Only 1 of 2 students graduate high school in US cities: study
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Three out of 10 US public school students do not graduate from high school, and major city school districts only graduate one out of two students, according to a study released Tuesday.
According to many news sources-like this one- (and not like the Y! article that I mentioned above) and a study cited in the articles done by EPE Research Center and the America Promise Alliance, US HS graduation rates are often over-inflated. When you hear many schools around the nation say that they have 80% or high graduation rate, the number could be misleading. There are several various ways schools measure the "graduation rate." Law-makers are pushing to unify the definition and measurements devices used to determine graduation rates nationwide.
The study showed that in larger city schools graduation rate is close to and sometimes right below 50% while in sub-urban schools it is closer to 70% and in the rural areas closer to 75%.
Here is a full extensive report/ PDF if you are interested.
This is concerning and startling. It surprises me too because on one end of the spectrum, in America, we have high competition and stress about which college/university students should be going to to get the best education and a mindset that High School is just a brief stepping stone (of course "you are GOING to graduate High School, you are going to college!!") I have spent a lot of my life a part of and around this group of people. I was apart of it. I am grateful of my parents and their financial help to get me through to receive my BA. They have left me to get my MA, on my own, which is okay. But now I am starting to feel the pressure. And I am starting to relate to the other end of the spectrum. But I am no where near he point where I can self-righteously say I can relate to not having a High School Diploma. That would be tough especially in today's economy and the job competition I was talking about earlier. Some times as very fortunate people, living in and around other fortunate people, we often forget about the other guys who are not as fortunate. So I am calling for prayers and support for people who have tough situations and do not finish High School. The cities are tough places. So let's support Urban Youth Ministries.
