The DOI matches its Crossref record; 57 of the 59 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Dropping Out of High School: The Role of School Organization and Structure
Open accessAbstract
In this study, we explore how high schools, through their structures and organization, may influence students’ decisions to stay in school or drop out. Traditional explanations for dropout behavior have focused on students’ social background and academic behaviors. What high schools might do to push out or hold students has received less empirical scrutiny. Using a sample of 3,840 students in 190 urban and suburban high schools from the High School Effectiveness Supplement of the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988, we apply multilevel methods to explore schools’ influence on dropping out, taking into account students’ academic and social background. Our findings center on schools’ curriculum, size, and social relations. In schools that offer mainly academic courses and few nonacademic courses, students are less likely to drop out. Similarly, students in schools enrolling fewer than 1,500 students more often stay in school. Most important, students are less likely to drop out of high schools where relationships between teachers and students are positive. The impact of positive relations, however, is contingent on the organizational and structural characteristics of high schools.
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“A positive relation with teachers and peers is vital for students' engagement and achievement in school (Lam et al. 2012;Roorda et al. 2011) and students are less likely to drop out of high schools where these relationships are positive (Lee and Burkam 2003).”
From The relationships between school belonging and students’ motivational, social-emotional, behavioural, and academic outcomes in secondary education: a meta-analytic review (2020) · cites this paper as Lee and Burkam 2003
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“Similarly, school belonging was negatively associated with absence and dropout rates, confirming that those who do not feel attached to their school are more likely to skip classes or even become early school-leavers (see Hascher and Hagenauer 2010;Lee and Burkam 2003;Ream and Rumberger 2008).”
From The relationships between school belonging and students’ motivational, social-emotional, behavioural, and academic outcomes in secondary education: a meta-analytic review (2020) · cites this paper as Lee and Burkam 2003
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Metadata
- Authors
- Lee, V. E., & Burkam, D. T.
- Affiliations
- University of Michigan (US)
- Venue
- American Educational Research Journal
- Published
- 2003-01
- Volume
- 40
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 353-393
- ISSN
- 0002-8312 (ISSN-L)
- 1935-1011
- OpenAlex
- W2123273115
- Cited by
- 738
- References
- 59
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 26 · 2020: 34 · 2019: 38 · 2018: 26 · 2017: 34 · 2016: 59 · 2015: 49 · 2014: 47 · 2013: 56 · 2012: 63
- FWCI
- 85.69
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- escholarship.org
- Locations
- American Educational Research Journal (publishedVersion)
- eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Education › Educational Outcomes and Influences
- Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
- Social Sciences › Education › Educational Environments and Student Outcomes
- Keywords
- high school dropout, school organization, school structure, school size, course program, teacher-student relationship, student retention
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