Completing-school outcome measure: diploma or GED receipt within five years of entering ninth grade, from statewide databases¶

Element · All elements
Evidence · 4 claims (4 for) · 1 study (1 causal), q2 · 1 of 1 report an effect size · 4 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The outcome measure used in both qualifying studies is "the percentage of students who received their diploma or GED by the end of their fifth academic year after entering the ninth grade." Data come from statewide databases tracking public high school enrollment, completion, and GED receipt. The measure counts only diplomas from public high schools within the state and GED certificates earned within the state; private-school diplomas and out-of-state credentials are excluded.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Access to a statewide database that tracked public high school enrollment and completion and GED receipt

Constraints¶

• Diplomas from private high schools and credentials earned outside the state are not included; the measure does not separate high school diplomas from GED certificates

Target Learners¶

• high school students entering ninth grade

Target Learning Goals¶

• high school completion
• GED attainment

Claims¶

• Across the two qualifying studies, Talent Search shows an average improvement index of +17 percentile points on completing school [+M]
• Talent Search participants in Florida completed high school or GED at a significantly higher rate than matched comparison students (84% vs. 70%) [+M]
• The WWC rated Talent Search as having potentially positive effects on completing school, capped below positive because both studies were quasi-experimental [+M]
• Talent Search participants in Texas completed high school or GED at a significantly higher rate than matched comparison students (86% vs. 77%) [+M]

Related Elements¶

• Talent Search program: federal TRIO services supporting high-school completion and college access for low-income, first-generation students

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Talent Search. (2006). WWC Intervention Report. U.S. Department of Education, What Works Clearinghouse. http://www.ed.gov/programs/triotalent/index.html