Post by Moses on May 13, 2004 10:59:00 GMT -5
Nearly a fourth of Boston ninth- graders drop out of high school before graduation, according to a report released by public school officials yesterday.
Boston public schools, following the route of some city school districts nationally, gave the public the most complete picture yet of high school dropouts, tracking what happened with a class of ninth-graders over five years. The report also broke down data by race and gender.
Over the last five years, according to the report, 22.5 percent, or 885 out of 3,933 students who were ninth-graders in 1998, dropped out of school within the five-year period they were given to graduate. Hispanics, mirroring national trends in dropouts, had the highest rate; 28 percent of Hispanic ninth-graders never made it to graduation, compared with 23 percent of the city's black students and 21 percent of the whites. Asians stayed in school more than other groups, with 8 percent dropping out during the five-year period.
The dropout rate for the ninth- grade class is about the same as the next most recent group studied -- students who began ninth grade in 1997 -- but an improvement over a group studied two decades ago. Almost 40 percent of the city high schools freshmen from 1983 dropped out within five years.
Still, the dropout rate of ninth-graders paints a troubling picture for the system, which usually posts a smaller dropout rate based on what happens to students in just one year.
The figure for the ninth-graders ranged between 22.5 and 27.1 percent during the past decade, while the typical one-year dropout rate cited by Boston school officials has been less than 10 percent.
School Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant said he hopes his initiative to break down the system's larger high schools into smaller schools within the same building will help solve the dropout problem. That way, teachers will be able to establish a closer relationship with those having problems.
At Madison Park Technical Vocational High School in Roxbury, one-third of its freshmen dropped out between 1998 and 2002. The problem frustrates high school leaders, said Charles McAfee, Madison Park's headmaster. Most students who want to drop out do so long before their senior year, which illustrates why studying dropout rates based on freshman behavior gives a clearer picture of what's happening.
Many of these students started having trouble in the middle school grades, McAfee said.
"A lot of the major issues are with this age group," he said. "Usually the ones who drop out are not being successful in middle school, they've been held back more than once, they have a lot of social issues at home or with their parents, or they've been in some kind of state agency."
School leaders are coming up with ways to help students at risk of dropping out, including adding seats in alternative programs.
The problem, said McAfee, is that these students "are a little frustrated," he said. "They view the world a little differently, and with young people things have to happen for them quickly."
Traditionally, Boston school officials and others around the nation cite dropout rates that look at the number of students in grades 9 through 12 who quit school during one school year. Last school year, the latest year reported to the state, 8 percent of Boston's 19,664 public high school students in grades 9 through 12 dropped out, up from 7.2 percent in 2001-02, the report said.
Some observers called the dropout figures disturbing. Hispanic dropout rates have remained steady in recent years in Boston schools, while the number and percentage of black students dropping out increased.
Last school year, 872 black students in grades 9 through 12 dropped out of Boston schools, up from 756 in 2001-02.
"More than 100 more black kids dropped last year than in the previous year, and there has been essentially no progress over the past decade," said John Mudd, policy director for the Mass Advocates for Children.
In other business, the School Committee voted in favor of extending Payzant's contract for six months. Payzant, 63, has led the public schools for 8 1/2 years and was scheduled to leave his post in December 2005. His contract now expires in June 2006.
— Megan Tench
Boston Globe
2004-05-13
www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2004/05/13/high_school_dropout_rate_raises_concern/
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Boston public schools, following the route of some city school districts nationally, gave the public the most complete picture yet of high school dropouts, tracking what happened with a class of ninth-graders over five years. The report also broke down data by race and gender.
Over the last five years, according to the report, 22.5 percent, or 885 out of 3,933 students who were ninth-graders in 1998, dropped out of school within the five-year period they were given to graduate. Hispanics, mirroring national trends in dropouts, had the highest rate; 28 percent of Hispanic ninth-graders never made it to graduation, compared with 23 percent of the city's black students and 21 percent of the whites. Asians stayed in school more than other groups, with 8 percent dropping out during the five-year period.
The dropout rate for the ninth- grade class is about the same as the next most recent group studied -- students who began ninth grade in 1997 -- but an improvement over a group studied two decades ago. Almost 40 percent of the city high schools freshmen from 1983 dropped out within five years.
Still, the dropout rate of ninth-graders paints a troubling picture for the system, which usually posts a smaller dropout rate based on what happens to students in just one year.
The figure for the ninth-graders ranged between 22.5 and 27.1 percent during the past decade, while the typical one-year dropout rate cited by Boston school officials has been less than 10 percent.
School Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant said he hopes his initiative to break down the system's larger high schools into smaller schools within the same building will help solve the dropout problem. That way, teachers will be able to establish a closer relationship with those having problems.
At Madison Park Technical Vocational High School in Roxbury, one-third of its freshmen dropped out between 1998 and 2002. The problem frustrates high school leaders, said Charles McAfee, Madison Park's headmaster. Most students who want to drop out do so long before their senior year, which illustrates why studying dropout rates based on freshman behavior gives a clearer picture of what's happening.
Many of these students started having trouble in the middle school grades, McAfee said.
"A lot of the major issues are with this age group," he said. "Usually the ones who drop out are not being successful in middle school, they've been held back more than once, they have a lot of social issues at home or with their parents, or they've been in some kind of state agency."
School leaders are coming up with ways to help students at risk of dropping out, including adding seats in alternative programs.
The problem, said McAfee, is that these students "are a little frustrated," he said. "They view the world a little differently, and with young people things have to happen for them quickly."
Traditionally, Boston school officials and others around the nation cite dropout rates that look at the number of students in grades 9 through 12 who quit school during one school year. Last school year, the latest year reported to the state, 8 percent of Boston's 19,664 public high school students in grades 9 through 12 dropped out, up from 7.2 percent in 2001-02, the report said.
Some observers called the dropout figures disturbing. Hispanic dropout rates have remained steady in recent years in Boston schools, while the number and percentage of black students dropping out increased.
Last school year, 872 black students in grades 9 through 12 dropped out of Boston schools, up from 756 in 2001-02.
"More than 100 more black kids dropped last year than in the previous year, and there has been essentially no progress over the past decade," said John Mudd, policy director for the Mass Advocates for Children.
In other business, the School Committee voted in favor of extending Payzant's contract for six months. Payzant, 63, has led the public schools for 8 1/2 years and was scheduled to leave his post in December 2005. His contract now expires in June 2006.
— Megan Tench
Boston Globe
2004-05-13
www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2004/05/13/high_school_dropout_rate_raises_concern/
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