This practicum paper describes the design and implementation of a mentoring program to improve the academic achievement of black male urban high school students. The program utilizes black adult mentors from both the community and the school's faculty. Mentors function as role models, advisers, and resource persons. The program design includes the…

This practicum was designed by a curriculum development administrator to develop positive attitudes in at-risk 7th-9th grade students in a drop prevention school in Florida. The school was located in a small town in an agricultural county whose population was predominantly black and of low socioeconomic status. The number of students varied from…

Helping reduce the dropout rate and improving the school attendance of high-risk students who were under court sanction to attend school was the focus of this practicum conducted in a rural community in the northeast region of Florida. The project was necessary because: (1) existing youth services handled individuals adjudicated as delinquent…

The Middle College High School (MCHS) in Tennessee is an alternative school located on the Shelby State Community College (SSCC) campus, designed to provide special counseling, college preparation, and access to SSCC facilities for potential high school dropouts who have the capacity for secondary and postsecondary success. The program, which was…

A practicum addressed the problem of low self-esteem of at-risk students by developing and implementing a 12-week dropout prevention program for 19 eighth-grade students in urban, middle class school. The program used five basic strategies for raising self-esteem: affective skills training (using role playing, mapping, and brainstorming to help…

This practicum was conducted in a large high school for the purpose of improving grade point averages, attendance, and attitudes of student athletes at high risk with respect to eligibility to play sports. The program contained four basic components: (1) orientation; (2) implementation; (3) monitoring; and (4) evaluation. An orientation was…

A supplemental reading intervention program was designed and implemented to increase the reading comprehension for at-risk students. Subjects, 11 fourth graders in two different classes, were chosen on the basis of below grade reading level as evidenced by both classroom performance and national achievement tests' score. The 10-week reading…

This practicum sought to understand why students in a Diversified Cooperative Training (DCT) program did not see the need to earn good grades or to complete their high school education. One hundred DCT programs were surveyed statewide, and it was found that 66 percent reported problems with attendance, 35 percent revealed problems with student…

The negative impact of low attendance and the lack of effective, alternative classroom learning strategies are factors that mitigate against student interest and success in mathematics, particularly with respect to inner-city at-risk students. The goal of this practicum was to improve the problem-solving skills of a group of 50 alternative high…