Articles in magazines and newspapers and special reports on radio and television reflect the concern of many Americans about the increasing dropout rate in our junior and senior high schools. Coupled with this fact is the warning that soon we will no longer have workforce to fill the many jobs that require properly-educated personnel. (1)____________ Ten years ago, many urban schools were reporting dropout rates between 35 and 50 percent. Some administrators maintain that dropouts remain the single greatest problem in their schools. Consequently, much effort has been spent on identifying students with problems (2)____________ Since the dropout problem doesn't start in senior high school, special programs in junior high school focus on students who show promise but have a record of truancy, that is, (3)____________ Under the guidanceof counselors, these students are placed in classes with teachers who have had success in working with similar young people. Strategies to motivate students in high school include rewarding academic excellenceby designating scholars of the month, or by issuing articles of clothing such as school letter jackets formally given only to athletes. No one working with these students claims to know how to keep all students in school. Counselors, teachers, and administrators are in the frontlinesof what seems at times to be a losing battle. Actually, this problem should be everyone's concern, since uneducated, unemployed citizens affect us all.
