Student Dropout Rates

We are keeping much better track of at-risk students at Skyview and I think that students are dropping out of school at or before 7th grade and keep coming to classes. There are 10-20% of the students who fail 2 or more classes and do not appear to have the effort, desire and/or skills to be successful in our classes. I am working closely with those students at Study Table and I am more concerned the more that I work with them. We keep moving them from grade to grade but their future is pretty clear.
The good news is that Study Table and really focusing on struggling students means that we are also catching some students before they waste their education. Counselors, teachers and administrators are really having tough conversations with kids and taking an interest. I am at the start of a very important learning curve.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Student dropout rate seems to have fallen

By Linda Shaw
Seattle Times staff reporter

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

The estimated dropout rate for Washington high-school students was 6.7 percent during the 2002-03 school year, down from 7.7 percent in 2001-02, the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction reported yesterday.

But some of the difference has to do with improved data.

The percent of students who graduate on time — within four years — was 66 percent, the same as the 2001-02 rate, based on best estimates. The percent of students who continued in high school for more than four years was about 10 percent, OSPI said.

The 2002-03 figures are the latest available.

Dropout and graduation figures have long been suspect because school districts across the nation have not done a good job of collecting data. But Pete Bylsma, director of research and evaluation for OSPI, said that Washington school districts did a better job this year than ever before.

"This is probably a pretty good estimate of the on-time graduation rate, which is scary. If only two-thirds of students are graduating on time, that's not good enough," he said.

The figures also show a significant decline in the dropout rate among African-American students. Their estimated dropout rate for the class of 2002 was 54 percent, compared with 36 percent for the class of 2003.

That change also may be due partly to better reporting, which means it may be a better reflection of reality, Bylsma said.

Linda Shaw: 206-464-2359 or lshaw@seattletimes.com