ORCID Identifier(s)

0000-0003-0967-5752

Graduation Semester and Year

2017

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

Department

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

First Advisor

W. Bradley Davis

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the substantial attrition that occurs during the high school years in the college readiness system known as Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID). The literature on this topic is very minimal, and studies in which students are dropping out of AVID are virtually non-existent. Through this study, I attempt to determine which characteristics of students that join AVID in the ninth grade are associated with exiting AVID prior to high school completion, and relative to one another, how strong those characteristics are as predictors of AVID dropout. I analyze student-level data from a cohort of seniors in a large urban/suburban district in Texas. The data set is comprised of 382 students who joined AVID in ninth grade and remained in the district for all four years of high school, 168 of whom dropped out of the program before the end of their senior year. Correlation analysis and logistic regression reveal that a variety of individual characteristics are associated with AVID dropout. More specifically, Black students and students whose home language is not English are less likely to drop out of AVID, while Asian students are more likely to drop out of AVID. Students’ cumulative GPA and grade in the AVID class were also strong predictors of AVID dropout with lower grades indicating a likelihood to drop out. Since this is the first quantitative examination of AVID dropout, there are a variety of implications for future research that can address the existing knowledge gap. I conclude by discussing these implications alongside those relating to the practical aspects of AVID recruitment, retention, and program deployment.

Keywords

AVID, Dropouts, College readiness, Advancement Via Individual Determination, Attrition, Logistic regression

Disciplines

Education | Educational Leadership

Comments

Degree granted by The University of Texas at Arlington

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