Keeping Students in School

This paper examines strategies for the development of programs to prevent students from dropping out of school before graduation. The first set of strategies involves increasing the opportunities for students to succeed in school. This may be accomplished by setting standards that are challenging but within reach of students, by providing students with appropriate support to meet those standards, and by making the school curriculum relevant to the current and future lives of students. The second set of strategies involves increasing the opportunties for students to develop positive relationships in school. Such relationshps may be with adult staff members, with other students, or with the school as an institution.