On the last day of school, there are few teachers who don't look back on the year and wonder how they could have been more effective at reaching every student. Many teachers regret the opportunities that we missed to help students who are at risk of dropping out instead of graduating to a better future. We tend to question the many decisions we made during the school year regarding the students in our classes who were seriously struggling with tough problems such as attendance, academics, poverty, lack of readiness, or peer pressure.
While there are many promising programs and a great
deal of support available for at-risk students, too many
students still drop out of school. Perhaps one reason for this continuing problem is its complexity. Students can be at risk for dropping
out for many reasons. Here are just a few possible contributing factors:
•
Family problems
•
Poor academic
skills
•
Substance abuse
•
Pregnancy
•
Emotional
problems
•
Chronic peer
conflicts
•
Repeated failure
in school
•
Inadequate
parental supervision
•
Undiagnosed
learning problems
•
Chronic illness
It is undeniable: at-risk students depend on their
teachers to help them stay in school. Instead of mentally beating yourself up for not taking full advantage of every chance that you had to help all of your students, think about how you can incorporate some of these simple, common sense strategies into your plans for the new school year that lies ahead.
•
Be persistent in
your efforts to motivate at-risk students. Do not hesitate to let them know you
plan to keep them in school as long as you can.
•
Spend time
helping your students establish life goals so that they can see a larger
purpose for staying in school. Without a purpose for learning, school seems
like an exercise in futility to a student who wants to drop out.
•
Set small goals
that will help students reach a larger one. If you can get them in the habit of
achieving at least one small goal each day, they can build on this pattern of
success.
•
Involve students
in cooperative learning activities. Feeling connected to their classmates
empowers and supports students who may be considering quitting school.
•
Invite guest
speakers or older students to talk with younger ones about the importance of
staying in school.
•
Offer open-ended
questions so that at-risk students can attempt answers without fear of failure.
•
Be generous with
praise and attention. Your kind words may often be the only ones your at-risk
students will hear all day.
•
Assign work that
is relevant and meaningful. If students see a purpose for their work, they may
decide to stay in school.
•
Seek assistance
from support personnel and family members. It takes many determined adults to
change a student’s mind once he or she has decided to drop out.
•
Check on students
when they are absent. Call their homes. Show your concern.
•
Create situations
in which at-risk students can be successful. Perhaps they can tutor younger
students, mediate peer conflict, or help you with classroom chores. Focus on
their strengths.
•
Offer extra help
and assistance to all of your students, but particularly to those at risk of dropping
out.
•
Tailor activities
to students’ preferred learning styles. When the work seems too difficult,
at-risk students can often be successful if their teacher uses another modality
to teach the material they need to know.
•
Connect to
at-risk students in a positive way. Make sure that they understand that they
are important to you and to their classmates.
To learn more about how you can help your at-risk students, begin with the Education World Web site (http://www.educationworld.com). You can access a wealth of information on how to help your students at risk of dropping out of school by using “at risk” as a keyword to search the site. You will find links to other sites, articles, motivational tools, and strategies for teachers.
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