Focus Group Analysis - 1

Learning to Finish
FOCUS GROUP DATA: QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS REPORT

Prepared by

Connie Roush PhD, RN

Assistant Professor of Nursing
Brooks College of Health, University of North Florida

Prepared for

Learning to Finish Research Group

November 15, 2008

Pam Paul Dopf

Vice President, Community Initiatives
The Community Foundation in Jacksonville
121 West Forsyth St., Suite 900
Jacksonville, FL 32202
(904) 356-4483
www.jaxcf.org
 Focus Group Analysis - 2

FOCUS GROUP DATA: QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS REPORT

Qualitative analysis of focus group interviews was conducted as part of the larger Learning to
Finish study, sponsored by the Jacksonville Community Foundation Inc. The primary purposes
of this project are to create an in-depth understanding of the dropout problem in Jacksonville
and to provide information to develop preventive programs. This analysis was conducted using
that data to address the following questions:

1. What are the individual, family and school factors which may have contributed to a
student’s academic and social disengagement?

2. What is the student’s level of knowledge and understanding of the long-term impact of
dropping out of school?

3. What possibilities, as viewed by the student, exist which may support the student’s
efforts to complete high school?

4. What are the individual, family and school factors that contributed to the individual
becoming a dropout?

5. What could the individual, family, school system or community have done to prevent the
individual from becoming a dropout?

6. How effective is the existing school-community network in supporting the individual’s

efforts to complete high school?

7. What gaps exist in needed or desired school-community support structures?

The following report will summarize the results of the qualitative analysis of transcripts
from focus groups. Focus group participants included students, parents, and teachers. The
student groups ranged from middle school to currently incarcerated youth, to those enrolled in
the Pathways program. Parents of students at Forrest High School and students in the
Pathways program participated as well as two groups of providers including teachers. After
conducting constant comparative analysis of each transcript, I identified the major issues
crosscutting the groups, identified patterns of emphasis and organized them according to the
questions above. The following report addresses the questions in general, describing the factors
that contribute to school disengagement and dropout and the recommended dropout prevention
strategies. The discussion below presents these factors from the perspective of the focus group
participants and is organized into sections based on their patterns of responses.
 Focus Group Analysis - 3

FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO SCHOOL DISENGAGEMENT/ DROPOUT

In this section, participants identified the need to “fit in”, the personal, familial,
school and community factors, as well specific issues such as attendance and the
possibility of academic failure.

Peer Pressure to Fit in or Belong to the Group

Peer influence goes hand in hand with the need to fit in, whether it is with other
students in school or with groups in the neighborhood, outside school. Both forces draw
their focus away from their studies and are a testament to the lack of future orientation
to guide their choices. The emphasis on this experience and the pull that it has seems
to increase with age and stage in school. The need to fit in can be rooted in the
adolescent stage as described in psychosocial development theories but, for these
student groups in particular, may be indicative of a normative experience in the context
of the neighborhood.

Fitting in with cliques at school

In all student focus groups, middle school, Peterson Academy, and incarcerated
youth all discussed the need to “fit in” school as a precursor to “dropping out”, although
middle school and Peterson Academy students emphasized this issue more than the
incarcerated students. They felt that they were “picked on” by other students or an
“outcast” for being “dumb” or “stupid” in class, for being “older” after being held back
one or more grades, for their lack of material status symbols such as clothes, and the
experience of racism. One of the incarcerated students summed it up as follows:

I left First Coast High School, because there were all of these people and cliques
that didn’t get along with one another. You got the rich white kids, the emo’s, the
middle-class black kids, the black kids who got money, the goths, and all these
different nationalities and cliques and they just butt heads with one another.

Parents of students in the Pathways Program noticed that their adolescents started
caring more about their looks than with schoolwork. One Peterson Academy student
noted that, “School is another venue to show your outfits without going to the club.”

Fitting in with the wrong crowd

Students in the incarcerated youth and Peterson Academy groups described the
process of dropping out that begins with being “sucked in” to the “wrong crowd” outside
of school. According to one incarcerated student, “…it all boils down to money,”
indicating the power of this experience. Another student noted that:

I was in school every day but you see everything on the outside and it sucks you
in even though you want to go to school and know the opportunities it offers for
the future – makes you do something you do not want to do.
 Focus Group Analysis - 4

According to these focus group participants, students who do not have their own
“personality” are more likely to listen to peers and be drawn into outside groups and
lured by the money they can earn through dealing – the immediate satisfaction
indicative of a lack of future orientation. One noted that, … “it all boils down to
money…if you do what they do you can have what they have.” Both groups indicated
that the need for money for “stuff” begins at 14 to 15 years of age, an observation that
may explain that lower emphasis that MS students gave to this as a way to fit in. Other
students were “just waiting until they were sixteen.” One parent noted that it was easier
to drop out and sell drugs and get money than do the work needed to stay in school.

Another dynamic described by parents and providers is that of the student on a

work-study program who becomes drawn to the “paycheck” more that the academic
side. This was a singular statement, but other discussions of peer pressure and the
need to fit in pervaded all of the interviews, were tightly intertwined with the other factors
leading to disengagement and, eventually, dropping out from school.

The Family Factor

Peterson Academy and incarcerated students described the particularly powerful

pull of family into the workplace and out of school while participants in the Guidance
Workshop described the transfer from school to school as a problem avoidance
strategy. This was based on the economic need and/or on the values and beliefs
demonstrated by immediate and extended family members. One incarcerated student
described how he had to refocus on the daily survival of his fatherless family by leaving
school to go to work and that, “Later, when we get ahead, I’ll go back to school.” Further
along in the discussion, he noted that returning to school became less likely the longer
he was out of school. This phenomenon was confirmed by discussions among other
students and teachers in the provider group.

Students also stayed home to help with care for other children in the family. A
parent from Forrest High School described one of these situations:

Some parents that have stair-step babies and the older kids have to stay home
and babysit the smaller babies and the mama is buying the boyfriend stuff
instead of the babies shoes and we wonder why these kids are having issues. I
could go on and on about that.

Another discussion centered on the mixed messages students received from

family members and friends that they looked up to. One student stated that, “If someone
that was older than me that was telling me what to do then obviously they were
successful. Then I would listen to them.” Taking this topic further, another student noted
in retrospect:

So when I have someone that is selling me drugs but trying to tell me go to

school, but you didn’t do it then why should I listen? I’m trying to listen and be like
 Focus Group Analysis - 5

you but your aren’t doing what you are telling me to do. Why didn’t they do it?
That is what threw me off.

Teachers in the provider group described “technically homeless” students who

were also operating in the survival mode. They continuously moved among the homes
of family and friends and were not rooted in a particular places or routines that provide
the stability and resources to move beyond this survival mode. Family circumstances
also left students without a home school. One workshop participant described the
situation this way:

There are no consequences for how many times a year they can transfer
schools, they just keep transferring and the parents not taking responsibility for
whatever situation is going on in the home. They’re moving in with this boyfriend
and that and they just blame the moving on the school. We’ll change school and
that’ll fix the problem and they don’t examine themselves to see if they can do
something to help their kid be successful.

Another noted that this lack of “longevity” in one school made it very difficult for them to
help these students.

Parent participation in the student’s educational process was identified by all but
the MS group as a crucial factor. Teachers particularly talked about the range of
situations where parents do not or cannot participate. One incarcerated student noted
that his parents worked long and hard to barely make ends meet and were not able to
participate in school activities. Other teachers discussed parents who did not care or
had other priorities. One teacher mentioned that, in some families, dropping out was
considered normal and therefore not problematic.

One workshop participant described the complexity of parental influence:

Something I learned at Stanton, and the same is true at Terry Parker School, I’m
only going to get out of a kid that their parents will accept. I’ve had situations
where I called the parent’s home to discuss a problem, and they’ll want me to
send it to them in writing so they could give it to the judge.

Discussions within the parent groups focused on what a family support system
could/should look like and will be described later in this report. Overall, this was a more
general description of family influences but, like the peer pressures, family dynamics are
integral to the development and sustainment of the other disengagement themes
identified in this analysis.

The School Environment

The student experience of the school environment provided the primary topic of
the focus questions and discussions across the board. Students, parents and providers
 Focus Group Analysis - 6

described the general milieu as well as the significant factors embedded in the
interactions among them.

In general, a student summed it up when he said that the high school

environment “…. didn’t work for me.” Other students, as previously mentioned, saw
school as primarily a social environment where they interacted with peers and were able
to show off their clothes and shoes, the status symbols of their generation. According to
one teacher in the workshop:

I think the kids view school as something to get through rather than to help them
learn and grow to become a better person. I had one student tell me that school
is such a problem, such a hassle, and I asked him Why is it a hassle? “Man, I
can’t even go out late at night, because I gotta wake up and go to school” and I
said “What are you doing late at night that you need to be up for?” and he wanted
to go hang out til one or two a.m.

A few parents of students in the Pathways program described children who “just do not
care.”
Some parents and students, identified school as a more “hostile” or unsupportive
environment of metal detectors, overcrowded classrooms, cliques, racism and “stress,
stress, stress.” Middle school students were most vocal about safety concerns, noting
the placement of surveillance cameras after students brought BB guns to school.
Participants in all three student groups (middle school, Peterson Academy and
incarcerated youth) described a place where students fought with each other frequently
and drugs were freely available. One student described himself as a bully who
contributed to this situation when he was younger and most of the incarcerated students
admitted their own past contributions. Teachers identified incidents of fighting and other
disruptions in the classroom. In retrospect, some students described their own
disruption of the classroom. One Peterson Academy student noted that he had ADHD
and had a good relationship with his teacher despite this behavior. Other students were
“kicked out” of class. This response to student behaviors is indicative of one aspect of a
problematic student-teacher-parent interaction that contributes to dropout.

Teachers and Other School Staff

While students, parents and teachers did describe positive, supportive

relationships, the bulk of the group discussions focused on the negative aspects
including issues related to mutual respect and trust, effective communication and
outreach to at-risk students.

Negative comments from students range from the perception that teachers do
not care about them, do not like them, do not care if they learn, are not fair, can be
disrespectful, and are out of touch with their aspirations and do not see their strengths.
One of the teachers in the provider group gave an example of this last claim:
 Focus Group Analysis - 7

In this one situation, a teacher asked a kid where they see themselves in five
years and the kid said “I see myself having some gold tooth and chains and a
Cadillac.” The teacher kicked the kid out of the class but what she doesn’t realize
is that that was the highest perception in the community. She didn’t build on the
perception and move forward.

Another teacher in the workshop discussed respect in the student-teacher relationship.

She indicated that respect needs to be mutual – teachers cannot demand respect
without also giving respect.

Some kids are tough on the outside and fragile on the inside and they don’t need
another adult yelling at them because they get it at home. We need to treat them
with respect and harness what they bring to the classroom.

Middle school students indicated that they often felt disliked and disconnected
from teachers and other authority figures at the school (principal). According to one
middle school student, “Our principal is like a ghost. You don’t see her unless there is a
food fight going on.” Another stated that, “You can tell when they don’t like us by how
they talk to us.”

As they moved from elementary to middle to high school, students report that
they get a reputation that follows them and sets up expectations for their behavior. One
incarcerated student noted that:

In my situation, in kindergarten I was like real hyper and disruptive but I wasn’t a
bad kid…and when they look at your file they see that you are disruptive and
don’t deal with you. Eventually you get tired of it and say why you want to [leave]
school.

In this sense, when students drop out they come to fulfill these expectations.

A few students talked about “undedicated staff” that were burned out and clearly
indicated that they were there primarily to get a paycheck therefore, “They don’t think to
help nobody and they don’t think to help you.” Students in every group indicated that,
when they were most at risk of dropping out, very few teachers or staff reached out to
guide them, help with their problems and tell them what to do instead of what not to do.
Many teachers expressed concern that students were being reduced from a person to a
“case file.” One stated that, “I think for some reason we disconnected between at-risk
kids and the learning environment they have to go through.”

Other comments surfaced throughout the focus group interviews but some
particularly significant issues were revealed in the discussion of attendance and
“skipping school.”
 Focus Group Analysis - 8

Attendance and Absence

Teachers, parents and students approached the issue of school attendance and
dropout prevention from various viewpoints. Students described “skipping school” and
being “kicked out” of class, parents were concerned about timely notification of
absences and parents and teachers alike discussed the need for accountability. One
other topic of concern was the nature and enforcement of attendance policies and the
potentially negative consequences for students with special circumstances.

Skipping school versus being kicked out

Skipping school is a choice initiated by the student but being kicked out is
initiated by the teacher or other school authority. In many stories the two went hand-in-
hand but the starting point of the process was a key factor in the disengagement
process. According to one of the incarcerated students, “It all starts with skipping
school.” Often, after students skipped a few days and began to make some money, they
are less likely to return to school. The middle school students reported skipping school
because they lacked transportation, did not like to be picked on, did not like school or
found it to be too hard. Academic failure was frequently mentioned as a reason for
students to skip school. A more in-depth discussion of academic failure and school
disengagement will follow later in this report.

According to many incarcerated students, teachers often assumed they did not
want to be in class and did not understand that their behavior was really a cry for help:

When you want to quit the teacher doesn’t reach out to you and say you can do
this or help you with the problem. But they feel like if the student doesn’t want to
be here then they ain’t goin to be here and they kick the kid out of the classroom.

A Pathways student described a similar situation:

The reason I stopped going to school was because I was always getting into
trouble. No one told me why not to disrupt school. After time I kept disrupting
class and they basically kicked me out.

And another student responded in this way, “…I was like bump school because nobody
was supposed to kick me out and not help me.”

One teacher did follow a student, charting her absences, finding that she missed
every Monday and Thursday. The student responded to her questions about this
pattern, reporting that,

…after a long weekend I come back to school and the teacher stresses me out
going over and over the same things. And then on Thursday I’m coming down
and need another break so I take days off but, you know what? You’re the only
one that’s ever got onto my tail.
 Focus Group Analysis - 9

Accountability

Teachers and parents discussed the need for accountability at all points in the
student-parent-teacher-school communication processes. Parents were particularly
concerned with when and how the school notified them that their child was missing or
failing. According to one of the Pathways program parents, “I do not understand what
I’m supposed to do as a parent to keep her in school because the school didn’t inform
me about her not being there.” Another parent noted that she had to make impromptu
visits to the school to find out about her daughters’ absences. For the Pathways parent
with a daughter in a work-study program, she found that office staff did not consistently
track student attendance at school or at work. Forrest High School parents were very
pleased with the calls and letters they received from teachers related to their child’s
progress. Pathways parents had a similar report about this program.

More than one parent indicated that the notification they did receive did not
happen until it was too late and that they had difficulty arranging meetings with
teachers. Two parents in the Pathways program group described difficulties due to
conflicting schedules but were concerned that that, when they were able to meet and
set up a plan of action, the teachers only followed the plan for a short period of time.
Teachers spoke more to the inability of some parents to be involved due to their own
work commitments. It was particularly important for the Pathways Parents group to say
that they did not fit the stereotype of parents who did not try or care to track their child’s
attendance.

Student consequences for school absence were discussed in a number of ways.

Some teachers and parents decried the lack of consequences and therefore lack of
incentives to return to class. Others described the actual effects of various interventions
on attendance. Teachers in the provider group described cases where students were
out for many days at a time but were not given make-up work therefore they did not see
absence as a problem. Another teacher in the workshop thought that students felt
harassed and not nurtured when they were continuously reminded of what they missed:

They [students] hear, Well, you were out last week and the week before and
here’s all the work you missed and you gotta get this all done and what not. And
then they think, Well, I’m going to be absent a few more days, that’s way too
much for me to do.

One particularly critical issue is the consistency with which strict attendance policies are
interpreted and enforced.

What about attendance policies?

Teachers, students and parents all identified the need to allow some room for
special circumstances when interpreting and enforcing attendance policies. One
particular example is a policy where attendance is tied to grades and a student’s grade
can be dropped one letter if they miss too many days. Teachers and parents described
 Focus Group Analysis - 10

circumstances when this rule could have the reverse effect, acting as an incentive to
drop out. Examples include students who missed too many days due to a death in the
family and students who did not start school until after Labor Day because their parents
could not buy school supplies until they received their welfare check.

On the other side of this issue, teachers also expressed concern when
enforcement was left to teacher’s discretion.

Yeah, it used to be required that they needed a note, and it went under a review,
the kid needed a doctor’s note. Now we’ve kind of pushed that aside…everything
is teacher’s discretion and the burden is on me. Well, Evan needed to stay at
home, Evan did all of his work, oh I’m going to pass Evan.

Students included comments about this into their discussion of the interpretation of
school policies in general, noting the need for individualized attention to their
circumstances.

The Possibility of Academic Failure

This section reviews comments of all participants about the role of academic
programs and standardized testing on student disengagement from school. There were
two primary themes throughout this discussion: the frustration and difficulty students
had when trying to meet academic goals or expectations and the discussion of the
actual expectations.

Getting behind

All groups told too many stories of students who left school after being retained in
a grade more than once. One member of the Provider group spoke of students who
dropped out before high school, noting that most of them had been retained more than
once. Teachers in all groups stated that ninth grade was the make or break year for
these students. Many turned 16 years during the ninth grade and dropped out at that
time while others “…are so unsuccessful that first year [of high school] they are on the
radar in the future.” One teacher in the Workshop noted that:

They are going through the motions and their mama’s are making them come;
but at the same time they are not being successful on that test which will affect
their future.

Passing the exams

Many of the students described in these focus groups are experiencing the
unintended consequences of the FCAT graduation requirement. They have not been
able to pass, even if by a slim margin, after multiple attempts and, according to one
teacher in the Provider group, “These students are discouraged and not thinking about
what they are going to do past high school because they are so focused on passing that
 Focus Group Analysis - 11

test for a high school diploma.” Teachers from the provider’s group and the workshop
described the wide range of students who are “stumbling” over the FCAT tests including
those with a high GPA and those who have remediated many times. One mother
describes her daughter’s experience here:

My daughter’s problem started in 8th grade. She failed the reading part of the
FCAT. She was in summer school and took the test over but failed again. Each
time they told her she was an “A” student and didn’t have anything to worry about
but I felt that that didn’t fly because if she could make straight A’s in English, how
could she fail the FCAT?

Major stumbling blocks included feeling frustrated and overwhelmed by the

expectations, severe test anxiety and the student’s perception that they were going to
fail before ever taking the test. According to one teacher in the provider’s group:

They study all year for this one test that they are so afraid of failing that I think
that mentality is why they don’t do as well, not because they do not have the
knowledge, They walk in failing in their minds.

Teachers pointed out that some of the words used in the FCAT questions were not
necessarily too difficult; they came from outside the student’s experience such as
kayak. They were concerned that, when students failed the test, they were taken out of
the academy classes that kept them motivated to remain in school.

Considering the options

Students, parents and teachers discussed the different programs that can lead to
graduation, discussed the need to graduate on time and weighed the pros and cons of
graduation options including the usual high school diploma, the G.E.D. pathway, and
the certificate of graduation. They also discussed the experience of transferring to an
alternative program (specifically the Pathways program).

All three groups agreed that the high school diploma was the most desirable of
the three. According to a teacher from the Provider group, the high school certificate
has a major impact on the community as well as the students because it limits their
employment opportunities. Another teacher stated that it basically indicates, “I went to
school for 12 years but I did not earn a high school diploma.” When considering the
G.E.D. vs. the diploma, one parent told her child, “Some places won’t take G.E.D. so it
is better for you to get your high school diploma. It will open more doors.”

Community Perceptions

The perceptions of the community are implied throughout this report but very little
time in the interviews examined this in particular. Students primarily had global and
negative comments about the community’s perceptions of the dropout problem. One of
the INCARCERATED YOUTH stated that, “Most people don’t care because they just
 Focus Group Analysis - 12

look at themselves and don’t care about anyone else.” Other students added that either
people do not know about the problem or that it is not a big issue. Parents did not focus
on this topic per se. One parent did feel that the community is aware and there are a lot
of people who are concerned.

Some teachers shared the students’ negative appraisals of the situation, adding
that they felt the community had “lost hope” for the students who had dropped out. One
offered that people in the community did not see it as a big issue if they were not
affected by it personally. Overall, a teacher in the provider group noted that, “I don’t
think that the community sees how much of a problem it really is.”

This last statement is very interesting considering the in-depth and very troubling
descriptions offered throughout this first and primary section of the report. The rest of
the report turns this issue around and looks at dropout prevention possibilities.

DROPOUT PREVENTION – POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

All participants in these focus groups were connected in some way to programs
that offer high school alternatives for high-risk students therefore many of the
suggestions and comments here relate to the supportive aspects of these programs.
The solutions offered here come from all groups and address how the family, school
and community can provide an environment that promotes retention in school and
eventual graduation. Possible solutions ranged from attention to specific attitudes,
beliefs, and/or behaviors of teachers-students-parents to restructuring the school
system.

Changing Attitudes and Beliefs

It is common knowledge among educators that a change in attitudes and beliefs

must occur before the more concrete changes in decisions and behaviors can take
place – in students and in teachers. According to one teacher, students need an “I can”
attitude:

Asking these students what their expectations are for themselves is important.
Taking the small expectations that these students have and building on them and
creating core values and the ‘I Can’ attitude is important for these kids to
succeed in school. As long as they keep that ‘I can’ attitude, then they can make
it back to school from the weekend.

Both middle school (first quote below) and incarcerated students needed teachers who
believe in them.

But yet she cares about my future, I want to be a lawyer and she thinks I can make it
and I’m the one that has to do what is right.
 Focus Group Analysis - 13

I’m speaking for myself but I have had a second chance but I need another chance.
Everybody can make mistakes and I have just made a couple. So I need somebody
to believe that I can do it just one more time.
Knowing the Students

A theme that dominated the interviews was one of knowing the student as a
person in the context of family, culture, socioeconomic status, etc. This was
prerequisite to developing a caring relationship and to the discernment of what they
need to decrease their risk. Teachers and parents got to know them by paying attention
and listening to them. The following quotes emphasize the significance of this issue
from the teacher’s perspective:

Teachers need to stop making a student a file or a piece of paper but actually
build a relationship with these students. Without these relationships we are losing
these times.

Teachers have to be mindful of what the kids go through before they get off the
bus.

You have to combine learning with being a part of their lives so that they know
that you will be there for them if they do not have this support at home. Support is
key!

Many of the student comments cited in the first section about disengagement bring this
issue to the forefront, but this quote from an incarcerated student sums it up:

Make sure they [teachers] stay by having dedication and patience. No one wants
to come when people don’t want to listen. We need advice from anybody that will
listen. They need someone to look out for their best interests.

One mother who encouraged her daughter to transfer to the Pathways program
stated that she “would not allow her to drop out.” Another stated that you have to, “ask
them what they do everyday, where they went, letting them know you are interested and
you care, standing behind them” and that, “When they stop telling me what’s going on in
their life, then they feel like they can do anything they want.” According to a Forrest High
parent, “Someone needs to be the ‘bad guy.’ Sometimes dad is the bad guy or the other
way around. It doesn’t mean you don’t love your kids.” In these cases, parents
supported students through their vigilance. They all stated that support should be a
“whole family thing.”

Teachers felt that the school could best support these parents by providing a
consistent contact there that the parent can call to find out what is going on, to let them
know about problematic situations at home or discuss how to get the student to go back
to school. If parents had this contact person they would be more likely to ask for help
and the contact person would be more likely to know about and report problems with
attendance and behavior before it is too late. With this solution, accountability is not
 Focus Group Analysis - 14

pointed to teachers or parents, but to the power of their shared ability to address
student risk. According to one teacher, “Our focus should be on consequences and
what is going to happen to these students.

A Supportive School Environment

According to student participants, a supportive school environment is much like

the alternative education program they were currently attending. In this place, teachers
knew them and treated them with compassion and respect, the program was flexible
enough to let them progress at their own pace, and they did not have to be in class with
younger students. They were able to pass the FCAT exam and graduate “on time.”

Program eligibility

One teacher noted that there are lots of good programs in the city but eligibility is
so specific that they worked to “fit the student to grant eligibility criteria.” They
recommended reinstating a program that was closed due to a lack of funding. In this
program, students with a variety of barriers were accepted. A few teachers suggested a
system with small learning communities and to performance-based programs to
promote student success. A parent recommended the following: “A system needs to be
in place to take drop outs and place them back in schools and not double dipping of
agencies into these children’s lives.”

Supporting teachers

Parents and students alike recognized the need for more teacher support in the
classroom, such as including homework assistants. Teachers were concerned about
their ability to prepare students for the FCAT test. They noted that their teacher’s
certification preparation is not geared toward the FCAT:

I don’t think that Florida State Teacher certification is talking to FCAT is talking to
the school and everyone has their own agenda when it comes to testing. I think
there should be a link between what we are tested on, as teachers should to
what my students are tested on.

Forcing kids into schools that do not work

Participants in the workshop considered taking a new approach where the

primary focus is on building technical skills for future employment, where they do not
push reading and math as much and cutting peer counseling and remediation. “We
could be doing a whole lot more for these kids during the day than we are.”

According to parents from Forrest High School and workshop participants,

supportive schools will increase “learning options” to include increased access to
technical training.
 Focus Group Analysis - 15

Schools are still teaching the idea that kids have to have a college education to
be successful. But in this advanced world of technology, you don’t need a college
education to fix cars…. not necessarily graduating high school and going off to
college and then a job.

The Role of the Community

When the interviewer asked the incarcerated students, “Who should help people
stay in school?” they had the following answers:

The community and the teachers

People that we can look up to in high crime areas
More men should be involved in these dropouts’ lives and push them forward

One student suggested “School stoppers instead of crime stoppers. People should
knock on doors and see if their kids are doing well in school.”
Workshop participants acknowledged the role of the workplace in dropout
prevention, proposing that businesses support education by requiring students to have
“good grades” to maintain employment and, “Don’t keep them there until 2:00 am when
the shift ends – provide flex hours and tell them to go home and study. Provide them
with the opportunity to get enough rest.”

This section provided an overview of the dropout recommendations that speak

directly to the sources of disengagement described in the first section by teachers,
parents and students alike.
 Focus Group Analysis - 16

CONCLUSIONS

One workshop participant described the complexity of the dropout situation in this way:

I think there are so many different reasons to look at, parents, school relations,
community, reading is a big part of it, anti-social behavior, depression, it is a
multi-faceted and you can’t look at it as a one size fits all. There is no magic
bullet program for the thing that we might be looking for.

The students, on the other hand, ended their interviews with a sense of hope and plans
for the future.

I want to finish and get my diploma and then become and auto mechanic and work
at a diesel shop. Hopefully by the time I’m 30 I will own my own auto mechanic
store. I want to drive an Acura.

Even if it is working in a supermarket, I just want to be successful.

I just saw my hand in front of my face and didn’t see the future. But now, because of
this program, I see how beneficial school could be and how much I need it and how
hustlers don’t survive but people with an education do survive.