Dropout Prevention With A New Method - Essay Example

This two part research paper is – a synthesis and a letter to the editor of a local newspaper – discusses the importance of education with respect tohigh school and college dropouts. It also describes a new method of dropout prevention in institutions of higher education in America. The new method is a once-a-week counseling session for each and every student. Dropout Prevention With A New Method Synthesis Among the ten fastest growing careers today, the top five are computer-related. Some of these most significant careers are heavily reliant on the knowledge of mathematics. Computer engineers, computer support specialists, systems analysts, database administrators, and desktop publishing specialists are the need of the hour (McClain). So, young people who continue the mathematics sequence throughout high school are bound to have additional career opportunities (Leder; Smith). What if these young people refuse to finish high school? What are their chances of having careers that they can consistently pursue? Perusing a second time the list of specialized workers that the nation sees as most important in terms of its Gross Domestic Product – is a reminder that high school and college dropouts working at McDonald’s and Walmart have no prospect of joining the ranks of those mentioned on the list. Lack of formal education is a roadblock. Yet, college dropouts make one of the largest and the fastest growing youth groups in America (Leonhardt). It may be that dropping out of college is becoming fashionable because certain highly successful and prosperous businessmen like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Michael Dell are all college dropouts. The author of an article published in 2005, ‘Men Want Retooled College Experience’ in USA Today, wrote: “In high school, I was told to watch for the guys who left school before graduating because they were the ones I’d be working for later.” It has been repeatedly said that geniuses do not always feel motivated by the idea of formal education. All the same, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Michael Dell have given speeches on the importance of education (Men Want Retooled College Experience). Perhaps they were referring to students with average intelligence; in other words, their potential employees. Research studies have shown that students from low income backgrounds are more likely to drop out of high school or college. Andy Blevins from southwest Virginia dropped out of college where he was getting C’s and D’s, to work instead on the floor of a supermarket warehouse. He moved boxes of soup cans, paper towels. and dog food. The harder he worked, the more he was paid, until bonuses from his employer made him quit college. He was the first boy in his family to attend college, anyway. Fortunately, Andy returned to college years later because he realized that there was no progressive movement in his chosen career (Leonhardt). Even store management today requires technical knowledge. Andy had to know a bit of accounting to head the supermarket. He also had to learn about organizational behavior to become a respectable supervisor. The average young person is not a genius to learn everything on his own. Despite the hue and cry over changing the education system by making the subjects studied more realistic, formal education remains a necessity (Men Want Retooled). Mrs. Robbins dropped out of 11th grade even though her mother tried convincing her at the time to finish high school. She was a “hard-headed” teen who hated school and nobody could compel her to do what she did not like. Decades later, Mrs. Robbins ran into a similar situation with her own daughter, Elizabeth, who wished to drop out of 9th grade. Mrs. Robbins decided to use a different approach with her daughter. She returned to school to get her high school diploma and enjoyed the experience thoroughly. A few years afterward, her daughter also graduated from high school (Personal Interview). According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than a quarter of students who drop out of college do so before the beginning of their sophomore year. Experts assert that this is because they never really knew how to manage their time. College is a time of freedom and responsibility away from home. So therefore, it is crucial for parents to start instilling in their children the values of time management and autonomy at a young age (Savage). Back in high school, research indicates that there were more 9th graders dropping out “because they get lost in a large high school setting and have less attention paid to them as individuals.” Jennifer Newton Reents writes that isolating 9th graders in separate schools is a viable way to help students achieve at this stage. While this method appears workable, there is a vital detail that cannot be overlooked: It is the emotional life of the student in an environment of change that the parents must be dealing with in the home. Young people going through a transition need extra support that many parents cannot provide. They may be coping with stress in a variety of ways, as their son or daughter suffers through falling grades because he or she cannot tackle transition on his own. The Pleasantville High School in New Jersey has added a Dropout Prevention Counselor to its staff (King). Counseling is, as a matter of fact, an indispensable tool at modern high schools and colleges to keep the students going. In high school, all students that are performing poorly must be confronted by a kind counselor who appeals to their intellect and also suggests ways to improve the student’s social support system if it is found that the student’s parents cannot offer it adequately. In colleges, students are independent, and hence counseling could be made mandatory. At present, students who feel that they require sessions with a school or college counselor must take the initiative to approach the counselor. Teachers rarely send students to the counselor, and not unless they have witnessed severe behavioral problems. It is recommended, therefore, that schools and colleges begin once-a-week counseling sessions on their own to determine the emotional health of students and thus their potential to do well in school, in an effort to assist them onward. Letter To The Editor I applaud the states of America that have formulated compulsory-attendance laws forbidding students to drop out of educational institutions until they turn 18 or older; and those states that have imposed penalties on dropouts and their families, including reduced welfare benefits (Toby). No more should students from low income families assume that dropping out of school or college is the right way to make more money. However, they do. It is not because these students are not intellectually sound or cannot reason. Rather, something is forcing them to give in to the lie that formal education is unnecessary. Emotional imbalances are the major reason for the staggering number of high school and college dropouts. It is the heart over head factor gaining control given that no head can reason wrongly. While the importance of education cannot be understated, it is evident that schools, colleges and students’ parents are not making the required effort to help students continue higher education. I therefore advise the authorities in education and the heads of states to give serious consideration to the idea of making counseling an obligatory part of every student’s school week in the higher education institutions. Even the brightest students in high school and college should be made subject to this new method of dropout prevention. All that it entails is a once-a-week session with a counselor for each student. We are all aware that psychology is among the most common majors at colleges in America. Schools and colleges now have an abundance of psychologists available around the country. In order to give the chance to each individual to pursue a solid career and have a good life, basically, we must have plenty of counselors available in each school and college to deal with all kinds of issues facing each student. I must add that although all students do not seem to require counseling of any kind – including career counseling – you might be surprised with the findings. In this case, as always, prevention is better than cure. Works Cited 1. King, Norman G. Jr. 2000. “Preparing High School Students For The New Millennium And Beyond.” Education, Vol. 121. 2. Leder, G. 1992. “Mathematics And Gender: Changing Perspectives.” In D. A. Grouws (Ed.), Handbook Of Research On Mathematics Teaching And Learning. New York: Macmillan. 3. Leonhardt, David. 24 May 2005. “The College Dropout Boom.” The New York Times. 4. McClain, D. 30 January 2001. “Occupations Growing Fastest.” The New York Times. Online. Internet. [www.nytimes.com/images/2001/1/30business/spc_mcclain_JOBS_01 .html]. Accessed: 1 November 2006. 5. “Men Want Retooled College Experience.” 25 October 2005. USA Today. 6. Personal Interview. 1 November 2006. Mrs. Robbins. 7. Reents, Jennifer Newton. March 2002. Isolating 9th Graders: Separate Schools Ease The Academic And Social Transition For High School-Bound Students.” School Administrator. 8. Savage, Karen. “The Staggering Rate of Dropouts.” Connect With Kids. Online. Internet. [http://www.connectwithkids.com/]. Accessed: 1 November 2006. 9. Smith, E. 1980. “Career Development Of Minorities in Nontraditional Fields.” Journal of Non-White Concerns, 8. 10. Toby, Jackson. 28 June 1999. “Obsessive Compulsion.” National Review, Vol. 51. Read More