In the Swiss vocational education system, which is often called a "Dual System", trainees enter into an apprenticeship contract with a training company. On average, 25% of those contracts are terminated prematurely (PCT). This article examines the relationship between training companies' selection methods and PCTs. The investigation is…

Online learning has continued to grow in recent years. However, retaining students in online courses and programs has posed a challenge. Whether the university is public, private, offers both face-to-face and online programs, or is 100% online, retaining students in online programs can be an issue. This study reflects the widespread desire at a…

Concerned about the persistently high dropout rates from big-city secondary schools, education leaders are trying a new approach to increasing the graduation rate--multiple pathways to graduation. Multiple pathways initiatives are relatively new and far from proven. Even the most advanced examples face significant issues, i.e., the need to…

Students with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) entering U.S. schools in grade 9 face a tight timeline to simultaneously learn English and graduate from high school in four or five years. This study focuses on student outcomes and progress indicators for the cohort of ninth graders new to WCPSS in 2008-09 who had limited English proficiency. Based…

The aim of this study is to investigate the present status of DCSA program focusing on student enrollment, dropout, and completion trends. The study tries to explore the factors that attract or pull students to enroll in the program and push them to dropout from the program. Secondary data analysis and interview are used to generate data of the…

A mainstay in NCLB and the Obama administration education plan is turning around low-performing schools. This study utilized surveys and interviews with school leaders from four turnaround urban high schools in Texas to understand student outcomes before and after school restructuring and reconstitution. Although some organizational changes were…

What kinds of challenges do educators face in increasing Native American high school graduation rates, and what kinds of adaptations to a traditional high school are understood as necessary to achieve this outcome? This case study explored these questions as part of a larger multiple case study that investigated practices and processes related to…

This final report presents findings from data collection and analysis conducted during a five-year study by the National Dropout Prevention Center (NDPC) at Clemson University, in conjunction with colleagues from the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE) at the University of Louisville. This project was one of three…

The "Personnel Development Program to Improve Services and Results for Children with Disabilities" is authorized under Section 662 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and is known as the Personnel Development Program (PDP). The PDP is administered by the U.S. Department of Education's (ED's) Office of Special…

This report examines current practices in defining, identifying, documenting, and tracking school dropouts in Ogden City School District (Utah), as well as demographic and personal characteristics of Ogden's high school dropouts. Data collection included a review of school and district records, interviews with administrators and staff, and…

The study reported concentrated on school leavers in Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) who returned (dropbacks) to Job Corps Programs over an 8-year period. Interviews with 100 dropbacks explored who left school, why they left school, what caused them to come back, and the kinds of interventions that might succeed with other students. Part 1 provides a…

In 1989, staff from Rancho Santiago College's (RSC's) research office conducted telephone interviews with a random sample of 255 out of the 17,359 former students who attended RSC in spring 1989 but did not return for the next semester. The study was conducted to determine why students did not return, whether they accomplished their educational…

This book describes how "at-risk" Hispanic youth defy the odds and stay in school to earn a high school diploma. Information about success is needed because Hispanic youth drop out at about twice the rate of non-Hispanic Whites. The discussion is based on the results of a 4-year longitudinal study of 100 Hispanic youth labeled at-risk by…

An evaluation of an alternative program for at-risk high school students offered in the Porter County (Indiana) school system is described in this report. The evaluation was based on student assessments of the program, obtained through use of an interview format. The program, which provides instruction in basic subject areas required for…

The adult and community (ACE) sector and technical and futher education (TAFE) institutes provide programs for young people which re-connect them to education. This report suggests these programs and settings are considered effective pathways for some young people who have left school early. The researchers found students are attracted to the…