Dropout Factories

  

     Recently, I watched a two hour episode, on PBS, about the large number of dropouts in Sharpstown High School in Houston, Texas. (sharpstown high ) The high school is known as a dropout factory due to the large numbers of students quitting school every year. The video focuses on four particular students. I found it interesting that many of the students in Sharpstown high were primarily from colored backgrounds and of low income families. All four of these kids have one thing in common, poverty. All four students are facing extremely difficult problems in their personal lives that are causing them to fail classes, miss school, and in some cause misdemeanor. Many of the students do not have an adult in their lives, others don't even have a home,or food to eat.
    The district asked some kids why it was that they decided to drop out; some of them answered that school was not interesting, it wasn't challenging, and that no one cared about them there.  In my opinion, this is the part that schools can change. Sharpstown decided to join a program called the Apollo 20. Apollo 20 has five strategies to help students in school. The first is Human Capital, second is increase time on task, third is high  dosage of tutoring, fourth is culture of high expectations, fifth data driven instruction. I found very interesting that they arranged, what they call a data room, where the information of every student on campus is diligently organized in a specific way to view their periods, test scores, and grades.
    In the video, Sharpstown High hits a barrier when the board of education does not want to aid the high school with money from their budget to offer more help for Sharpstown students, The question that keeps being brought up from the board is "Why spend so money on THOSE kids?" Then perhaps .the board can be held accountable for the higher dropout rate in some schools.This brings up the question of are schools doing enough? Are we giving up on our students? In the video, you can see a lot, if not most of the staff in the high school, being very involved in the students academic life. They are aware of when they miss school and how they are doing in class and if they are not doing well they make sure to have a talk with them. This bring up another question is our staff involved? Do they care to meet the students? What changes can schools make?