Is Dropping out of High School More Likely after Stressful Life Events?

High school dropout is typically viewed as the result of long-held vulnerabilities such as learning problems. This research brief, by PRC visiting scholars Véronique Dupéré and Eric Dion and PRC faculty research associate Robert Crosnoe and colleagues, shows that recent stressful life events can lead to a student dropping out.Population Research Cente

Réussite scolaire des cégépiens offrant du tutorat aux élèves du primaire en milieux défavorisés

La présente recherche a été subventionnée par le ministère de l'Éducation et de l'Enseignement supérieur dans le cadre du Programme d'aide à la recherche sur l'enseignement et l'apprentissage (PAREA).Comprend des références bibliographiques

Le sentiment de compétence : modérateur du lien entre le QI et le rendement scolaire en mathématiques

La présente étude a pour but de vérifier si le QI et le sentiment de compétence interagissent lorsque l’élève doit performer à l’école et si, en l’occurrence, cette interaction est à son tour modérée par l’âge et le sexe des participants. Afin de vérifier ces hypothèses, les variables suivantes ont été étudiées chez 928 élèves de souche francocanadienne fréquentant des écoles montréalaises de niveau secondaire : la moyenne en mathématiques, le QI, le sentiment de compétence en mathématiques, l’âge, le sexe et le statut socioéconomique. Tel que prévu, le QI et le sentiment de compétence en mathématiques corrèlent de façon positive et significative avec la moyenne en mathématiques de l’élève. Les analyses montrent également une interaction significative entre le QI et le sentiment de compétence. Une fois décomposée, cette interaction indique que chez les élèves qui ont un sentiment de compétence élevé, la valeur prédictive du QI est plus élevée, alors que la relation entre le QI et la performance ne change pas de façon significative chez les élèves qui présentent un faible sentiment de compétence. Enfin, ni l’âge ni le sexe de l’élève n’influencent l’interaction entre le QI et le rendement scolaire, pas plus qu’ils ne sont corrélés avec le rendement scolaire. Les implications cliniques de cette recherche sont discutées.The purpose of the present study was to establish whether students’ self competence beliefs and IQ interact when they need to perform at school and if so, whether this interaction is moderated by age and/or sex. The mean grade in mathematics, selfcompetence beliefs in mathematics, IQ, age, sex and socioeconomic status of 928 French Canadian students from Montreal high schools were analyzed. As predicted, the students’ IQ and self‐competence beliefs in mathematics correlated in a positive and significant way with their average grade in mathematics. Analyses also confirmed a significant correlation between the IQ and students’ self‐competence beliefs. When broken down, this interaction shows that for students with high selfcompetence beliefs, the predictive value of IQ is higher, but for students with low selfcompetence beliefs, the relationship between IQ and performance does not change significantly. Finally, age and sex do not influence the interaction between the IQ and students’ self‐competence beliefs, nor are they correlated with academic performance. Clinical implications are discussed

Stressors and turning points in high school and dropout : a stress process, life course framework

High school dropout is commonly seen as the result of a long-term process of failure and disengagement. As useful as it is, this view has obscured the heterogeneity of pathways leading to dropout. Research suggests, for instance, that some students leave school not as a result of protracted difficulties but in response to situations that emerge late in their schooling careers, such as health problems or severe peer victimization. Conversely, others with a history of early difficulties persevere when their circumstances improve during high school. Thus, an adequate understanding of why and when students drop out requires a consideration of both long-term vulnerabilities and proximal disruptive events and contingencies. The goal of this review is to integrate long-term and immediate determinants of dropout by proposing a stress process, life course model of dropout. This model is also helpful for understanding how the determinants of dropout vary across socioeconomic conditions and geographical and historical contexts

Gender differences in adolescents’ exposure to stressful life events and differential links to impaired school functioning

Gender differences in exposure and reactivity to specific stressful life events (SLE) contribute to explaining adolescent boys’ and girls’ differential susceptibility to common adjustment difficulties like depression and behavioral problems. However, it is unclear whether these gender differences are also relevant to understanding another key marker of adolescent maladjustment: high school dropout. A state-of-the-art interview protocol was used to assess recent SLE in a sample of academically vulnerable Canadian adolescents (N = 545, 52% boys). The sample was comprised of three groups in approximately equal proportions: 1) students who had recently dropped out; 2) matched students at risk of dropping out but who persevered nevertheless; and 3) “normative” students with an average level of risk. When SLE of all types were considered together, overall exposure was similar for adolescent boys and girls, and the SLE-dropout association did not vary as a function of gender. However, gender differences emerged for specific events. Boys were especially exposed to SLE related to performance (e.g., school failure, suspension) and conflicts with authority figures (e.g., with teachers or the police), whereas girls were particularly exposed to SLE involving relationship problems with family members, peers, or romantic partners. In terms of specific SLE-dropout associations, one consistent result emerged, showing that performance/authority-related SLE were significantly associated with dropout only among boys. It therefore seems that considering gendered exposure and sensitivity to SLE is important for understanding the emergence of educational difficulties with long-ranging consequences for future health and well-being

Musical extracurricular activities and adjustment among children from immigrant families : a 2-year quasi-experimental study

This quasi-experimental study examines the impact on emotional/behavioral functioning (hyperactivity-inattention and internalizing symptoms) and school experiences (school engagement, positive experience in school) of La classe enchantée, a high-quality, non-selective extracurricular music program. Based on the program’s objectives and on the positive youth development model, it was anticipated that elementary school students participating in La classe enchantée would evolve more favorably in terms of these outcomes over the 2-year duration of the program spanning Grades 4 and 5, compared to non-participating schoolmates. The sample includes 72 children (25% in the intervention group, 47% girls, 93% first/second generation immigrants) from one low-income school, followed over 2 years starting in grade four (Mage = 9.30, SD = 0.49). Latent Growth Curve models show that, compared to classmates not in the program, children in La classe enchantée progressed more favorably over time on self-reported measures of internalizing symptoms and positive experiences in school. For teacher-rated hyperactivity-inattention and school engagement, the slopes indicated stability over time in both groups, although hyperactivity-inattention tended to improve among those with relatively high initial levels in the intervention group. These results suggest that engagement in quality musical extracurricular activities might boost emotional and school well-being and potentially reduce hyperactivity-inattention among a specific subgroup of children from immigrant families

Revisiting the link between depression symptoms and high school dropout : timing of exposure matters

Purpose Recent reviews concluded that past depression symptoms are not independently associated with high school dropout, a conclusion that could induce schools with high dropout rates and limited resources to consider depression screening, prevention, and treatment as low-priority. Even if past symptoms are not associated with dropout, however, it is possible that recent symptoms are. The goal of this study was to examine this hypothesis. Methods In 12 disadvantaged high schools in Montreal (Canada), all students at least 14 years of age were first screened between 2012 and 2015 (Nscreened = 6,773). Students who dropped out of school afterward (according to school records) were then invited for interviews about their mental health in the past year. Also interviewed were matched controls with similar risk profiles but who remained in school, along with average not at-risk schoolmates (Ninterviewed = 545). Interviews were conducted by trained graduate students. Results Almost one dropout out of four had clinically significant depressive symptoms in the 3 months before leaving school. Adolescents with recent symptoms had an odd of dropping out more than twice as high as their peers without such symptoms (adjusted odds ratio = 2.17; 95% confidence interval = 1.14–4.12). In line with previous findings, adolescents who had recovered from earlier symptoms were not particularly at risk. Conclusions These findings suggest that to improve disadvantaged youths' educational outcomes, investments in comprehensive mental health services are needed in schools struggling with high dropout rates, the very places where adolescents with unmet mental health needs tend to concentrate

Preschool cognitive control and family adversity predict the evolution of classroom engagement in elementary school

Abstract: Background: Classroom engagement is key predictor of child academic success. Aim: The objective of the study was to examine how preschool cognitive control and the experience of family adversity predict developmental trajectories of classroom engagement through elementary school. Setting: Children were followed in the context of the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development from birth to age 10.5 (N = 1589). Methods: Working memory was directly assessed when children were 3 years old and mothers reported child impulsivity, parenting characteristics, stress and social support when children were 4 years old. Elementary school teachers rated classroom engagement from kindergarten through Grade 4. Results: Growth mixture modelling identified three distinct trajectories of classroom engagement. Child working memory and impulsivity, and maternal hostility, social support and stress predicted greater odds of belonging to the low versus high engagement trajectory. Child impulsivity and maternal hostility and stress also distinguished between the low and moderate engagement trajectories. Conclusion: Our results suggest that targeting preschool cognitive control and buffering the effects of family adversity on children may facilitate academic success