Downloads & Free Reading Options - Results

Raising graduation rates for students attending schools in the United States is a national priority. As part of the No Child Left Behind Act, schools are required to track and report the percentage of students who graduate with a regular diploma in four years. The magnitude of the problem for student subgroups (including students of Hispanic and Native-American descent) points to the need for concerted efforts to design and implement programs and strategies that will keep youth in school and facilitate successful completion. Additionally, the cost to students who drop out in terms of lower wages and higher unemployment rates and the costs to society in terms of lost revenue and increased dependence on social programs necessitate effective solutions to the problem of dropout. This brief will highlight findings from a recent review of 45 prevention and intervention studies addressing dropout or school completion described in professional journals. Results can be used to inform practice for those working with youth (with and without disabilities) who are disengaging from school.

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert