Activity 1: Research Syntheses

The first activity consists of commissioning a series of papers that synthesize existing research with a focus on California. The papers will be written by experts in the field who have already undertaken recent studies on some aspect of the dropout problem or related areas.

Working titles listed in alphabetical order by author:

• • The Social Costs of Dropouts in California, by Clive Belfield (Queens College), and Henry Levin (Teachers College).
  Levin and his colleagues recently completed a study that synthesized a series of commissioned papers on the social costs of dropping out related to reduced earnings and employment, crime, health, and welfare. This paper will apply the results of these studies to estimate the social costs in California.
• • Middle School Reform as a Strategy for Improving High School Graduation Rates, by Jacque Eccles (University of Michigan).
  Ecles is a well-known developmental psychologist and an expert on early adolescent who argues that the typical middle school stifles motivation and adversely affects mental health [28]. This paper will review the research on the optimal learning environments for middle school students and what educational reforms may be needed to create these environments in California.
• • Alternative Pathways to High School Graduation, Further Education, and Workforce Preparation in Other Countries, by Stephen Lamb (University of Melbourne).
  Lamb has written extensively on school dropouts in Australia and on the role of different options to prepare students for further school and work, including vocational education and apprenticeships. This paper would summarize existing research on alternative pathways to graduation found in other industrialized countries.
• • The Costs and Benefits of Reducing Dropout Rates in California, by Henry Levin and Clive Belfield.
  Levin and Belfield have just completed a cost-benefit analysis comparing the cost of four dropout interventions with the projected benefits. The paper would do a comparable analysis of the costs and benefits of alternative interventions to reduce dropouts in California.
• • Why Students Drop Out of School, by Russell W. Rumberger (UC Santa Barbara).
  This study will update a recent synthesis of the literature that Rumberger published in 2004 [23]. That synthesis examined distal (background, elementary school) and proximal (middle and high school) factors in the family and the educational experiences of students that predicted whether they dropped out of school. This revision will include some recent studies on family and school predictors [24].
• • Career and Technical Education as a Strategy for Improving High School Graduation Rates in California, by David Stern (UC Berkeley).
  Stern has written extensively on vocational education. This paper would summarize the research on the role of career and technical education in improving student achievement and high school graduation rates.
• • Proven Interventions for Reducing Dropouts  
  TBA
• • Existing Incentives and Impediments to Improving Graduation Rates in California, by Tom Timar (UC Davis).
  Timar has written extensively on California school governance and serves as a staff member on the California Governor's Committee on Education Excellence [25]. This paper will examine the impact of existing federal and state policies, as well as local contexts on the incentives and capacity of schools and districts to improve high school graduation rates.
• • Improving California's Data System for Measuring Dropout and Graduation Rates, by Georges Venez (Rand).
  Venez is currently conducting a study to evaluate the utility of state data systems for tracking student progress [27]. This paper would examine the existing data system and new efforts, such as CALPADS, to see whether these efforts or other efforts are needed to provide more accurate estimates of California's high school dropout and graduation rates.

[23] See footnote 12.

[24] See footnote 26.

[25] See: http://www.everychildprepared.org/

[26] See: http://www.whatworks.ed.gov/

[27] See: http://www.rand.org/education/assess.html

[28] Roeser, Robert W., Jacquelynne S. Eccles, and Arnold J. Sameroff. 2000. "School as a context of early adolescents' academic and socio-emotional development: A summary of research findings." Elementary School Journal 100: 443-471.