The Effect of the Caring Teacher on the At-Risk Student

There is criticism that the traditional high school is not serving the needs of students who are failing high school and rapidly dropping out. The high school dropout rate is alarming, for every ten students that start high school in California only seven complete and many more are being increasingly recognized as at-risk. The purpose of this qualitative research was to look at the effect a caring teacher has on the retention of the at-risk student within the alternative school setting. Eleven male at-risk students, ages 18 to 21, attending two alternative schools were identified, and face-to-face in-depth interviews were held.