Policy Development in Criminal Justice Thesis

As suggested by the study into the effects of divorce and other emotional losses in the home, negative experiences outside of the educational environment have a profound influence on the risk of dropout as well (Gerein, 2009).

Counselling Strategies:

Appropriate counselling strategies would be those that directly address the factors identified in increasing the risk of dropping out of high school. In that regard, different factors are addressable by different strategies appropriate to those specific factors. Unfortunately, some of the larger prevailing social issues implicated in increasing dropout risks are not readily capable of resolution by individual schools. Those factors would include the general effect of racial and ethnic minority status and economic status of the community or of individual students' families.

However, some of the factors most readily and directly amenable to improvement on a small scale include the effects of absenteeism, emotional loss outside of school, and the perceptions of students with respect to the economic and vocational opportunities available to them, as well as their beliefs about the concern of teachers and school administrators about their welfare. For example, the detrimental effects of absenteeism can be addressed by increasing the effort of teachers to provide necessary assistance to minimize the problems known to be associated directly and indirectly with missing class.

Similarly, the effects of emotional issues and family instability can be addressed by counselling programs in the school to help students cope with challenges outside of the school environment that impact on their studies.

Some of the most important intervention strategies may be addressing the beliefs and perceptions of students, particularly within economically deprived communities, with respect to their understanding of the long-term practical value of a high school diploma and the economic and vocational opportunities available beyond graduation. In that regard, addressing this factor can also be expected to improve their perception of the degree to which school administrators and teachers care about their well-being, thereby also addressing another important factor.

References:

"High school dropout rate much higher than government says" (2003). Journal of Employee Assistance. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0PLP/is_2_33/ai_n18616238/

Gerein, K. (2009). "High school dropout rate rises for children whose parents divorce, study finds" The Edmonton Journal. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from:

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/life/parenting/High+school+dropout+rate+rises+children+whose+parents+divorce+study+finds/1473172/story.html

Greene, J. (2002). "Civic Report: High School Graduation Rates in the United

States" (Revised). Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Retrieved May 16,

2009, from: http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/cr_baeo.htm

Lau Whelan, D. (2007). "High School Drop-Out Rates Are Higher Than Reported"

School Library Journal. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from:

http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6439502.html