Focus on what causes drop outs

For his second term in office, some may be wondering what President Barack Obama will do about important topics such as gun control, gay marriage, the economy and job creation. Some, however, may focus on his smaller goals, such as keeping students in school until the age of 18 or graduation.

While this idea may sound excellent, Obama should focus on the reasons why students drop out of school instead of extending their time in school.

According to The Washington Post, Obama proposed keeping students in school until the age of 18 in late January 2012. He encouraged states to think of the benefits of keeping students in school for that long; a higher graduation rate and more successful students who would later go on to post-secondary education. He set a goal that by 2020, all Americans would have at least one year of post-secondary education and that the U.S. would have the highest rate of college graduates in the world.

This sounds like a very productive idea, one that could help qualify people for better jobs and help the overall education of all Americans. But unless the root causes of the problem are destroyed, students will fail regardless, and eventually find a way to get around going to school.

There are emotional and physical aspects some students face every day that cause them to drop out. One of the most significant factors in dropout rates is teen pregnancy. According to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 49 percent of teen moms never get a high school diploma. Taking care of a child and going to school becomes a difficult struggle for these teen moms, who may have no one but themselves to take care of the child or no source of income for day care or a babysitter.

Forcing these moms to stay in school until 18 or graduation erases their ability to take care of their children or to get a job to help support their children. Teen moms shouldn’t have to decide between taking care of a child and getting an education; they should be able to do both.

Another reason students will drop out of school is bullying. This is a rising reason why students are dropping out. According to the Do Something organization, one of 10 students drop out of school because they are bullied. The Futurity organization further backs up this statement, stating that schools with high rates of bullying also have higher dropout rates.

Keeping these students in school until graduation or until the age of 18 could put them in physical and psychological danger. Violence is a growing problem in America, and bullying can lead to violence if the situation is not taken care of. If students continue to stay in school and have no escape, they could become psychological unstable, or even kill themselves.

So, instead of keeping these students in school longer, the president should focus on how to help these bullied students overcome bullying and move on instead of keeping them in that negative, bullying environment.

Poor attendance is another major reason students drop out. According to the EduGuide website, students who are absent for 20 percent of their eighth-grade year are more likely to drop out in high school.

Thus, encouraging good attendance from the first day of school could help prevent students from dropping out of high school. Once students reach high school, teachers should find stimulating and unique ways to teach students the information they need to learn. This would make school interesting and possibly even fun instead of the stereotypical boring environment.

For his second term, instead of challenging states to keep students in school longer, Obama should challenge states to come up with logical and productive ways of destroying the reasons students drop out.

Schools should teach students about online high school diplomas and general equivalency diplomas so students know there are alternatives if they end up in a situation where they have to stay at home or get a job.

States and schools also could come up with productive ways to help students who are bullied or help prevent bullying, or at least encourage those bullied students who do drop out to look into home school.

While bullying is a large-scale issue and very well may not be fixed with a simple program or lecture, states could start taking the steps to raise awareness about bullying and what to do if you are bullied.

While there are many reasons students drop out, addressing these core causes would go a long way toward helping the President reach his goals for education in the U.S.

Holly Brett is a three-year Journalism student and this is her second year writing for the Frontiersman’s School Page.