This report reviews statistical data collected by the New York City (NYC) Board of Education (BOE) and New York State Education Department documenting the rise in school dropout rates among English Language Learners (ELLs) and their unacceptable educational outcomes, incorporating students' comments gathered during focus groups held with NYC high…

This study compared characteristics of students who persisted in undergraduate study and those who dropped out when matched on high school performance and Scholastic Assessment Test scores. Subjects were 747 full-time students at a major research university who entered in fall 1996 but did not return for fall 1997 (leavers) and a matched sample of…

This study analyzes the non-academic impact of a program for at-risk students within an urban alternative high school. The Jefferson County Public Schools, Kentucky, work on the premise that prevention is a key part of safety net strategies for at-risk students. Liberty High School is an alternative safety net high school intended to develop a…

Analysis of data on homeownership and school attendance in Providence (Rhode Island) suggests that working-class families who purchased homes generally did not do so by providing less schooling for their children than other working-class families. Alternative strategies to raise money were more important than sending children to work. (IS)

Student responses to a questionnaire on 88 dropout prediction variables indicated that prevention of such wastage should be specific to student subgroup and should focus on colllege freshmen. (Available in microfiche from: Carfax Publishing Company, Haddon House, Dorchester-on-Thames, Oxford 0X9 8JZ, England.) (CP)

Students (N=418) with rural and urban backgrounds in the 1970 freshman class of a large state university were studied over a four-year period. Attrition rate was consistently higher for rural students, suggesting a special set of stresses for these students. Suggestions for developing outreach and remedial student services are presented. (Author)

Describes the results of an ongoing course attrition study, designed to determine which classes were most often dropped and the factors impacting students' decisions to drop them. Students cited conditions both within and beyond the control of college administration as influential. (JDI)

Investigated changes in high school dropouts' personal attributes between 8th and 12th grade. Data on several variables (e.g., academic achievement, motivation, relationships with peers and teachers, and self-esteem) from three waves of the National Educational Longitudinal Study indicated that in 8th grade, students scored at the national average…

This comment is a response to a paper on noncompletion rates in United Kingdom universities (Johnes and Taylor 1989). The causal inferences are ill founded because they are based on data aggregated to university level. Individual-level data are essential, and data on other levels may also be necessary. (Author/MLW)

Discusses possible impacts of the general aging of America's population, general economic conditions, and changing technology on education-related legislation and political priorities, the rural economy, and educational strategies. Examines the effects of these impacts on the academic and social integration of high-risk rural students and,…

Discusses the problem of educational expansion and economic constraints in less developed countries. Describes a study of 2,500 rural households in Peru to determine why children do not attend school, begin school at later ages, and drop out of school. Indicates that monetary costs influence parental decisions. (DMM)

Examines the dropout/stopout patterns of community college developmental education students. Finds that student success is associated with enrollment patterns, initial skill deficiencies, and age, and that community college students who enrolled for consecutive semesters outperformed students with other types of enrollment patterns. (Contains 26…

Discusses institutional practices that spring from empirically grounded forces that influence students' social integration and retention. Presents 20 recommendations for implementation in 8 domains of institutional practice: academic advising, administrative policies and practices, enrollment management, faculty development, faculty reward system,…

Classifies 47 recommendations gleaned from the articles appearing in this special issue according to their consistency with Tinto's three principles of effective student retention. Orders recommendations by the institutional domain most likely to implement them. Views the recommendations as multiple, powerful levers to reduce college student…

This paper presents a report on students who decided to drop out of the BSc program offered by Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). This study was designed to determine the reasons leading to students' decisions to withdraw from the program. Identified and reported in this study are nine major reasons leading to drop out. Results of…