The American education system has a long list of programs intended to serve students who need something more from teachers than standard instruction. There is special education for students with disabilities, for example, and English-language assistance for students who are new to the United States.
But what about the homeless child who also needs special education services? The student caught in the juvenile justice system? The immigrant child living in fear of deportation?
This report focuses on these and other fragile student populations, their needs, and the challenges educators face in engaging them in learning.
Schools inside juvenile justice facilities struggle mightily to find and hold onto teachers who have the skills to deliver meaningful education to some of society's most at-risk students.
Merissa Humes, left, an education specialist with Treehouse, an advocacy group focused on getting foster students on a college-bound track, counsels student Jordon Marshelle Barrett at the group’s Seattle office. Humes has weekly meetings with students to help them set goals, apply to colleges and for scholarships, and plan for life after both high school and the foster-care system.
George Garcia, a former foster-care child now mentoring foster students in college, found his way into academically challenging classes through friends. Many bright foster-care students aren't so lucky.
Many of the most vulnerable populations of students in the nation’s schools are also hidden populations—sometimes intentionally so—but they still need special attention from educators.
The Editors, March 6, 2018
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2 min read
The Wyoming Girls School makes use of its remote location, at the foot of the Bighorn Mountains, both for security and curriculum. Students may learn about horseback riding as part of physical education or study farming in science classes.
A Wyoming correctional school is part of a network working to improve the quality of instruction provided to the "invisible" students living in juvenile-justice facilities.
Claudia Martinez is a counselor at Boston Latin Academy and co-founder of Unafraid Educators, a committee within the Boston Teachers Union that supports undocumented students.
How many hours of instruction do incarcerated students get in juvenile justice facilities in your state?
March 6, 2018
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