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Educational Challenges, and Opportunities, for Foster Children and Youth

Educational Challenges, and Opportunities, for Foster Children and Youth. Mark E. Courtney, Ph.D. POC Executive Director Ballmer Chair in Child Well-Being School of Social Work University of Washington. Acknowledging Needs & Strengthening Systems.

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Educational Challenges, and Opportunities, for Foster Children and Youth

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  1. Educational Challenges, and Opportunities, for Foster Children and Youth Mark E. Courtney, Ph.D. POC Executive Director Ballmer Chair in Child Well-Being School of Social Work University of Washington

  2. Acknowledging Needs & Strengthening Systems • Adoption and Safe Families Act – new emphasis on child well-being • Child welfare system still the “long-term parent” for many abused and neglected children • Educational status a critical aspect of foster children’s well-being

  3. Some Basic Information on Children in Care • 27% in care are 5 years or under; 51% 10 or under • 40% entering are 5 years or under; 60% 10 or under • 46% in foster family home; 23% kinship care; 20% group care • About 2/3 go home and most of these within the first 18 months • Age matters in terms of permanency outcomes • 27% in care are 5 years or under; 51% 10 or under • 40% entering are 5 years or under; 60% 10 or under • 46% in foster family home; 23% kinship care; 20% group care • About 2/3 go home and most of these within the first 18 months • Age matters in terms of permanency outcomes

  4. Background on the Studies • Work in Chicago begun in 2002 as part of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) Student Development Planning Initiative • Continued as part of broader research program for the Illinois child welfare agency • Included both quantitative (approx. 5500 foster children in CPS) and qualitative research • The Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth • Foster youth in 3 states (n = 732) who were in out-of-home care at age 17, had entered care before their 16th birthday, and had been placed in care due to abuse and/or neglect • Interviews at ages 17-18, 19, and 21

  5. Chicago: Falling Behind Early, Never Catching Up • Twice as likely as other CPS students to be at least a year old for their grade • Trauma prior to placement >>> to educational delays • More likely to be retained in school in the year immediately following placement in care

  6. Special Education: The Most Appropriate Response? • More likely than other Chicago Public School students to be classified as learning disabled • More likely to have been placed in special education at least once • Behavioral problems >>> erroneous labeling of children as emotionally or behaviorally disordered? • Might remediation of educational deficits be more appropriate, in some cases, than special education? • Don’t confuse behavior associated with the transition to care with emotional disability

  7. Changes in Placement, Changes in Schools • School mobility rates highest for those entering care for the first time • 40% of foster children who moved once and 66% of those who moved twice also switched schools during academic year • Over 80 percent of children changing schools attended a school within 5 miles of the school they left

  8. Educational Consequences of School Mobility for Children • Disrupted educational instruction and social relationships • Delays in transfers of important school records • Delays in access to important special or supplemental educational services

  9. The Challenge for Caseworkers: Identifying Needs • Finding an appropriate school • Securing special services • Motivating youth to stay in school • Helping prepare for and choose among post-secondary education options

  10. The Challenge for Caseworkers: Knowing the Schools • Forming sustained, professional relationships between caseworkers and educators • Building familiarity with school processes and procedures

  11. The Challenge for Caseworkers: Identifying Needs and Knowing the Schools • 45% of Illinois foster children had 2+ caseworkers (2003) • Caseloads distributed among many different schools and districts • High caseworker turnover

  12. The Midwest Study: Educational Status at Baseline (17-18) • Enrolled in School: 695 (94.9%) • Type of School: • High School - 588 (80.3%) • Vocational School - 14 (1.9%) • College - 46 (6.3%) • Other - 47 (6.4%) • Special Education: 347 (47.3%) Add Health • Repeated a Grade: 272 (37.2%) 21.5% • Out of School Suspension: 489 (66.8%) 27.8% • Expelled from School: 121 (16.5%) 4.6% • Median Grade Equivalent Reading Score (WRAT-3): 7th Grade

  13. Percentage of Young People Exiting Care at Various Points Up to Wave 2 Interview

  14. Educational Attainment at 19

  15. Receipt of Education-Related Services

  16. Predictors of College Enrollment at Age 19 Estimated Effect Variableon Odds Caregiver problems 1.25 Delinquency .60 Retained a grade .51 Expects to complete college 1.93 Still in care at 19 2.84 2+ moves .34 2+ moves and still in care 6.36

  17. Housing Mobility, Remaining in Care, and College

  18. Lessons for Practice with Transition-Age Youth • Service providers and the courts must take into account that many foster youth are not prepared to make the transition to independence at age 18 • Most young people appear to value and benefit from their connections to the child welfare system • Educational deficits in high school (old for grade) are strongly related to the educational trajectory • Externalizing behavior problems affect the educational trajectory…we need to better address emotional/behavioral problems of foster youth • Aspirations matter (over 70 of youth report wanting to graduate from college and nearly as many expect to do so; no change over time in these aspirations and expectations)

  19. Resources • Educational Experiences of Children in Out-of-Home Care (2004). Cheryl Smithgall, Robert Matthew Gladden, Eboni Howard, Robert M. Goerge, Mark E. Courtney: http://www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1372 • Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth (2005). Mark E. Courtney, Amy Dworsky, Sherri Terao, Noel Bost, Gretchen Ruth Cusick, Thomas Keller, Judy Havlicek: http://www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1355

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