dropping out before completing high school:

• Lack of academic preparation.
• Boredom or lack of engagement.
• Family obligations including parenthood.
• The need for paid employment.

Another Civic Enterprises report, The Silent Epidemic, offers these reasons for why students dropped out, drawn from surveys of and interviews with dropouts and their parents:

• Students describe a pattern of escalating absenteeism—refusing to wake up, skipping class, and taking three-hour lunches—with each absence making them less willing to return to school.
• Many students said they had "too much freedom" and not enough rules.
• Parents of dropouts reporting being "not aware" or "just somewhat aware" of their child's grades or that they were about to leave school.

What are the consequences of dropping out?

According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, individuals without a high school diploma have lower incomes and higher rates of unemployment. This problem becomes even more serious as individuals grow older. A U.S. Department of Justice report concludes that high school dropouts are more likely to be incarcerated than individuals with a high school diploma or its equivalent, such as a GED certificate. Grad Nation chronicles other consequences to individuals and society, including increased tendencies toward poor health, single parenthood, and poverty.

In its Digest of Education Statistics, NCES reports that, in 2006, the median income of men age 25 and older was:

• $21,080 for those with less than a grade 9 education.
• $24,090 for those with some high school education.
• $33,070 for those who had completed high school.

In addition, NCES reports that in 2006 only 63.8 percent of individuals ages 25–64 who had not completed high school were employed in the U.S. labor force, whereas 76.5 percent of individuals with a high school diploma or equivalent were. Furthermore, according to the Digest, unemployment issues hit minority and female populations even harder.

What can be done to address the problem?

The National Dropout Prevention Network advocates fifteen strategies for reducing dropout rates, encompassing a range of solutions from organizational innovations, school safety and culture, instructional and curriculum interventions, and community engagement.

The Silent Epidemic recommends:

• Making school more relevant and engaging by enhancing the connection between school and work.
• Improving instruction and supports for struggling students.
• Building a school climate that fosters academics.
• Ensuring that students have a strong relationship with at least one adult in the school.
• Improving communication between parents and schools.
• Creating smaller learning communities with more individualized instruction.
• Creating alternative schools that offer specialized programs to students at risk of dropping out.
• Holding high expectations for all students and trying different approaches to motivate them to learn.
• Developing individual graduation plans that are shared with parents.

References

Balfanz, R., Fox, J. H., Bridgeland, J. M., & McNaught, M. (2009, February). Grad nation: A guidebook to help communities tackle the dropout crisis. Washington, DC: America's Promise Alliance.

Bridgeland, J. M., DiIulio, J. J., Jr., & Balfanz, R. (2009, June). On the front lines of schools: Perspectives of teachers and principals on the high school dropout problem. Washington, DC: Civic Enterprises.

Bridgeland, J. M., DiIulio, J. J., Jr., & Morison, K. B. (2006, March). The silent epidemic: Perspectives of high school dropouts. Washington, DC: Civic Enterprises.

Harlow, C. W. (2003, January). Education and correctional populations. Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.

Laird, J., DeBell, M., & Chapman, C. (2006). Dropout rates in the United States: 2004 (NCES 2007-024). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Table 368. Labor force participation rates and employment population ratios of persons 16 years old and over, by highest level of education, age, gender, and race/ethnicity: 2006. In Digest of education statistics. Retrieved Sept. 1, 2009, from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_368.asp.

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Table 369. Unemployment rate of persons 16 years old and over, by age, sex, race/ethnicity, and educational attainment: 2004, 2005, and 2006. In Digest of education statistics. Retrieved Sept. 1, 2009, from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_369.asp.

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Table 372. Distribution of earnings and median earnings of persons 25 years old and over, by highest level of educational attainment and sex: 2006. In Digest of education statistics. Retrieved Sept. 1, 2009, from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_372.asp.