What would you do to reduce the drop out rate in schools ?

hey guys. I was nominated for this committee and I have to fill out a questionnaire. This is one of the questions and it totally has me stumped. I kept thinking of all these things like "if you make an A in the class, the exam can be optional" but then when I thought about it, it's not the kids making As and Bs that are gonna drop out. So PLEASE HELP ME :)Please give me some REASONABLE answers :) thanks !

What would you do to reduce the drop out rate in schools ?
Help students through personal problems. Like if a few of them have children offer on-site infant care starting from birth and possibly more flexible hours. Offer the ability to do school work more from home and the possibility for partial days (as in if a student will be sick for awhile or struggling with drug problems or other issues they are trying to over come, give them more time and resources to work on them). Address drug/alcohol problems as soon as they become evident (and address them through treatment rather than detention/expulsion).


Address behavioral problems through anger management instead of expulsion.


Offer more "fun" classes, classes that apply to jobs you don't have to go to a 4-year college for, and paid co-ops (class credit and money for working in a job set up by a local employer).


Fun classes could be like boxing, roller-blading, acting, etc.


classes applying to non-4-year degree jobs could be like shop, welding, auto mechanics, airplane engine repair, intro to nursing, interior design basics, haircutting, etc (preferably offer enough of these classes that you could get a technical associates if you took them all by the time you are out of high school - and each subject could include an optional co-op).
Reply:I think that schools should add more classes to intrest kids that would otherwise drop out. (ex:music, art, drama, foods, ect.) Classes like these motivate students and make them feel like school isn't as "forced" on them.
Reply:Hold the parents responsible if the kids drop out the parents are put in jail. The sad thing is that some kids that tend to drop out of school are those who dont fit in, parents that dont care, and just plain lazy. I liked school because i played sports, and had alot of friends, I was a average student but if i wasnt into sports or had my friends school would of been boring and I probably would of dropped out and got my g.e.d. so probably a good one would be to get kids invovled into school activities and make it fun to be in school. would help also if the parents were just as involved in school
Reply:Make school more interesting. You need to give them a reason to learn rather than throw a lot of trivia at them and then expect them to pass a standardized test. If they think it is too difficult, then they are going to drop out rather than try to make a better life for themself.


One of the things you can do is to teach Scrabble. It not only helps to expand their vocabulary, but it also teaches them math skills, too.


Another thing you can do is to make teachers more accountable for the actions of the students while giving the teachers a wider berth to do their job at the same time.
Reply:Make the teachers/administration better.


If they're more open to the target group and making THEM better citizens, getting them an education (this includes university and such), as well as promoting the learning of those who already feel that they have such opportunities.





That's my opinion...=/
Reply:I am a teacher in a district with high drop out rates. THe thing I'd do to reduce this would be to pump up more parent involvement. If a child sees that their parent doesn't care or give effort, they are not going to care either. The children also need more adult role models in their lives, so see what it can be like if they do stay in school. In districts with high drop out rates, the trend usually is that the teachers are spending so much time on the students who are not succeeding that the higher acheiving ones are ignored. Then they also end up dropping out because they were ignored. These children are being ripped off of their education just becaues they are smart and want to learn, more focus need to be placed on them. Lastly, a sense of community awareness needs to be instilled in drop out students, this would make a big difference in their educational attitudes.