Population: Children and Schools

High School Students

MDRC runs and evaluates programs that work with high school students inside and outside of schools to increase their academic achievement, reduce their chances of dropping out, and smooth the transition into postsecondary education and work.

The Latest

Report

Building College Readiness Across Rural Communities

Implemented in eight secondary schools and a local college, this program was designed to build students’ college preparedness by training instructors in shared teaching strategies and best practices, strengthening academic rigor in the classroom, and promoting collaboration and consistency in teaching and study strategies across grades and schools.

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Issue Focus

Project-Based Learning: A Promising Approach to Improving Student Outcomes

This issue focus discusses the conclusions of a recent MDRC working paper, Project-Based Learning: A Literature Review. The paper found that project-based learning holds promise for improving students’ outcomes but that much remains to be learned about its effectiveness and about how its implementation can be strengthened.

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Key Documents

Report

Preparing High School Students for College

An Exploratory Study of College Readiness Partnership Programs in Texas

College readiness partnership programs bring together colleges and K-12 institutions to reduce the number of students who need remedial courses when they get to college. This report examines 37 partnerships in Texas to identify key characteristics of the programs, as well as benefits and challenges associated with their implementation and sustainability.

Career Academies: Long-Term Impacts on Work, Education, and Transitions to Adulthood

Eight-year findings on Career Academies — a popular high school reform that combines academics with career development opportunities — show that the programs produced sustained employment and earnings gains, particularly among young men. Career Academy participants were also more likely to be living independently with children and a spouse or a partner.

In Search of a Match

A Guide for Helping Students Make Informed College Choices

This guide for counselors and advisers offers strategies for helping low-income high school students choose selective colleges that match their academic profiles, financial considerations, and personal needs. It tracks the many steps in the college search, application, and selection process, suggesting ways to incorporate a “match” focus at each stage.

Family Rewards 2.0 Focus Area: Financial Incentives Two-Generation Programs High School Elementary and Middle School Population: Low-Income Populations Children and Schools Families Intervention: Financial Incentives Locations: New York, Tennessee	P-TECH 9-14 Evaluation Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Instruction and Curricula Institutional Reform Youth Employment Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Classroom Services, Comprehensive School Reform, Career & Technical Education, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs, Accelerated Programs Locations: New York	Next Generation California Partnership Academies Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Small Schools, Learning Communities, Career & Technical Education Locations: California
STRIVE Future Leaders Implementation Study Focus Area: Foster Care and Juvenile Justice High School Dropouts Youth Employment Youth and Juvenile Justice Population: Young Adults Populations with Barriers to Employment Intervention: Mentoring, Case Management, Career & Technical Education, Behavioral Interventions, Counseling/Advising, Job Training, Employment Services Locations: California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania	CareerWise Colorado Study Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Career & Technical Education Locations: Colorado	YouthForce NOLA Study Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Charter Schools, Career & Technical Education Locations: Louisiana
Drive to Write Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: New York	Youth-Led Tech Focus Area: After-School/Out-of-School Time Youth and Juvenile Justice Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Sectoral Training, Mentoring, Career & Technical Education, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Illinois	Testing Communications with Parents to Boost High School Students’ Attendance Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Locations: New York
Success Academy Charter Schools Evaluation Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Charter Schools, Comprehensive School Reform, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: New York	Estimating Power for Multiple Hypothesis Tests Focus Area: Preschool Elementary and Middle School High School Population: Children and Schools	Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) Focus Area: Youth Employment After-School/Out-of-School Time High School Dropouts Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Student Services, Job Training, Employment Services Locations: New York
Strengthening Nonprofit Financial Management Focus Area: Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Intervention: Professional Development/ Teacher Training Locations: Illinois	PACE Center for Girls Focus Area: Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Youth and Juvenile Justice Elementary and Middle School High School Institutional Reform Transition to Postsecondary Population: Young Adults Children and Schools Intervention: Student Services, Classroom Services, Case Management, Counseling/Advising Locations: Florida	The SEED Foundation Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School High School Institutional Reform Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Classroom Services, Residential Youth Programs, School Readiness, Student Services Locations: Dist. of Columbia, Maryland
AVID College Readiness System Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School High School Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Florida	Communities In Schools Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Student Services, Case Management, Counseling/Advising Locations: North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas	New York City Small Schools of Choice Evaluation Focus Area: High School Institutional Reform Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Small Schools, Career & Technical Education Locations: New York
Social Innovation Fund Project with the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation Focus Area: High School High School Dropouts Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Population: Children and Schools Young Adults Intervention: Residential Youth Programs, Reading Instruction, Student Services, Transitional Jobs/Subsidized Employment, Classroom Services, Counseling/Advising, Job Training, Curricular/Instructional Reforms	Diplomas Now Focus Area: High School Elementary and Middle School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Student Services, Classroom Services, Comprehensive School Reform, Case Management, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: California, Dist. of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas	Evaluation of Ninth Grade Academies Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Comprehensive School Reform, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Florida
The College Match Program Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Counseling/Advising Locations: Illinois, New York	Opportunity NYC Demonstrations Focus Area: Financial Incentives Two-Generation Programs High School Elementary and Middle School Population: Low-Income Populations Children and Schools Families Intervention: Financial Incentives Locations: New York	Career Academies: Exploring College and Career Options (ECCO) Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Small Schools Locations: California, Florida, Georgia
Next Generation Focus Area: Two-Generation Programs Population: Low-Income Populations Intervention: Welfare-to-Work Locations: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Wisconsin

Great Lakes College and Careers Pathways Partnership Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Instruction and Curricula Youth Employment Population: Children and Schools Young Adults Intervention: Classroom Services, Career & Technical Education, Job Training, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin	Youth Transition Demonstration Focus Area: Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Youth Employment Transition to Postsecondary Population: Young Adults Children and Schools Intervention: Transitional Jobs/Subsidized Employment, Case Management, Benefits Planning, Employment Services Locations: California, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, West Virginia	High School Reform Conference Series Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Comprehensive School Reform
Texas Developmental Summer Bridge Study Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Developmental Education Student Services Population: Children and Schools Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs, Accelerated Programs Locations: Texas	Evaluation of the Content Literacy Continuum Focus Area: High School Instruction and Curricula Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Reading Instruction Locations: Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin	The Getting Ready for Success Pilot Program Focus Area: High School Transition to Postsecondary Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Developmental Education, Dual-Enrollment/Bridge Programs Locations: Washington
Ohio's Learning, Earning, and Parenting Program Focus Area: High School High School Dropouts Financial Incentives Two-Generation Programs Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Youth and Juvenile Justice Population: Young Adults Intervention: Case Management, Financial Incentives, GED Completion Locations: Ohio	Project Transition Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Comprehensive School Reform, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Kansas, Wisconsin	School-to-Work Transition Project Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Counseling/Advising, Job Training Locations: Arkansas, California, Colorado, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin
The Enhanced Reading Opportunities Study Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Reading Instruction Locations: Georgia, Maryland, Nebraska, New York, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia	Project GRAD Focus Area: High School Elementary and Middle School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Comprehensive School Reform, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Financial Incentives, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Reading Instruction Locations: Georgia, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas	Talent Development Focus Area: High School Elementary and Middle School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Career & Technical Education, Classroom Services, Comprehensive School Reform, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Reading Instruction Locations: Pennsylvania
Scaling Up First Things First Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Comprehensive School Reform, Counseling/Advising, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Texas

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High School Students

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