President Obama's Plan to Raise the School Dropout Age Will Not Work

January 31, 2012

The following guest post was written by Eye On Education author Franklin Schargel. Franklin is the author of many best-selling titles, including the new Dropout Prevention Fieldbook and 152 Ways to Keep Students in School.

President Obama, in his State of the Union Address, called for every state to require students to stay in school until they turn 18.

I have mixed feelings about this proposal. I believe all students should stay in school until they graduate. I understand the reasons for the president’s concern. If America is to be globally competitive, it must have a high performing, highly trained, highly-technologically prepared workforce. And today’s demands for a highly skilled workforce require, at minimum, a high school diploma.

There is little data to indicate that raising the age of graduation will result in lower dropout rates. According to a report by the Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy, Raise the Age, Lower the Dropout Rate? Considerations for Policymakers, “our review revealed that there is little research to support the effectiveness of compulsory attendance laws in achieving these goals [of lowering the dropout rate]” (p.12).

Education is primarily a state and local responsibility in the United States. It is states and communities, as well as public and private organizations of all kinds, that establish schools and colleges, develop curricula, and determine requirements for enrollment and graduation. The federal government presently provides only 10.8 percent of educational financing.

Twenty-one states require students to attend high school until they graduate or turn 18. Those states include Nebraska (87.8 percent graduation rate) and Wisconsin (86.7 percent graduation rate), which are high performing states. Other states that are high performing have a compulsory school age of 16; they include Maryland (76 percent graduation rate), Massachusetts (76 percent graduation rate), Iowa (86.6 percent graduation rate), Vermont (86.5 percent graduation rate), and North Dakota (86.3 percent graduation rate). Some states with an 18-year-old requirement have high dropout rates; New Mexico and the District of Columbia are examples (Source: ww.all4ed.org). So it is not the age of mandatory attendance that determines the dropout rate but other factors. Simply mandating that young people remain in school without addressing the causes for their leaving will accomplish little.

Why children leave school prior to graduation:

The Silent Epidemic: Perceptions of High School Dropouts, a report issued by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, indicated that one of the primary reasons children leave school is that they are bored. How will holding a student where they do not want to be until age 18 lessen the boredom?
Others leave because they feel that the curriculum has no relevance in the real world.
Students drop out because of teenage pregnancy.
Some students leave school because they are trying to meet their family’s financial obligations.

Expecting states to add additional costs during this recession is foolhardy, especially when so many have made cuts into the marrow of education. There will be added costs, include adding more classrooms, providing additional teachers, providing additional support personnel such as counselors, and paying for alternative online courses. Finally, add in the additional costs of enforcing the law.

The president, in his well-intentioned proposal, has provided a sound bite, a simplistic solution to this highly complex problem.

Category: Educational Happenings

Tagged: Franklin Schargel, At-Risk

Comments

# Mel Riddile

January 31, 2012 10:41 AM

Been There! Done That!

I worked for years in a state that allowed students to drop out of school at 16. In reality, when compulsory attendance ends at age 16, many students were disengaging from school at age 14 or sooner. When the state raised the compulsory attendance age to 18, it made a huge difference. I can’t imagine ever returning to a lower age limit.

From my experience, successful students never dropped out. When the age limit was raised to 18, instead of focusing on leaving school, students began focusing on succeeding in school. Raising the age forced everyone to work together find the right approach for each and every student. We were able to hold on to students, who previously would have dropped out and we were able to help them realize success.

I grew up in a manufacturing-dominated world in which an individual could make a good living through hard physical labor in the steel mills and coalmines. In today’s knowledge economy, most sustainable jobs require post-secondary education and training. Those who dropout are essentially relegated to a lifetime of marginal employment and second-class citizenship. In fact, the income of high school dropouts has continued to decline since the mid-1990s. Dropouts represent an economic and social anchor that our society ends up dragging around for their entire adult life.

Raising the age to 18 sent the right message to our students. Education is critically important!

Experience has taught me that sixteen year-olds lack the wisdom to make informed adult choices and that they all too often follow the path of least resistance. Making it easy to drop out encourages the very behavior that we want to discourage. We have a moral and ethical responsibility to make leaving school without a degree as difficult as possible. In the 21st Century, graduating from high school college and career-ready is not an option. It is an absolute must!

Mel Riddile
NASSP
The Principal Difference

# Franklin Schargel

January 31, 2012 1:38 PM

Mr. Riddle:
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. You present valid anecdotal evidence that supports your views.

I agree “raising the age to 18 sends the right message to our students. Education is critically important.” However, until children and their parents internalize the need to graduate, nothing will happen.

How can state governments enforce this proposed legislation? The states which have a 18 year-old dropout age are still having students dropout before the age of eighteen. As Dr. Diane Ravich wrote in an email to me regarding the article, “Passing a law that you cannot dropout will not stop bored kids, pregnant teens, etc. from leaving.”

# Morgan

February 01, 2012 5:07 AM

Diane Ravitch, via Twitter:

@DianeRavitch: I don't think that dropouts can be reduced by passing a law against dropping out. Must act on reasons kids drop out.