Secondary School Completion and Dropouts in Texas Public Schools

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Secondary School Completion and Dropouts in Texas
Public Schools

• October 2005
• Becky Washington

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Goals

• Provide information about the latest TEA report
  on Dropouts
• Provide an understanding of the new requirements
  for dropout reporting
• Discuss issues related to the new requirements

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Start with the good news--
Percent dropouts in Texas
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More good news--
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Whats new?

• The 78th Texas Legislature passed SB 186
  requiring school districts to report dropout data
  using the NCES definition by 2005-06.

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What does that mean?
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Why?

• TEA and NCES both define a dropout as a student
  who is enrolled in school at some time during the
  school year but either leaves school during the
  school year without an approved excuse or
  completes the school year and does not return the
  following year.

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So what makes the difference?

• A student who leaves school and receives a GED is
  not considered a drop out if he receives a GED
  certificate by
• Old---March 1 of the following year
• New---August 31 of the same school year

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3.1
4.1
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TEA did not count

• a student who meets all graduation requirements
  but does not pass the exit level TAKS
• Students who were previously counted as dropouts
• Students who are not eligible for state funding
• Students whose last district of attendance cannot
  be determined

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Another difference

• Returning students
• Beforethose who enroll at any time before the
  third week of January of the next school year
• Nowexcept for migrant students, those enrolled
  on the last Friday in October of the next school
  year

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Another difference

• TEAgrades 7-12
• NCESgrades 9-12

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Another difference

• Denominator
• Beforecumulative attendance
• Nowfall enrollment

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(No Transcript)
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Key factors

• Newcauses 12th grade to be loaded----
• Summer dropouts counted in new school year
• Summer dropouts from grade 11 are added to the
  grade 12 count, which also contains grade 12
  summer dropouts

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What should you do?

• Make sure your PEIMS staff are well trained.
• School districts MUST redirect financial and
  staff resources to the task of determining the
  whereabouts of students who left without
  notifying them.

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What else should you do?

• Look at your leaver codes
• Why are they leaving? What interventions do you
  need?
• Make sure your PGPs are completed
• What can you do to recapture dropouts?
• What can you do to prevent dropouts?

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Coming--

• High School Summit
• October 25-26
• Creating Small Learning Communities Conference
• January 10-11
• AEP-JJAEP Conference
• Coming this summer
• Counselor Conference
• Coming this spring