Typology for Students At RIsk for Dropping Out of School

I. Title - Typology of Students at Risk for Dropping Out of School: Description by Personal, Family, and School Factors

II. Author - Laurier Fortin, Diane Marcotte, Pierre Potvin, Egi de Royes, Jacques Joly

III. Author's Purpose for Writing - To identify subgroups of students at risk for dropping out and the personal, family, and school contexts involved.

IV. What are the points made in the review of the literature? Students react to risk factors in different ways, but at-risk students form a heterogeneous population in the ways that they
react to these factors. Among this population, classroom organization and task orientation stimulated better performance. Unclear rules that were inconsistently applied increased drop-out risk. Punitive interventions increased drop-out risk. The quality of teacher-student relationship has an impact on student's performance.

Do they support the need for the study ? Yes

V. Author's Inquiry Question - What subgroups are in danger of dropping out? How are they
different from students not at risk?

VI. Author's Methodology - Categorize participants as at risk/not at risk, inquiry

A. Who is being studied? 810 7th grade students in the Quebec region of Canada

B. Over what length of time? nine years

C. What data is being collected? Family environment, personal characteristics, school plans, academic abilities, student-teacher relationships, school motivation

D. How is it being analyzed? Through tables and statistics

E. Any other pertinent data
VII. How the author collected information - Questionnaires by students, parents, and teachers,
school records, social skills rating system, Beck Depression Inventory, self-reported Delinquency Questionnaire

VIII. What the Author Discovered or Conclusions/Implications - Personal factors, such as
depression, and family factors, such as disfunction and lack of support contribute to the drop out rate of at risk students. School context, however, is a primary factor. Many at-risk students perceive little order and organization in class. Even students who maintained good relationships with teachers tended to drop out when the school was unable to provide a clear, consistent, and well-structured framework.