At-Risk Students

1. At-Risk Students Gabriel Jackson Olivia Dilauro Mariella Quiroz Carla Fletcher Stephanie Till Kathleen Massa

2. Students At-Risk • What is an “At-Risk” student? • Students who are in jeopardy of failing or becoming drop outs. • These students are in danger of not being successful in life. • What type of students are considered “At-Risk”? • Live in poverty • Have an unstable family • Are abused and/or neglected • Have physical impairments • Have mental deficiencies

3. Poverty • At-Risk Students in Poverty • Children born into poverty are considered at risk students. • Children in poverty are disadvantaged and do not have the necessities to have a healthy and beneficial childhood. • Disadvantages of childhood poverty: • Health and development are at risk • Single parents • Interpersonal conflicts • Inadequate health care • Malnutrition • Dangerous environments • Homelessness • Due to the disadvantages of poverty, children’s cognitive, physical, emotional and social developments suffer.

4. Homelessness • How do individuals become Homeless? • Families in poverty become homeless because they cannot afford the cost of housing. • Minimum wage jobs • Effects of Homelessness • Poor physical and mental health • Family separation • Domestic violence and single mothers • Deprives education

5. Child Abuse and Neglect • Prevalence Data on Child Abuse • Child abuse victims know most perpetrators • Teachers and other professionals are mandated by law in the United States to report suspicions of abuse, many fail to do so • Insufficient information and/or signs of abuse • Fear of reprisal • Discouragement by supervisors • Concern for destruction of family unit “Child abuse thrives in the shadows of privacy and secrecy. It lives by inattention” - David Bakan, Slaughter of the Innocents

6. Child Abuse and Neglect • What Do Abuse and Neglect Mean? • Physical abuse – inflicting a non-accidental physical injury upon a child • Neglect – failure to provide for a child's basic needs • How do we recognize it? • Child Fatalities • Children dying are often the most tragic consequence of maltreatment “There's no tragedy in life like the death of a child. Things never get back to the way they were.” -Dwight D. Eisenhower

7. Abuse and Neglect • Characteristics of Victims • Age • Gender Ethnicity • Special Needs • Characteristics of Perpetrators • People known to the child • Gender • Stranger Danger

8. Abuse and Neglect • History of Child Abuse • A clay tablet is discovered from Sumer from approximately 5000 years ago telling of a young girl who was sexually abused. • Religion • Industrial Revolution • Victorian Era • Child Pornography

9. Abuse and Neglect • Child Victims and the Law • Laws treat children victims differently than adult victims • All states recognize their duty to protect children • Increased pedophile tracking

10. Abuse and Neglect • The Effects of Child Abuse • On Children: • Self destructive coping behaviors • Hide the family secret • Autonomic and endocrine hyperarousal • On Adults who were abused as children • Likely to have a partner with substance abuse issues • Anxiety • Sexual

11. Abuse and Neglect • The Cost of Abuse • Direct Costs – those associated with the immediate needs of abused or neglected children • Indirect Costs – those costs associated with the long-term and/or secondary effects of child abuse

12. The Need for Prevention • National Committee to Prevent Child Ause (NCPCA) • National Public Opinion Polls • Public’s attitudes toward parenting behaviors • Frequency of various discipline practices • Public’s involvement in child abuse prevention • Results of Polls • Physical punishment, yelling, and swearing negatively affects a child’s well-being • Less physical punishment since 1988 (first survey) Replaced with time out, and denial of privileges • Decreased across income levels, race, educational status, residential locations, and political and religious preferences. • https://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/programs/

13. Proclivity Toward Violence • Violent Deaths • Children from ages 5-19 are safer at school than away from school. • 1% of child homicides from ages 5-19 occur at school. • Away from school 2,000 child suicides occurred in the year 2000. • From July 1999-June 200, there were 32 school-associated violent deaths reported • 24 were homicides • 8 suicides

14. Students Perception of Safety • 5% of children said they missed at least one day of school in the past month because they felt unsafe at school or when traveling to school. • About 4% of elementary school principles and 19% of middle school principles reported at least one serious crime during the school year (rape, sexual battery, fights, attacks with weapons, robbery).

15. Bullying • CNN reported study on 550 middle schools in the Midwest where students were interviewed. • 80% acted like bullies at least once a month • This includes the following: • aggression • ridicule • name calling • threats

16. Violence and Child Development • Violence can be child abuse or other domestic conflict. • Developmental consequences of violence for children who are victims can be great. • Statistics of violence: • More children died in 1998 from gunfire • Ten children and teens die each day from gunfire in America • Youth arrests for violent crime have declined 23 percent since 1995

17. Violence During the Preschool Years • Trust provides the foundation for later development of self-confidence. • Parents restrict activities for indoors because of fear of safety. • Childcare programs may sometimes be located in violent areas.

18. Violence During the School Years • Risk Factors • Children defending themselves on outside dangers. • Children are victims of violence. • Children living with violence. • Children experience with violence • Results of Risk Factors • Children will have difficulty in school. • They will also have problems getting along with others. • Children will hold back their feelings. • When living with violence they have little or no control.

19. Violence During College • Victims can be students, professors, staff and visitors. • Victims have fear of reporting violence to parents. • Non college students more likely to be victims of violence.

20. Teacher Transition/Exit • Caused by stress factors related to school and personal life • Student characteristics/school climate • Teacher experience/New teachers • Lower achieving students • High minority enrollment • Individual teacher decision

21. Media Influence • Television dictates how we live our lives • Effects on children • Desensitized to violence/crime • Imitate televised scenarios/television characters • Become fearful of the world

22. Safety Issues and Discipline • Cell phones • Always reachable • At what age should kids get a cell phone? • Corporal punishment in school • Banished by some states, maintained by others • Judeo-Christian roots • Thin line between discipline and abuse • PTSD • Anti-social behavior • Theological debate

23. Need for Teachers to Deal With Abuse • False Allegations • Toward Teachers: • 56 percent of teachers were aware of false allegations made against a teacher in their school district • Fearful of their vulnerability • Toward Children: • Teachers are hesitant to report abuse • No Evidence..Just suspicion • Fearfully of family reprisals • Wrong Accusation • Lawsuits

24. Conclusion