Kennelly, Louise, and Maggie Monrad. "Easing the Transition to High School: Research and Best Designed to Support High School Learning." National High School Center (n.d.): n.pag. Betterhighschools.org. National High School Center. Web.
The largest high school grade nationwide is 9th, with dropout rates growing starting in 10th. Johns Hopkins found that up to 40% of students repeated 9th grade, but only 10-15% of them graduated. The largest time of dropouts is between 9th and 10th, and a strong indicator of likelihood to drop out is low attendance in the first 30 days of school. Personalizing the learning and connecting teachers and students are good ways to prepare for success. The first thing to do is establish a monitoring system to track at-risk students, then address their different needs, for example, some students need programs to speed up or slow down. The third step is personalization, making the learning environment tailored to the students., for example, Georgia’s graduation coaches. The fourth step is to elevate lower level schools, and the fifth is to connect students, schools and the community. Nearly ⅓ of high school students do not graduate. An “on-track to graduate” student earns 5 credits and no more than one semester F (Kennelly 14) . Ninth grade academies have had high success rates and talent development programs also cultivate success.
The largest high school grade nationwide is 9th, with dropout rates growing starting in 10th. Johns Hopkins found that up to 40% of students repeated 9th grade, but only 10-15% of them graduated. The largest time of dropouts is between 9th and 10th, and a strong indicator of likelihood to drop out is low attendance in the first 30 days of school. Personalizing the learning and connecting teachers and students are good ways to prepare for success. The first thing to do is establish a monitoring system to track at-risk students, then address their different needs, for example, some students need programs to speed up or slow down. The third step is personalization, making the learning environment tailored to the students., for example, Georgia’s graduation coaches. The fourth step is to elevate lower level schools, and the fifth is to connect students, schools and the community. Nearly ⅓ of high school students do not graduate. An “on-track to graduate” student earns 5 credits and no more than one semester F (Kennelly 14) . Ninth grade academies have had high success rates and talent development programs also cultivate success.
Menken, Kate. "Restrictive Language Education Policies And Emergent Bilingual Youth: A Perfect Storm With Imperfect
Outcomes." Theory Into Practice 52.3 (2013): 160-168. Business Source Complete. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.
“Emergent bilinguals” and “ English language learners” are synonymous (Menken 2). Supporting home languages in addition to English gives bilingual children an advantage over their peers, whereas English only education lowers success (Menken 2). Combining education in two languages contributes to “academic, linguistic, and cognitive” benefits (Menken 2). In the US, specifically Proposition 207 in California, bilingual education is seen as an impediment to English learning, despite research to the contrary (Menken 3). This proposition makes bilingual education almost impossible in attempts to promote English fluency; other states like Arizona and Massachusetts are following suit. NCLB, which was started in 2002, cuts off bilingual programs because it focuses on English education only, with an “emphasis on high-stakes testing” that makes all tests administered in English only and most materials only accessible in English (Menken 4). In New York City, bilingual schools are getting phased out because standards are becoming too hard to reach in both languages, and because testing puts so much pressure on schools for emergent bilinguals to achieve that bilingual programs are increasingly more difficult to implement (Menken 5). Tests and studies have shown that emergent bilinguals in English-only programs suffer academically in comparison to those in dual language programs (Menken 6). Bilinguals in English only programs are also more likely to drop out or fail high school exit exams (Menken 7). Expanding education to include language programs for emergent bilinguals would support tolerance, cultural learning, language proficiency, and overall educational success (Menken 8).
Outcomes." Theory Into Practice 52.3 (2013): 160-168. Business Source Complete. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.
“Emergent bilinguals” and “ English language learners” are synonymous (Menken 2). Supporting home languages in addition to English gives bilingual children an advantage over their peers, whereas English only education lowers success (Menken 2). Combining education in two languages contributes to “academic, linguistic, and cognitive” benefits (Menken 2). In the US, specifically Proposition 207 in California, bilingual education is seen as an impediment to English learning, despite research to the contrary (Menken 3). This proposition makes bilingual education almost impossible in attempts to promote English fluency; other states like Arizona and Massachusetts are following suit. NCLB, which was started in 2002, cuts off bilingual programs because it focuses on English education only, with an “emphasis on high-stakes testing” that makes all tests administered in English only and most materials only accessible in English (Menken 4). In New York City, bilingual schools are getting phased out because standards are becoming too hard to reach in both languages, and because testing puts so much pressure on schools for emergent bilinguals to achieve that bilingual programs are increasingly more difficult to implement (Menken 5). Tests and studies have shown that emergent bilinguals in English-only programs suffer academically in comparison to those in dual language programs (Menken 6). Bilinguals in English only programs are also more likely to drop out or fail high school exit exams (Menken 7). Expanding education to include language programs for emergent bilinguals would support tolerance, cultural learning, language proficiency, and overall educational success (Menken 8).
Weiss, Christopher C., and Peter S. Bearman. "Fresh Starts: Reinvestigating the Effects of the Transition to High School on Student Outcomes." American Journal of Education 113.3 (2007): 395-421. JSTOR [JSTOR]. Web. 17 Jan. 2017
The article begins with the harrowing statistic “over 40 percent of students fail one or more major subjects during the first semester of high school” (Weiss and Bearman 395). Poor performance in the first semester leads to poor performance in the rest of high school, and sets the course for the future success of the student. The question the article poses is, “Is it the transition itself that’s creating the problems?” Some students benefit from the transition, and some are hurt by it. While grouping students into grades can be positive for academic enrichment, the actual changing of physical schools is negative. Students who attend K12 schools find more psychological benefits than those who attend K6 or K8, although academically oriented students do well in any situation. Transitions serve as a physical reminder and representation of the transition from adolescence into responsibility and maturity. The level of autonomy of the student rises along with the level of peer influence. Smaller classes/ schools lead to more success, and academically focused/ high-achieving students seek out opportunities and success.
The article has many potential quotes that I could use in my project. For example, I can begin with the quote “The first year of high school is a very difficult one for many students,” because this statement might carry a different weight coming from several renowned experts rather than me (Weiss and Bearman 395). Additional quotes such as “We find that the move from eighth grade to ninth grade is accompanied by negative changes regardless of whether it is accompanied by a change in school and that some students benefit from transitions” will support my claim that kids can succeed regardless of the high school they end up in, and more quotes such as “Do transitions between schools, necessitated by particular configuration of grades- or schooling forms- make a difference for student outcomes?” will aid me to present the questions many have and the answers that the research has found (Weiss and Bearman 395-421).
This source was written by two Ivy League professors who are renowned experts in the field they have published the paper on. Columbia university sponsored the research and the paper, and the paper was published in a very respectable journal on education. The source was published in 2007, so I consider it to be recent due to the fact that the layout of elementary (K-5), middle (6-8), and high school (9-12) hasn’t changed and won’t change for a while, so it is still relevant.
I can use this article to identify the problem areas of transitions, explain the problems of transitions, and create some of my own solutions to those problems. I can use this in conjunction with my article on bilingual education to identify larger problems facing the students I see at WLA and DVA. This research and these quotes can be incorporated into the presentation to give credibility and a different take on the project. The source added questions for me to answer, answers for questions I didn’t know I had, and ideas to share in my presentation.
The article begins with the harrowing statistic “over 40 percent of students fail one or more major subjects during the first semester of high school” (Weiss and Bearman 395). Poor performance in the first semester leads to poor performance in the rest of high school, and sets the course for the future success of the student. The question the article poses is, “Is it the transition itself that’s creating the problems?” Some students benefit from the transition, and some are hurt by it. While grouping students into grades can be positive for academic enrichment, the actual changing of physical schools is negative. Students who attend K12 schools find more psychological benefits than those who attend K6 or K8, although academically oriented students do well in any situation. Transitions serve as a physical reminder and representation of the transition from adolescence into responsibility and maturity. The level of autonomy of the student rises along with the level of peer influence. Smaller classes/ schools lead to more success, and academically focused/ high-achieving students seek out opportunities and success.
The article has many potential quotes that I could use in my project. For example, I can begin with the quote “The first year of high school is a very difficult one for many students,” because this statement might carry a different weight coming from several renowned experts rather than me (Weiss and Bearman 395). Additional quotes such as “We find that the move from eighth grade to ninth grade is accompanied by negative changes regardless of whether it is accompanied by a change in school and that some students benefit from transitions” will support my claim that kids can succeed regardless of the high school they end up in, and more quotes such as “Do transitions between schools, necessitated by particular configuration of grades- or schooling forms- make a difference for student outcomes?” will aid me to present the questions many have and the answers that the research has found (Weiss and Bearman 395-421).
This source was written by two Ivy League professors who are renowned experts in the field they have published the paper on. Columbia university sponsored the research and the paper, and the paper was published in a very respectable journal on education. The source was published in 2007, so I consider it to be recent due to the fact that the layout of elementary (K-5), middle (6-8), and high school (9-12) hasn’t changed and won’t change for a while, so it is still relevant.
I can use this article to identify the problem areas of transitions, explain the problems of transitions, and create some of my own solutions to those problems. I can use this in conjunction with my article on bilingual education to identify larger problems facing the students I see at WLA and DVA. This research and these quotes can be incorporated into the presentation to give credibility and a different take on the project. The source added questions for me to answer, answers for questions I didn’t know I had, and ideas to share in my presentation.