Cori Canty, Offi ce of Dropout Preventi on and Engagement

Don’t Call Them Dropouts: The Role of Bilingual Education in

the State’s Dropout Prevention Framework and Student

Engagement

September 25, 2014

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What?Why students leave school before graduationColorado’s Dropout Prevention Framework, Tools and ResourcesUnderstanding Student Engagement, Tools and Resources

So what?What information should you take back to your colleagues? Why does this information matter, especially in your school and/or

district context? Now what?

What are the next 2-3 things you would propose that your school and/or district do to support struggling students based on today’s presentation?

Today’s Presentation

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Where the inability to speak and understand the English language excludes national origin minority group children from effective participation in the educational program offered by a school district, the district must take affirmative steps to rectify the language deficiency in order to open its instructional program to these students. (35 Fed. Reg. 11595)

Bilingual Education

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1) School districts will implement LIEPs with a focus on access, equity and quality.2) The effective acquisition of academic English to promote student achievement will be a priority regardless of the LIEP selected.3) Assessment will use valid and reliable measures systematically to determine progress in attaining English proficiency (including the level of comprehension, speaking, listening, reading and writing skills) and student academic achievement standards.4) Instruction and accountability will be based on meaningful data related to student performance.5) All instructional staff assigned to educate ELs will be professionally prepared, qualified and authorized to teach this population.6) Parents will be encouraged and provided opportunities to collaborate actively with schools to support their children’s learning and to increase their own language and literacy skills.

Guiding Principles

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Equity and Access

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What is a ‘dropout’?What can we do to support students who

have left school?How can we prevent dropouts and keep

students engaged in their learning?

Equity and Access: Dropout Prevention and Student Engagement

Dropout Definition

“Person who leaves school for any reason, except death, before completion of a high school diploma or its equivalent, and who does not transfer to another public or private school or enroll in an approved home study program.”

Not a dropout: Students that transfer to an educational program recognized by a district, complete a GED or register in a program leading to a GED, or are committed to an institution that maintains educational programs, or they are so ill that they are unable to participate in a homebound or special therapy program.

Students who reach the age of 21 before receiving a diploma or designation of completion (“age-outs”) are also counted as dropouts. For more information, visit www.cde.state.co.us

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Understanding Why Students Leave School

http://gradnation.org/report/dont-call-them-dropouts

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Understanding Why Students Leave School

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Students who leave school before graduating are stronger than popular opinion and current research literature describe. These strengths could, with the right supports, allow them to stay in school; and these abilities do, ultimately, help many to re-engage.

Students who leave school before graduating are often struggling with overwhelming life circumstances that push school attendance far down their priority lists.

Young people who leave high school need fewer easy exits from the classroom and more easy on-ramps back into education.

Young people who leave high school emphasize how much peers, parents, and other adults matter.

Everyone in a young person’s life and community can do something to help.

Five Conclusions

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Listen.

Surround the highest-need young people with extra

supports.

Create a cadre of community navigators to help

students stay in school.

Follow the evidence.

Place young people in central roles in designing and

implementing solutions that will work for their

peers.

Five Recommendations

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Colorado Dropout Prevention Framework

http://www.cde.state.co.us/dropoutprevention/cgp_framework

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Data Analysis Early Warning Systems Tracking Out-of-School Youth Assess School Climate

Identification

Statewide Projects:• Early Warning Systems Research with

McREL• Early Warning Systems Survey (Fall,

2013)• Early Warning Systems

Implementation Support Project with American Institutes of Research

• DropOut Data Analysis Display (DODAD)District and School Tools:

• DropOut Data Analysis Display (DODAD)

• PWR Toolkit

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The DropOut Data Analysis Display (or DODAD) is an analytic tool designed to help administrators and staff from Colorado high schools interpret, investigate and understand the dropout rates for their school.

Graphic (chart-based) display of data makes it easier to identify trends and potential issues and to communicate findings to stakeholders

Puts the data in context by comparing a school’s data to aggregated averages for a similar group of schools (Alternative Education Campuses or Non-AEC schools)

Requires no additional data reporting – uses existing data already provided to CDE by schools or districts

Digging Deeper into state and local data – An example using dropout rates

5. Dropouts by Month

The DODAD tool generates 12 charts based on previously reported data for your

school

Each school can be compared against Colorado’s Alternative Education Campus schools (blue tabs) or against all non-AEC schools (yellow tabs) as appropriate.

1. Overall Dropout Rate – Five Year Trend

2. Percent of School’s Dropouts by Grade

3. Dropout Rate by Grade

4. Percent of School’s Dropouts by Age

4a. Count of Dropouts by Age

9. Exit Types likely to count against the graduation rate

6. Dropout Rates by Race/ Ethnicity

6a. Gaps between Racial/Ethnic Groups

7. Dropout Rates by Instructional Program Service Type

7a. Gaps between IPST Groups

8. Dropout Rates by Gender

Is the school’s dropout rate declining or increasing?

How does the school’s dropout rate compare to other high schools in the state?

At what “stage and age” do students typically drop out?

Does the number of reported dropouts increase at certain times during the school year?

Is this pattern unique to this school?

How do the dropout rates for students in specific sub-groups compare to the rates for their peers? Are there large gaps between groups that should be addressed?

How do the dropout rates for student sub-groups at this school compare to the state as a whole?

In addition to the dropout rate, what other student outcome data will shape the graduation rate for future cohorts?

5. Dropouts by Month

1. Overall Dropout Rate – Five Year Trend

2. Percent of School’s Dropouts by Grade

3. Dropout Rate by Grade

4. Percent of School’s Dropouts by Age

4a. Count of Dropouts by Age

Information is exclusively quantitative vs. qualitative – findings from the tool can help answer questions regarding who dropped out and when, but not why.

The accuracy of the information in the DODAD tool is limited by the accuracy of the student records submitted by the district via the Student End of Year data collection.

Data are aggregated from the prior three yearso Aggregation of multiple years of data helps address issues with

groups of students that have a small single-year sample size or schools with a small student population overall.

o Aggregation also compensates for single year “anomalies” in the data.

Limitations of the DODAD

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Accessing the tool

To download a copy of the DODAD:

1. Access the CDE Office of Dropout Prevention and Engagement web page:

www.cde.state.co.us/DropoutPrevention/

CoGraduationPathways_index

or go to:bit.ly/DODAD

2. Look under the “Tools and Resources” section and click on the link titled “DropOut Data Analysis Display”

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Regardless of the absolute rates for these sub-groups, are there gaps between groups that

should be addressed?

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Besides the dropout rate, what other student outcome data will shape the graduation rate for

future cohorts?

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Enhance School Climate Policies and Practices Review Community Engagement Family Involvement

Institutional Change

Statewide Projects:• Policy and Practices Assessment• Best Practices Guide• Family Engagement for Secondary

Schools online course• Community Partnership online course

District and School Tools:• Policy and Practices Assessment• Best Practices Guide

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Policies and Practices Assessmenthttp://www.cde.state.co.us/dropoutprevention/cgp_policiespracticesreview

Best Practices Guide for School and District Leadershttp://www.cde.state.co.us/dropoutprevention/bestpractices/index

District and School Tools

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Community Engagement Family Involvement Transition Programs Multiple Pathways to Graduation Reengagement of Out-of-School Youth Enhanced Counseling and Mentoring Credit Recovery Options

Intervention and Support

Statewide Projects:• Credit Recovery Project with

iNACOL• Student Transitions Pilot

Project• Regional Reengagement

Infrastructures• Alternative Education

Supports• Alternative Education School

Counseling Supports

District and School Tools and Resources:• ICAP Implementation Support with Colorado Community College System• Alternative Education Supports• Alternative Education School Counseling Supports

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What is Student Engagement?

Colorado statute defines student engagement as: “a student's sense of belonging, safety, and involvement in school that leads to academic achievement, regular school attendance, and graduation,” (CRS 22-14-102(13)).

Student engagement is visible in the quality of students’ interactions with peers and adults as they engage in learning activities and academic tasks.

Student Engagement

Three Dimensions of Student Engagement

Behavioral – involvement in academic, social, and extracurricular activities (positive conduct, absence of disruptive behavior, participation in learning tasks)

Emotional – positive and negative reactions to teachers, classmates and school/school activities (sense of belonging, enjoyment or attachment to school)

Cognitive – mental efforts directed toward learning, use of self-regulated strategies to learn and master complex concepts and difficult skills (investment in learning, perseverance in the face of challenge)

(Fredricks, Blumenfeld, and Paris, 2004, p. 60)

Note: Cognitive Engagement can be considered evidence of student motivation for learning.

Related Concepts

Student Motivation for Learning

Self-Regulation

Student Engagement

Growth Mindset

Grit

Why does student engagement matter?

Students must engage for learning to occur.

Student engagement correlates with measures of student learning/performance.

Student disengagement has been directly linked to student decisions to drop-out of school.

Student engagement is something educators and schools can influence.

Visual Representation

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Emotional Engagement

Cognitive Engagement

Behavioral Engagement

Measure/ Indicators

Student

WHY: External Factors

WHY: Internal Factors

Response: Referral (MTSS tiered approach)

External Factors:

With

in School Contro

l (ie –

culture & cli

mate, learning enviro

nment, etc.

)

External F

actors:

Outside of S

chool C

ontrol (i

e –

homelessness,

abuse/neglect,

divorce, e

tc.)

Response: Referral & Partnerships

UIP Root Cause(s)

29 http://www.coloradostateplan.com/ICAP.htm

Student Engagement: ICAP Implementation

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http://www.cde.state.co.us/dropoutprevention/alternativeeducation

Student Engagement: Alternative Education

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The MEP supports students to reach high standards of academic achievement and is the level of interstate cooperation through the transfer of migrant students' education and health records. This high priority activity helps assure that migrant students are placed appropriately when they enroll in a new school.

The dropout rate among migrant students is high because of the frustration and hopelessness these students encounter when schools are not able to meet their academic needs.

RESOURCES! http://www.cde.state.co.us/cde_english/elau_migrant

Student Engagement:Migrant Education Program

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What? Equity and AccessWhy students leave school before graduationColorado’s Dropout Prevention Framework, Tools and ResourcesUnderstanding Student Engagement, Tools and Resources

So what?What information should you take back to your colleagues? Why does this information matter, especially in your school and/or

district context? Now what?

What are the next 2-3 things you would propose that your school and/or district do to support struggling students based on today’s presentation?

What does this mean to you?

Cori CantyDropout Preventi on

& Engagement(303) 866-2266

canty_c@cde.state.co.us

Thank you!