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

Who Are the Children Out of School?
Chapter 1
Child.een Out of School
And What It Means to Them
There are some children who have never gone to
school. Their parents or guardians do not register
them, and school officials do not try to find out how
many of them there are. To the system, they are the
unknowns, including:
-special needs children, particularly the severely
mentally and physically handicapped
-immigrant children
-migrant children
-Alaskan and other Native American children
who live in remote areas and have no local
schools, and whose parents refuse to send them
to boarding schools far away from home
There are other children who have tried to enroll
at some time but who were not accepted by the school
system. They want to be in school, but are told by
school officials that it is not the place they should be.
These are excluded children, such as:
--children who register too late in the school year
-incontinent children or those with spina bifida 1
1 Spina bifida is one of the most common birth defects
causing disability in infancy and childhood. It is a congenital
condition in which the bony elements of the spine
have not made a complete closure, leaving an opening in
the neural tube. Spina bifida is frequently accompanied
by hydrocephalus which is an increase of cerebrospinal
fluid in the cranial cavity causing pressure and enlargement
of the size of the head. Children with spina bifida who do
not have hydrocephalus do not deviate significantly in intellectual
function from the normal population. They can be
educated in regular classes providing modifications are
--children whom school officials deem "immature"
-older children who try to enroll for the first time
in a new school district
--children on waiting lists for special programs
-special needs children for whom there are no
appropriate programs, particularly the physically,
mentally, and emotionally handicapped,
and non-English-speaking or bilingual children
-children who are beyond normal transportation
routes in remote rural areas
-children in jails 2
Some children have been enrolled in school, but
later are forced to leave because of overt or covert
school policies. These are the pushouis, such as:
-pregnant girls, school-age mothers and married
students
-expelled or suspended children
--dropouts
--dropouts who want to re-enroll and are not permitted
to do so
-older children who are counseled or encouraged
to withdraw. For example, parents are told to
keep children at home on threat of court referral
made for those who have orthopedic and urinary involvement.
See Samuel A. Kirk, Educating Exceptional Children
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1972), p. 366.
2 These children are, in fact, totally out of school during the
period of their jail detention. About 38,000 children under
age 16 are in jail on a given day. This figure does not
include city jails and lock-ups. A subsequent CDP study
of children in adult jails will show that the figures used do
not tell the whole story: it is likely that between 250,000
and 400,000 children are jailed annually. There is no education
provided in jail.
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