What Happens to High-School Students Who Graduate Late?

From the Marshall Memo #430

In this Center for Public Education study, Jim Hull investigates whether delayed high-school graduation is worth the extra time and effort. The short answer is yes. “Of course on-time graduation remains the best prospect for students,” says Hull, “and districts should make on-time graduation the first priority for all students. But the extra work late graduates and their schools put toward earning a high-school diploma pays off – not only in academic outcomes, but in every aspect of life including work, civic engagement, and health. Late graduates do markedly better than GED recipients and dropouts. And when the data are controlled to compare students of equivalent socioeconomic status and achievement level, late graduates come close to on-time graduates’ achievement.” 

“Better Late Than Never?” by Jim Hull, Center for Public Education, Feb. 11, 2012, available at http://tinyurl.com/7yt32bl (spotted in PEN Weekly NewsBlast, Mar. 30, 2012)