Opinion
Redeeming the Dropout Year
Widely known as the "dropout year," ninth grade represents -- for too many unruly, disengaged boys -- the point of no return.
Opinion
Reversing Freshman Failure
Boosting students' ninth-grade performance is critical to improving overall academic success.
Opinion
The Graduation Message
Public school educators miss the boat with a week of activities focusing on high school graduation.
Opinion
Shooting Straight on the Graduation Rate
It’s that time of year again. This month marked the end of another academic year for students attending traditional public schools in North Carolina and the end of high school for seniors across the state. But in North Carolina, three out of every 10 ninth graders who begin high school never arrive at the graduation stage.
Opinion
Shooting Straight on the Graduation Rate
It’s that time of year again. This week marked the end of another academic year for students attending traditional public schools in North Carolina. For high school seniors in the midst of graduation ceremonies, this time also represents a proud and much-anticipated rite of passage from the K-12 years to the world of higher education or work.
Opinion
Stepping In The Wrong Direction
Grants for life coaching and dance instruction are not likely to keep more kids in North Carolina's public schools.
Opinion
A Not-so-Silent Epidemic
Two years ago, the national report, The Silent Epidemic (pdf), heralded America’s growing – but largely unrecognized – high school dropout crisis. Now, this epidemic is silent no more.
Opinion
School Choice Gets a Boost
A high school diploma is a critical determinant of later vocational and life success. In our competitive global economy, kids who don’t graduate don’t stand a chance. Not only do high school dropouts face long odds when it comes to securing gainful employment, research shows they’re also at risk for a host of adverse outcomes, including poverty, single parenthood, and incarceration.
Opinion
“Dropout Factories” and Assembly-Line Education
Are American high schools laboratories of learning or “dropout factories”? New data out this week from the Associated Press indicate a disturbing 12 percent of high schools nationwide deserve the “factory” moniker. These schools are prolific producers, but not in a good way, churning out dropouts almost as fast as graduates.
Opinion
Not Just More of the Same
North Carolina has a serious problem with high-school dropouts. But this is not a case where the proper response is, “There ought to be a law!”
Opinion
Lindalyn’s Journal
Much has been said lately about the widespread failings of American high schools. Soaring enrollments in remedial college courses and a labor market glutted with ill-prepared workers only point back to a breakdown in secondary education.
