History of IDEA
Jeannie Oakes, Founder and Former Director
Youth Voice in School Finance
NEW REPORT: Los Angeles' road to A-G for all
Without Dollars and Sense Powerpoint
Past Educational Opportunity Reports
Viewpoints: Dropout recovery needs different standards
- 06-10-2011
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Opinion by Delaine Eastin/Sacramento Bee
Delaine Eastin, former state superintendent of public instruction, serves on the SIATech board of directors, a public charter school.
California's dropout statistics are as heartbreaking as they are understated. Only 68 percent of our entering freshman class will graduate from high school in four years. In some districts, the graduation rates barely reach 50 percent. The official dropout rate is 24 percent but it is understated because the past three governors have underinvested in a student information system. But even with our current understated dropout measurements, dropout rates are worse among Latino students, which some measure at 31.3 percent, and African American students, which we understate at 41.3 percent. We know that some schools push low-performing students out so their standardized test scores will rise. This has been going on for a long time. There is a new effort to rescue some of these kids who have left school, whether they were pushed out or dropped out. This new effort is in schools that exclusively serve former dropouts. (more...)
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