If students did not establish effective work habits and strategies in their first year, chances are high they will fall even further behind their second and third years. The ninth grade indicators signal which students need intensive supports before they even start their second year.
It can seem as if a student who has only failed one or two courses in ninth grade is not that far behind, given that they have three more years to catch up, but that student actually needs considerable support to get back on track and eventually graduate. Consortium research shows that less than 25 percent of students who are off-track in their freshman year graduate from high school in four years.
Instead of simply setting expectations and then assigning grades based on whether those students meet those expectations, teachers are more likely to try to find out why students are struggling or missing class. When teachers come together and look at data on students as a team they can share information about what different students might need, and develop strategies to support the students they have in common.
What can other districts learn from what Chicago has done to streamline a path for students from 9th grade to graduation?
EA: First, the simplicity of the freshman on-track metric itself is important—a student is on-track if they failed no more than one semester of a course and have enough credits to become a sophomore. Often people want to create complicated indicators based of lots of pieces of information about students. That additional information may barely improve the prediction of who will graduate, while making the indicator obtuse so that educators are not sure what to do to show improvements.
We could have had a slightly stronger prediction with a more complex indicator, but not much stronger. Knowing that on-track rates are about preventing course failure provides a clear focus to the work. Missing a day of class here and there, or falling behind on a few assignments, is the time when a small intervention could have a big impact.
Systematically looking at student data to see who is showing signs of starting to struggle is essential for preventing failure, and for keeping students from falling through the cracks. Nonprofits and programs such as City Year and Gear Up provide supports to students who are flagged by early warning indicators. The district has provided on-track coordinators and data strategists to schools, as well as providing data tools and systems.
Chicago schools also emphasize the importance of teacher leadership and collaboration on shared strategies to help students succeed. Changing student outcomes requires changing school systems and structures—this is really hard to do. Collaboration and support inside the school among school staff, and with external partners and networks of schools, facilitate those major changes in schools. A Researcher Explains. KQED Inform. Save Article Save Article.
Listen 31 min Download. Ki Sung. Sep 11, Failed to save article Please try again. Ninth grade can be a difficult year for any student. It took a lot of hard work and support from educators and family to get Hillsdale High School student Jeffery Aragon back on track.
Teachers Danielle Robledo and Mike McCall have their weekly house meeting to discuss what's going on in the lives of their students in order to identify areas of need. Don't be afraid of anyone making fun of how you express yourself, wear what makes you happy and comfortable.
Learn your school. High Schools are big, no doubt about it. Gather up your friends and find all of your classes a few days before school starts. Chances are the school will be open since teachers are getting ready for the new year. Walk around the school and walk your daily route around the building. If your new teachers are in their classrooms, go say hi. You will feel more comfortable on the first day. If you know your locker and combo, go try it out. You don't want to stand in the hallway feeling silly because you cannot open your locker.
Make friends. Find a group of people who you are comfortable being yourself with. Organize study groups, mall sessions, and sleepovers. Don't forget about your friends from middle school, though! Don't worry about being popular. In the end, it's not that great. Be social and go with the flow. Find the group that fits who you are. Be nice to people. A hello and smile can go a long way. Respect the upperclassmen. They have been there longer than you have and know more than you do about the school.
Don't act cocky or like a show off. Remember that upperclassmen can also be great friends. If your locker is stuck or you get lost, ask an upperclassmen who looks friendly for help. Don't let drama and stereotypes dominate your life. High School is wrongly depicted in movies. There aren't crazy parties every weekends, drama isn't around every corner, and you actually have homework, tests, and projects.
Don't listen to rumors and don't spread them. If someone spread a rumor about you, you would be upset. Don't do it to others.
Just don't be a bully. Nothing is worse than people thinking you're a jerk. A bully is just some big, beefy, guy who smells bad. They can be anyone. If you are being harassed, don't be afraid to tell a teacher.
Some things you have to get over, but if it is consistent, get help. You aren't being a snitch or a tattletale. Keep a little bag in your backpack for personal items. A small travel size makeup bag is great for personal stuff. Keep tampons, pads, deodorant, makeup, and few dollars in there.
Make sure the bag isn't see through though.
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