MetaTOC stay on top of your field, easily

Utilizing Data to Combat Absenteeism and Decrease Dropout Rates

Education and Urban Society

Published online on

Abstract

Students across the nation are encountering more and more difficulties in their transition to high school. Not only are a significant number of students dropping out, but those who stay are also leaving high school without the skills they need to become productive citizens. Several intervention strategies are recommended to help students make a successful transition. From better academic preparation to structural reforms, probably all of them are needed and have an important place. In 2008, central office administrators and principals of a New Jersey school district, gathered to brainstorm about methods of early intervention strategies. The middle and secondary school principals recognized and agreed on the urgency to address these strategies by collecting data and searching for possible solutions. This article discusses the use of student data to develop a warning system, an "at risk" indicator for the 2008-2009 freshman class in one of New Jersey’s school districts.