More High School Graduates: How Schools Can Save Students From Dropping Out

More High School Graduates: How Schools Can Save Students from Dropping Out by Ben Levin c2012

Ben Levin served as Deputy Minister of Education in Ontario from 2004 to 2007 and is instrumental in increasing the Ontario high school graduation rate from 68% (in 2004) to 81% (in 2010). The framework focuses on the belief that all high schools need to improve, that there is no one single strategy to improvement, and that improvement occurs over time. We are also reminded that there is no single factor that can be used to predict if a student will not graduate as it is a process rather than an event.

Levin’s framework of 4 strategies is presented to “change a large and complex institution such as secondary schooling” (p. 31). Levin states that high school leadership is differs from elementary school since “school principals don’t have the same direct connection with daily teaching and learning, not only because there are more teachers and students but also because the administrative and management requirements are greater” (p. 22). High school teachers, often focused only on their courses and departments as they prepare students for the next course and for post-secondary, need to see how the numerous school initiatives are applicable to their everyday work with students. Administrators needs to develop working relationships with teachers and to deal with teacher morale and resistance while providing the needed professional development and resources on the focus of 2-3 key initiatives/priorities.

Strategy 1: Know the status and progress of every student, know the reasons for any problems, and intervene as soon as there are signs of difficulties.
- most important factor whether students come to school, stay in school, or leave school is to have an important adult in the school who cares and know them
- have a student success team in each school
- “2 by 10”: spend 2 minutes each day for 10 consecutive days with a student on the wrong path
- use student mentors
- students who change schools have less chance of graduating: greater poverty, less family stability, less known to staff
- for students needing alternative to school: “Things are not working well at this moment and you may feel that you need to do something else right now, but we want you to know that when you feel ready to return, we will welcome you back with a clean slate” (p. 55)
- attendance and behaviour correlated with achievement; if not, need to determine why
- importance of student voice: survey data about feelings and attitudes of school; input on school improvement plan, policies and decisions

Strategy 2: Provide a program that enables all students to achieve a good outcome.
- high expectations for all students: “Good teaching is more important than a wider choice of courses” (p. 86)
- flexible programming: independent learning, on-line, dual credits, AP, IB, alternative education, Specialist High School Major (SHSM):
- recovery options (to keep students on track to graduate): credit rescue, credit recovery “There is no reason to think that retaking a course is a better way for students to meet academic standards” (p. 80)

Strategy 3: Improve daily teaching and learning is essential, to achieving better high school outcomes; to do this requires a thoughtful and specific strategy.
- strategies to improve student engagement: tasks require challenge
- “Effective student assessment practices is the best single lever to change student experiences” (p. 95) – clear criteria, alternative assessments, assessment to inform teaching practice
- teachers collaborate in professional learning communities to improve instructional practice
- use of technology

Strategy 4: Connect schools deeply to their local and broader community.
- Power of Three: School, parents, student success
- When parents are difficult, often a breakdown in communication or different perspective: “Parents are – and should be – advocates for their children. It is their job to take their kids’ side most (if not all) of the time” (p. 121)

Reflection
I thoroughly enjoyed reading More High School Graduates. As an educator in Ontario, it is nice to be able to step back and reflect on the educational reforms of the past decade. The focus here in Ontario is on increasing graduation rates. We know that students’ futures are limited without a high school diploma. Levin points out in addition to less employment and lower earnings, the consequences include poorer health and shorter life span (p. 157). The investment is steep as it costs $10 000 per year to educate a student (resulting in $6 billion dollars for 600 000 students in Ontario).

When I was a classroom teacher, I knew the importance of developing solid working relationships with my students. To do that required me to learn their names as quickly as possible, to have individual conversations with them (I remember these conversations through journal writing as well), and to show I cared deeply about their success. Interestingly, my MEd thesis focused on implementing alternative assessments and a decade later, assessment remained instrumental towards informing my instructional practices and ultimately students’ success. I also remember the excellent advice from 1994 as a teacher candidate when a teacher stated he calls home to parents in the first week of the semester to introduce himself. Building solid teacher-parent relationships are important as we cannot do it alone.

As a vice-principal, I strive to be visible in the hallways before, during, and at the end of the school day. I like to visit the library and ask students what they are learning. I have already visited all the classrooms on the 2nd floor during period 1. I will continue making classroom walk-throughs of the first floor and portables later this week. It is wonderful to see the student engagement occurring. Students are able to articulate what they are learning and usually able to articulate why they are learning it. Reality is I am an instructional leader and it’s all about student learning and achievement. It’s a juggling act with the operational responsibilities of the school.

It really is about working as a team to effect change – administrators cannot do it alone. Since administrators are transferred every few years, to sustain initiatives, it is the teachers who will keep them going by embedding them into their practices. Without a doubt, change seems endless. But that keeps being in the profession interesting. The focus is no longer on covering the curriculum – but on uncovering the curriculum to students. Ensuring student success – of each and every student – is a responsibility that we must strive to reach.