United States at Risk Because of the College Freshman Dropout Rate

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There is a shocking dropout rate among college freshmen due to persecution by professors and if the condition persists, America’s economy will be dangerously destabilized. Understanding that the future of the nation is dependent on the upcoming youth for leaders, colleges should want to provide educational opportunities that will insure steady economic growth and prosperity. Unfortunately, research provides evidence to the contrary. Research confirms that one out of every four freshmen drop out immediately after or during their first year in college (Whitborne 26). Some studies declare it is higher than that, probably as high as an appalling 50% in some institutions. These dropouts are not only goof-off, indifferent, and partying students; they are the academically serious students as well (Stephens et al. 5). With this in mind, many researchers are sounding an alarm that too many capable college freshmen are dropping out during their first year at college. Every parent, citizen, lawmaker, and educational institution should be concerned with this information. The antiquated culture of discouragement, in colleges and universities, contributes to the unprecedented dropout rate of capable college freshmen. High schools must begin to do their part in preparing graduates for the rigors of college. In the last couple of decades, high stakes testing along with state and federal mandates have put tremendous pressure on public schools to increase graduation rates (Steele 616). Sadly, high schools spend so much time on preparing students for the graduation tests that no time is left for the needed psychological preparation for college. High school policymakers need to reevaluate their desired results for graduates to include college r... ... middle of paper ... ...Air: How Stereotypes Shape Intellectual Identity and Performance.” The American Psychologist. 52 (1997):613-619. Web. 28 March 2014. Stephens, Nicole, Fryberg, Stephanie, Markus, Hazel, Johnson, Camille, and Covarrubias, Rebecca. “Unseen Disadvantage: How American Universities’ Focus on Independence Undermines the Academic Performance of First-Generation College Students”. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. American Psychological Association. (2012): 1-12. Web. 30 Mar 2014. Walton, Gregory and Cohen, Geoffrey. “A Brief Social-belonging Intervention Improves Academic and Health Outcomes of Minority Students”. Science. Science AAAS. (2011): n.pag. Web. 2 April 2014. Weston, Liz. Reuters. Thomson Reuters. 2014. Web. 25 Mar 2014. Whitborne, Jonathan. “The Dropout Dilemma.” Careers & Colleges. 22.4 (2002): 26. Web. 3 April 2014.

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