In Middle School, Can Data Prevent Dropouts?
Seven thousand students dropout of school every day in the U.S.
And some researchers have dubbed middle school as the essential "make-or-break" years in determining a child's success.
On Tuesday's "Frontline," called Middle School Moment, we hear the story of how one school in New York City's Bronx neighborhood is using new data in an effort to "predict and prevent dropouts before they happen." The effort aims to flag early warning signs in students long before they ever step foot in high school.
Similar data collections are under way across the nation. In Nashville, Tenn., a Race to the Top program called the "Data Warehouse Dashboard," provides school officials, principals and some teachers with alerts whenever a student exhibits behavior patterns such as suspensions, poor attendance and academic failure, that could lead to dropping out. The system also informs teachers and school officials how best to help and intervene in a student's life.
Watch education reporter LaTonya Turners report on the Data Warehouse Dashboard for Nashville Public Television:
You can watch "Frontline"'s Middle School Moment on Tuesday, July 17 at 10pm ET (check local listing here).
American Graduate is a public media initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to help local communities across America find solutions to address the dropout crisis.
