The Condition of Education 1996 / Indicator 6: Dropouts who complete high school within 2 years of scheduled graduation

The Condition of Education 1996, Indicator 6

Dropouts who complete high school within 2 years of scheduled graduation

The decision to drop out of school does not always indicate the culmination of a young person's education. Many former students reconsider their decision to drop out and return to high school. Also, in the American educational system, alternative programs are available that give dropouts a "second chance" to complete their high school education. These programs include regular high school diploma programs as well as programs leading to a high school credential after passing the General Educational Development (GED) Tests.

Eighty-eight percent of the 1990 cohort had completed high school by August following their senior year of high school, compared to 80 percent of the sophomore class of 1980.
Dropouts from the 1990 sophomore class were more likely to return to school than were their counterparts a decade earlier. Almost 58 percent of dropouts from the 1990 cohort either completed or were re-enrolled in school 2 years after their scheduled graduation, compared to 34 percent of dropouts from the 1980 cohort.
Compared to their peers, dropouts who had poor basic skills in mathematics (test performance in the lowest quartile for their cohort) were less likely to receive an alternative credential such as a GED, and were more likely not to have completed high school 2 years later.

Percentage of 1980 and 1990 sophomore classes in August 1982 and 1992 and spring 1984 and 1994 according to educational status, by selected characteristics

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                                             Status in August
                                         following  scheduled high                  Total
                                             school graduation                  completed
                                       ----------------------------------- spring 2 years
                                        Completed                               following
Selected                                    high          Still                 scheduled
characteristics                         school\1\   enrolled\2\   Dropout      graduation
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              1990 Sophomore Cohort
     Total                                    87.5           6.9       5.6            92.2
Sex
  Male                                        87.2           7.6       5.2            92.2
  Female                                      87.9           6.1       6.0            92.3
Race/ethnicity
  White                                       90.6           5.1       4.3            94.2
  Black                                       78.9          13.5       7.6            87.1
  Hispanic                                    77.5          11.6      10.9            85.0
Mathematics achievement in 10th grade
  Below lowest quartile                       74.6          13.0      12.4            82.2
  Above lowest quartile                       93.2           4.2       2.6            96.6
                                              1980 Sophomore Cohort
     Total                                    80.1          10.0       9.9            89.6
Sex
  Male                                        76.7          12.4      11.0            88.4
  Female                                      83.5           7.6       8.9            90.8
Race/ethnicity
  White                                       83.0           8.2       8.8            91.4
  Black                                       71.7          17.0      11.3            85.0
  Hispanic                                    68.8          14.4      16.8            82.2
Mathematics achievement in 10th grade
  Below lowest quartile                       67.0          14.5      18.5            80.1
  Above lowest quartile                       89.1           6.9       4.1            95.8
                                      
                                                    Status of August dropouts         
                                                   in the spring 2 years later        
                                      ------------------------------------------------
                                                     Received    Enrolled             
Selected                                    Grad- alternative     in high       Still 
characteristics                             uated  credential   school\2\    dropouts 
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                                              1990 Sophomore Cohort
     Total                                    15.1        11.0        31.4        42.5
Sex
  Male                                        12.0        11.1        30.6        46.3
  Female                                      17.9        10.5        32.4        39.3
Race/ethnicity
  White                                       13.0        14.8        31.9        40.3
  Black                                       22.4         6.7        33.2        37.8
  Hispanic                                     9.5         6.0        33.8        50.6
Mathematics achievement in 10th grade
  Below lowest quartile                       12.9         8.5        31.9        46.7
  Above lowest quartile                       19.9        16.1        30.4        33.6
                                              1980 Sophomore Cohort
     Total                                     8.4        11.8        13.5        66.4
Sex
  Male                                         8.8        11.9        11.9        67.3
  Female                                       7.9        11.6        15.3        65.2
Race/ethnicity
  White                                        7.8        13.9        13.7        64.6
  Black                                       11.8         7.0        18.7        62.5
  Hispanic                                     8.4         9.9         6.5        75.3
Mathematics achievement in 10th grade
  Below lowest quartile                        8.4         8.6        15.0        68.0
  Above lowest quartile                        8.4        20.8         9.2        61.6
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1/ Includes those who graduated from high school and those who received an alternative credential.

2/ Enrolled in a regular high school or alternative program. For the 1990 cohort, 1.9 percent of the dropouts were enrolled in high school, while 29.5 percent were enrolled in an alternative program in the spring of 1994.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, High School and Beyond (HS&B) study, Sophomore Cohort, Base Year, First, and Second Follow-up Surveys, and National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, First, Second, and Third Follow-up Surveys.