Effective Instruction: An Inconspicuous Strategy for Dropout Prevention
by Dr. Loujeania W. Bost and Dr. Paul Riccomini
Remedial and Special Education Journal, Volume 27, Number 5
(September/October 2006)
Although researchers have clearly connected dropping out of school
to prolonged low achievement, to date, effective teaching practices are
largely absent from the milieu of interventions and programs that are
employed by schools to address dropout prevention. As such, effective
instructional design and delivery as a focus for keeping students with
disabilities in school appears to be an inconspicuous strategy for dropout
prevention. We provide an overview of dropout prevention efforts by
researchers and federal, state, and local educators; a rationale for
connecting effective teaching principles to the challenge of graduating
students with disabilities; and a brief overview of 10 effective teaching
principles and how they relate to academic success that leads to school
completion. Practical strategies that teachers can use to make their
instruction more effective are also included.
