There needs to be a new sense of urgency to prevent students from dropping out of school. A review of the research on effective dropout prevention strategies, including IDRA’s own research over the past two decades, shows that certain components are vital to successful dropout prevention.
- All students must be valued.
- There must be at least one educator in a student’s life who is totally committed to the success of that student.
- Students, parents and teachers must be provided extensive, consistent support in ways that allow students to learn, teachers to teach, and parents to be involved.
- Equity and excellence in schools contribute to individual and collective economic growth, stability and advancement.
- The solutions sought must be institution-based with family and community participation and must embrace the strengths and contributions that students and their families bring.
IDRA’s Valued Youth Partnership program incorporates these components. It has demonstrated that successful dropout prevention can be achieved.
