Wisconsin schools use early warning system to identify potential dropouts

Wisconsin schools use a racially discriminatory Dropout Early Warning System built by the state to identify incoming 9th graders who may be at risk of failing to graduate on time in order to offer them help. The system’s machine learning algorithms make their assessments based on test scores, disciplinary records, lunch price status, and race. In a study of millions of predictions over a decade, The Markup finds that the system may be wrongly and negatively influencing teachers’ impressions of students, especially those of colour, and a forthcoming academic study from the University of California, Berkeley finds the system has not improved graduation risks for students dubbed “high risk”, and that false alarms are 42 percentage points higher for black students and 18 points higher for Hispanic students, compared to white students. At least eight more states are building similar systems for future use.

Link: Wisconsin schools use early warning system to identify potential dropouts

Publication: The Markup
Writer: Todd Feathers