children out of school in america - University of Tennessee Digital ...

community leaders concerned with education. 5
While our data should not be extrapolated to the
nation as a whole, we are confident that the children
we identified as out of school are typical of the kinds
of children out of school nationally. We are equally
confident that the school policies and practices which
we uncovered and which cause children to be out of
school fairly represent ways in which school systems
operate.
In the 30 areas we surveyed we found 5.4 percent
of all children'6 to 17 years old out of school for at
least 45 days, one-quarter of the school year. 19.6
percent of the 16 and 17 year olds we found were
out of school. 6 As with Census data, however, the
overall average understates the severity of the problem
for certain groups of children in specific places.
-In Portland, Maine's Rivertol) Housing Project,
children 6 to 17 from the predominantly white
and poor population were out of school at a
rate twice our survey average, 10.8 percent.
-In a Census tract in Holyoke, Massachusetts,
with a heavy concentration of Puerto Ricans,
6.7 percent of Puerto Rican children 7 to 15
and 37.5 percent of Puerto Rican children 16
to 17 were out of school.
-In a New Bedford, Massachussetts Census
tract, 60.0 percent of all 16 and 17 year olds
and 72.7 percent of Portuguese youths that age
were out of school.
5 Appendix A explains the methodology of our survey and
includes a copy of our questionnaire; Appendix C lists the
names and titles of officials interviewed and others who
provided assistance and information. Appendix 0 lists state
school officials' responses to our request for inforrna:ion on
cbildren out of school. Most school officials were cooperative
and helpful and we greatly appreciate their aid. A
few would not talk to us at aU. The Superintendents of
Hancock County and Bibb County, Georgia repeatedly refused
to be interviewed. The Superintendent of Autauga
County, Alabama did permit an interview, but would not
permit otber scbool employees to be interviewed.
6 Compulsory attendance laws in 48 states require attendance
for 7-15 year olds, but states vary as to the ages children
must start scbool and when they may leave. Our judgment
is that children should be expected to stay in school until
they have acquired requisite literacy skills and credentials,
wbich generally takes children to age 17 and beyond.
Therefore, in our analysis of Census data, we used the 7-15
age grouping to allow for comparability within the compulsory
attendance framework, and the 7-17 age grouping as
well. Our own COP survey reflects our further judgment
that 6 year olds should be in school as well, and data is
therefore summarized for 6 to 17 year olds.
-In a virtually all black Census tract in Washington,
D.C., 20.8 percent of 16 and 17 year
olds were out of school.
Characteristics of Children Out of School
Census data helped us begin to draw a picture of
the children most likely to be out of school. Children
are out of school all over America and come
from every racial and income group. But low income
children and those from unemployed households
are disproportionately nonenrolled. Children
from families with less education are out of school
more than children whose families have more education.
Minority children are out of school more than
white children. And rural children are nonenrolled
more than urban children.
The Census asked no questions about why these
children are out of school, what their problems
are, how their parents tried to deal with them, and
what are the school policies and practices that these
children and their families have to encounter. These
are the questions we sought to answer in our survey.
We found that if a child is not White, or is white
but not middle class, does not speak English, is poor,
3