How Employment Affects The Likelihood Of Dropout Among High School Students

In today’s society it has become even more crucial to obtain knowledge and graduate from high school. In the article “The True Cost of High School Dropouts” Henry M. Levin and Cecilia E. Rouse explain that the dropout rate imposes a heavy cost on the economy. Henry M. Levin is a professor of economics and education at Columbia University. Cecilia E. Rouse is a professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University. She also was a member of President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers from 2009 to 2011. This article was found on “The New York Times” and was published Jan. 25th, 2012. They begin with stating the facts and giving sources to build credibility. They then go into what is being done wrong and what needs to be done in order to improve.

To begin with, dropping out of high school has caused a negative uprise leading to high dropout rates. There are several effects of dropping out of school. Many students have difficult experiences during their early lives. High school dropouts are more likely to be from households where parents do not help their children with school. Some students feel there is disconnect between themselves, their parents, and their teacher; therefore, they end up dropping out of school. However, if parents and teachers communicate with students, there is a higher chance that the students will graduate and succeed. Many adults, who dropped out of school, regret dropping out. Since the dropped out of school, life is not so easy for them. Suh initiates that “the United States economy had become more “brain

The socioeconomic status of an individual’s parents has always been one of the clear-cut forecasters of the individual’s academic success and educational accomplishment. The correlation between family socioeconomic uniqueness and student accomplishment is one of the most forceful patterns in educational scholarship; however the reasons and means

Sociologists and psychologists have studied and documented high school dropout rate for many decades. Their focus has been put on statistics of different races/ethnicities, age groups and gender as well as underlying factors of why people drop out. Comparing the dropout statistics of different races is a common theme amongst many sociologists’ studies. The extent of their research addresses many significant aspects of high school drop out but fail to shed light on the differences within races between the two genders.

Obtaining a degree remains one of the most important pathways to economic and social class in the United States (U.S.), regardless of rising tuition costs and the value of having a higher education coming in to question. Of the 20.6 million students enrolled in a college or university, first-generation college students represents about one-third (The Institute for Higher Education Policy, 2012). These group of individuals are more likely to encounter academic, financial, professional, cultural, and emotional difficulties (Sanez, Hurtado, Barrera, Wolf, and Yeung, 2007).

Today's American workforce is made up of a clear cut thirty six-percent of people with a Bachelor's Degree, thirty-four percent of people with a High School Diploma and thirty percent of people with at least some exposure to college courses (Douglas-Gabriel 1). The desire for qualified job applicants goes unnoticed these days. Today's workforce lacks driven applicants with a college education. As students and families struggle to make ends meet in the midst of the transition from high school to college, one might question, is college worth it? A wide variety of statistics about where students most commonly succeed shows both positives and negatives about attending college.

“Kids who are the first in their families to brave the world of higher education come on campus with little academic know-how and are much more likely than their peers to drop out before graduation” (1). Many people believe that school isn’t for everyone, and whoever goes is privileged for doing so. Countless people in the world today do not attend college, and this is mainly due to an influence of those in their family. Perhaps they are unsupportive of higher education, their parents and family members may view their entry into college as a break in the family system rather than a continuation of their schooling and higher learning. Most of the first-generation students decide to apply to colleges, because they aspire to jobs which require degrees. However, unlike some students whose parents have earned a degree, they often seek out college to bring honor to their families, and to ensure they make a decent amount of money for their future.

Today in society the determination for a college degree lies beyond education towards future financial security. While college debt seems to be ever increasing, students from low-income families are less likely to attend college due to the financial hardship. The social class that a student’s family falls into shows correlation on whether that student will or not attend college (Peske & Haycock, 2006). However, looking at this issue from my own prospective it seems as though no matter the social class students are attending college. What more so seems to have an affect on outcomes for individuals is how there family’s social economic status effects how well a student performs in college. For a student from a low-income family nothing can seem more daunting than the overwhelming amount of debt we have to pay after college.

In today’s educational system, there are high achieve students who need little assistance in mapping their post-secondary years, and there are students who desire to further their education, but lacks the motivation or guidance. For the purpose of this project, these students will be referred as first-generation students. These first-generation students are those students whose parents did not obtain a 4-year post-secondary education. Therefore, these students are known to have a disadvantage as their parents/guardians may not see the benefits of attending college or know the process to help their children successfully pursue a degree after their high school years.

The dropout problem is not only an individual problem, but it is costly to society as a whole. Warren & Halpen-Manners (2007) explained, “high school dropouts is of fundamental social, economic, and political importance and has major implications for educational policy and practice, patterns of economic and racial/ethnic inequality, and the quality of America’s workforce” (p. 335). Coupled with that, Neild et al (2008) further argued going through the portal into adult life without high school credentials carries severe economic and employment penalties. Also, Kennelly (2007) explained “When students drop out…. the toll of the quality of life and the prosperity and competitiveness of the communities where they live and collectively across

Schools have an effect on whether or not a student is ready for college. The article mentions that high schools tend to teach memorization tricks rather than problem solving and critical writing exercises. Family variables and peer influences outside of school are another reason many students are unable to attend or get through college; this is part of the non-academic factor. The authors indicate that students whose parents have gone to college are more likely to go to college

Nationally the youth unemployment rate is double that of the national average. It is even worse for teens of color and teens from low-income houses. In 2014, 21 percent of African-American teens and 26 percent of Hispanic teens were able to find employment (Brookings Institute, 2016). However, research shows that being employed during high school can help with school persistence and graduation among economically disadvantaged youth, making it easier to transition into the workforce after graduation and helps reduce violent, risky, and adverse social behaviors. “The biggest driver of opportunity is whether youth, age 16-24, are

In North Carolina, from 2013-2014 to 2014-2015 there was a 6.6 percent increase in crime rates within schools for high schools, also during this time there was a 4.8 percent increase in dropouts (Hinchcliffe, 2016). For the school year of 2014-2015 the dropout rate was 2.39 percent, which was a increase compared to the previous year that had a rate of 2.28 percent (The Progressive Pulse, 2016). High school dropouts are known to face issues in their future in regards to their socioeconomic status, job attainment, and other risk factors that may influence their lives in the long-term. It has been found that high school dropouts earn an estimated $9,000 less per year on average compared to individuals that graduate. They are also more likely to live in poverty, it was also found that dropouts are three times more likely to be unemployed compared to graduates which puts them at a further disadvantage (Burrus & Roberts, 2012). The consequences of dropping out not only affects the individuals but also our society, due to its contributions to governmental costs; in 2001 there were 40% of high school dropouts (16-24 years old) receiving government assistance (Burrus & Roberts, 2012).. This portrays how high school dropouts leads to further problems and affect others.

It is beyond doubt that one’s decision to attend college will be influenced by what one knows about college. Everything one learns originates from the social institutions established in his/her community, and hence, one will have to consider various factors embedded within the society before making the decision to attend college. A society in which both parents in the family setup did not attend college is likely to have many first-generation students. Such students have been shown to be at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to enrolling and completing postsecondary education. Despite the significant rates with which college enrolment varies in regard to the parents’ education levels, first generation students usually come from low-income

This research article possessed many strengths. The authors did an exceptional job in including all factors such as gender, SES, ethnicity, minority groups, single parent families, school and neighborhood disadvantages in regards to its correlation with academic success. The authors also did a good job in providing support on other studies in order to make their hypotheses more credible. Another aspect of the research that I found to be a strength is the