California’s Graduation Rate

Re “State’s Graduation Rate Is Among Worst in U.S.,” June 8: It is very disheartening to hear that California ranks among the worst in terms of high school graduation. There is no doubt that we need to analyze the problem to figure out how we can meet the needs of the students who are dropping out.

To say that one of the causes of our high dropout rate is the large number of Latinos in California is a cop-out. This is not a cause of the high dropout rate, it is the result of a system that has failed to meet the needs of Latino students for decades. There are many factors that affect the graduation rate, and a person’s ethnicity is not one of them.

JUAN M. HERRERA, Whittier

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A few years ago, I wanted to hold back a few of my third-grade students who, from the beginning of the school year, were desperately lacking in effort, interest, academic skills and parent involvement.

As she always would (sitting at the helm of her low-performing school), the principal denied their retention, citing studies by university gurus that found students who are retained are more likely to drop out before the end of high school. What these false studies didn’t show, however, is the number of students who drop out who should have been retained long before that point. I am quite certain that that number is far greater.

STEVE ORMOND, Thousand Oaks

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Thanks to years of whole language and make-it-up-as-you-go-along math guidelines from the state, we are doomed to see a “lost generation” stumble along, ill-equipped to deal with the new demands of accelerated high school curricula. Needless to say, the students aren’t the only victims of this outrage--the high school teachers must suffer with unruly, ill-prepared students. By extension, the parents must suffer with hours of homework assistance and/or big bucks shelled out for tutors.

I truly hope for the sake of our future generations that the state legislators will be willing to put the necessary dollars forward to guide the “lost” to a better future!

BARBARA SABO, Hermosa Beach