State, district continue dropout prevention efforts

The Webster Progress-Times

The state's dropout prevention program has accomplished much but more needs to be done, according to a Mississippi Department of Education official.

MDE Director of Dropout Prevention Dr. Sheril Smith discussed the dropout problem with the Eupora Rotary Club on March 17. Although students give no single reason for dropping out of high school, she said the main factor they cite for leaving school without graduating is that they thought classes were not interesting.

Mississippi's dropout rate is currently 60 percent and its graduation rate is 72 percent. Overall, high school dropouts cost the state more than $458 million annually in lost revenue, and added public assistance and incarceration costs, said Smith.

The state dropout prevention plan's overarching goals are increasing the state graduation rate to 85 percent by 2018-19, and reducing the state dropout and truancy rates by 50 percent each by 2012-13.

Dropout Solutions

According to Smith and information posted at www.onthebus.ms, these strategies can make a positive impact on the dropout problem:

¥ Early childhood education. Starting kindergarten ready to learn is the best way to set students on a path to graduation. Students who start out behind typically stay behind. More students are retained in kindergarten and first grade than at any other time.

¥ Parental involvement. When parents monitor their children's grades and communicate with their teachers and schools, students attend school more regularly and perform better academically.

¥ Relevant learning. High-quality teachers and classroom instruction make learning interesting and relevant to real-life experiences.

¥ Successful transitions. Giving extra support to students during key transition points (elementary to middle school, middle school to high school) can help them adjust to changes and make a positive start in their new environment.

¥ Opportunities for real-world learning. These are available through internships, job shadowing and service learning. Students who are exposed to careers and workplaces recognize the connection and begin to see their education as more relevant to their futures.

¥ Relationships with caring adults. Having a mentor helps at-risk students feel valued and motivated to stay in school. A mentor who contributes even a small amount of time can have a significant impact on an individual child.

Webster County

Smith noted that Webster County's dropout rate of 15.6 percent and graduation rate of 77 percent is a little better than state average. These are proposed initiatives of the county school district's dropout prevention plan approved in March 2008:

¥ Develop a School Notes Website at each school site for daily input of information

¥ Recognition of perfect attendance

¥ Parent newsletter

¥ GED program (current initiative)

¥ Healthy Schools Nurse program (current initiative)

MDE will host a Dropout Prevention Best Practices Conference April 16 in Jackson.