Thesis on "Improving the High School Dropout Rate in Bermuda"

Thesis 40 pages (10887 words) Sources: 25 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Reduction of the High School Dropout Rate in Bermuda

The value of a high school education over the course of an individual's lifetime has been well documented, but many high school students continue to drop out of school prior to graduation for various reasons. Of the $798 million that taxpayers paid last year to keep the wheels of Government in motion, $132 million or 16%, went towards public education. Among government ministries, education was the second biggest spender. Despite this and the millions of dollars already spent on the construction of Bermuda's two public high schools, CedarBridge Academy and the Berkeley Institute, public confidence in the Government school system remains low. The purpose of this thesis is to make the readers aware of this issue and to make recommendations on how to improve Bermuda's current high school graduation and dropout rates.

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH DESIGN and METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER FOUR: DATA COLLECTION, FINDINGS and ANALYSIS

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSIONS and RECOMMENDATIONS

REDUCING the DROPOUT RATE for BERMUDIAN YOUTH

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW

Introduction

There is a high school dropout epidemic in Bermuda. Each year, over half of all public high school students fail to graduate from public high school with their class. Many of these students abandon school with less than two years to complete their high school education.

As high schools move to the top of the reform agenda, educators have been scrutinizing one of the most significant indicators of a high school's performance: the rate of students who graduate. The attention is well-deserved -- a high school diploma is the minimal qualification young people need to survive in today's society.

This tragic cycle has not substantially improved during the past few decades. During this time, the general public has been almost entirely unaware of the severity of the dropout problem due to inaccurate data. The Honorable K.H. Randolph Horton, JP, MP, Minister of Education, Sports and Recreation in his briefing remarks in the House of Parliament on the Education Review stated, "Bermuda's public education system is at a crossroads. That should not be. Public education is one of the fundamental elements of any society. Public education is the vehicle by which any country ensures that the majority of its population achieves those fundamental skills - those reading, writing and critical thinking skills that are necessary to create a settled populace and to ensure the stability of the nation."

Improving student achievement must be Bermuda's ultimate objective. With a prison population which demonstrates high level of illiteracy, with a cohort of young people who believe that violence is the most immediate and natural way to resolve problems, with young people who say that they cannot compete for a piece of the economic pie within their own country, we are at the erosion point. In a fast - paced, complex, information - based economy like ours, education is a must. In order to compete and become a productive member of one's community and ultimately society as a whole depends upon the fundamental skills acquired in high school. Individuals today need to have the ability to communicate with clarity, confidence, and precision when they speak, read, and write just to function in everyday life. Without an adequate educational background individuals are often unable to succeed during their adult lives. In fact, many who find themselves in this position are not only incapable of becoming upwardly mobile and contributing to society but in addition; create costly problems that society must deal with. This puts a strain on the personal lives of these individuals and subsequently places an undue burden on the backs of the communities that must deal with the problems associated with dropping out of high school.

Statement of the Problem

Of the $798 million that taxpayers paid last year to keep the wheels of Government in motion, $132 million or 16%, went towards public education. Among government ministries, education was the second biggest spender. Despite this and the millions of dollars already spent on the construction of Bermuda's two public high schools, CedarBridge Academy and the Berkeley Institute, public confidence in the Government school system remains low. Given a choice, many parents, including teachers in public school, opt for private schooling for their children.

Throughout the world the dropout rates are particularly alarming, because in today's society there are few employment opportunities that pay living wages, and benefits are rare for those who have neither completed a high school education nor acquired necessary basic skills. On average, youth who drop out are more likely than others to experience negative outcomes such as unemployment, underemployment, and incarceration.

Bermuda's dropout and graduation rates are at the erosion point; there is a high school dropout crisis far beyond the imagination of most Bermudians relegating hundreds of Bermudian children to a life of failure. Far more students are leaving high school without a diploma than most people realize and we urgently need to address this problem as a country because graduation from high school is a critical gateway to successful participation in the workforce, economy and society.

Statement of the Purpose

The purpose of this thesis is to make the readers aware of this issue and to make recommendations on how to improve Bermuda's current high school graduation and dropout rates. The dropout problem is far worse than statistics show because they simply do not account for those students who fail to receive their high school diplomas as dropouts. The 54% pass rate in the public high school sector would be a great deal lower if the number of students who entered high school in Senior 1 was compared to the actual number of students that graduated four years later.

According to Bermuda's Minister of Education, "The Bermuda Government offers a continuum of free education to Bermudians from birth to 16. Compulsory school age is by law from 5 years to 16 years of age. Approximately 60% of Bermudian students who are of compulsory school age attend public schools. The remainder attends fee-paying private schools or home schools, which are known in Bermuda as tutorial sites" (James, 2008, p. 2). Notwithstanding the territory's enviable 98% literacy rate (Bermuda, 2008), approximately 40% of Bermuda's children are enrolled in private education, indicating that the community has rendered its verdict: there is a crisis of confidence in the Bermuda Public Education System. Hence, Bermuda's Public Educational System, according to its mission statement, is not the first choice of most Bermudian parents. For example, in 2004, more than 10,900 students were enrolled in Bermuda schools, including the Bermuda College. Of these, 6,378 attended government schools and 3,612 attended private schools, with a further 950 on their waiting lists.

Research Question(s)

How can Bermuda reduce the dropout and graduation rates in the public senior schools?

What are the influencing factors that affect the dropout rate for Bermudian Youth?

What strategies can be developed to improve the alarming high school dropout rate? What resources will be needed?

Overall student performance, especially in middle and high school, barely merits a passing grade. In June 2005, only 53 per cent of students graduated from CedarBridge Academy and the Berkeley Institute. This was an improvement over the 41 per cent who graduated in 2004 according to the Ministry of Education's statistics. This does not necessarily mean that the students who do not graduate are destined to be the proverbial wall sitters; some students may actually complete their high school education overseas or continue their education at a later time, but the dropout rate remains sizeable. While the Education Ministry has been warned by overseas experts about the consequences of not addressing the drop out rate, social havoc, the Ministry seems to be unwilling to even keep track of actual numbers?

What do the results show?

Of the class of 2004, 28% graduated on time in June

In June of 2005, 30% graduated on time.

In 2006, 38% of the class graduated in June.

There has been an increase of 10% in students graduating on time for the islands two senior schools in 2006 compared to 2004; however, this is not good enough. This does not excuse the fact that our graduation rates are unacceptably low, especially in an economy that relies on high-skill levels. The failure of over half of the students who do not complete their high school education is a reflection of the failure of the larger society in which these schools are administered.

Summary

Education is one of the most powerful and life-determining forces existing in our society, and even our world. Going to school is something that a majority of students take for granted. Yet the opportunities and insights towards life and oneself that it offers are innumerable. Education is here for us with the incredibly significant purpose of giving us general background knowledge, preparing us for a life of citizenship, and making us better people with the chance for brighter, more successful futures. "Education provides the foundation upon which stable… READ MORE

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