Population: Children and Schools

Struggling Students

MDRC is examining programs to help struggling students through “catch-up” classes, tutoring and mentoring, supplementary literacy classes, classes designed to counteract instructional deficits, and case management and “high-intensity” supports for children with the greatest challenges.

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Issue Focus

Lessons from 15 Years of MDRC’s Postsecondary Research

MDRC has developed a body of rigorous evidence on interventions designed to help low-income college students succeed. This issue brief draws six lessons from that work for colleges and policymakers as they seek to improve college completion rates.

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Brief

Early Findings from a National Survey of Developmental Education Practices

In an effort to help students whose academic careers stall in remedial courses, community colleges are addressing both their approaches to placement and their traditional course structure. The use of multiple measures to assess college readiness is increasing, and several instructional reforms are gaining traction.

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Key Documents

Report

Staying on Course

Three-Year Results of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Evaluation

After three years, participants in National Guard Youth ChalleNGe, an intensive, “quasi-military” residential program for high school dropouts, are more likely than their control group counterparts to have obtained a GED or high school diploma, to have earned college credits, and to be working. Their earnings are also 20 percent higher.

Making Progress Toward Graduation

Evidence from the Talent Development High School Model

Talent Development, a high school reform initiative, produced substantial positive effects on attendance, academic course credits earned, tenth-grade promotion, and algebra pass rates for students in very low-performing schools in Philadelphia.

New Pathways to Careers and College

Examples, Evidence, and Prospects

High school reform is increasingly focused on the role of career-technical education (CTE) in preparing all students for success in both college and career. Instead of stand-alone vocational courses, programs that merge CTE, rigorous academics, and career exploration are gaining momentum, but schools need resources and training to implement them.

College Promise Success Initiative Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Low-Income Populations Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: California, Michigan, Oregon, Rhode Island	Next Generation California Partnership Academies Focus Area: High School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Small Schools, Learning Communities, Career & Technical Education Locations: California	Detroit Promise Path Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid Locations: Michigan
Comparative Case Study of Winning Talent Dividend Cities Focus Area: Institutional Reform Financial Aid Student Services Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Florida, Nebraska, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Virginia	Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) Ohio Demonstration Focus Area: Developmental Education Financial Aid Student Services Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Ohio	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	Dana Center Mathematics Pathways Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: Texas
Developmental Education Acceleration Project Focus Area: Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Texas	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	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
Response to Intervention (RtI) Programs for Struggling Elementary Readers Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Classroom Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Reading Instruction	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	Evaluation of Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) for Developmental Education Students Focus Area: Developmental Education Financial Aid Student Services Instruction and Curricula Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: New York
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	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
Opening Doors Focus Area: Financial Aid Student Services Developmental Education Instruction and Curricula Financial Incentives Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Tutoring, Learning Communities, Counseling/Advising, Financial Incentives, Financial Aid, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education Locations: California, Louisiana, New York, Ohio

GED 21st Century Learning Pathways Pilots Focus Area: Instruction and Curricula High School Dropouts Population: Populations with Barriers to Employment Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, GED Completion Locations: New York	Social Impact Bond Project at Rikers Island Focus Area: Youth and Juvenile Justice Foster Care and Juvenile Justice High School Dropouts Reentry Population: Young Adults Intervention: Residential Youth Programs, Classroom Services, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Locations: New York	Professional Development in Math Study Focus Area: Elementary and Middle School Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Professional Development/ Teacher Training
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	Developmental Education Initiative Focus Area: Developmental Education Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Intervention: Student Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms, Developmental Education, Accelerated Programs Locations: Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Virginia
Completion by Design Evaluation Focus Area: Institutional Reform Population: Young Adults Locations: Florida, North Carolina, Ohio	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	Evaluation of Academic Instruction in After-School Programs Focus Area: After-School/Out-of-School Time Population: Children and Schools Intervention: Reading Instruction Locations: Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, 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

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