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Promising de Blasio School Plan Could be Tanked by Test Scores [CityLimits.org]

 

A painful truth about homelessness in New York City is that our population of homeless children is the same size as the entire city of Trenton, N.J.— and growing. In a case where common sense and scientific inquiry neatly overlap, the Institute for Children, Poverty and Homelessness reported last year that when it comes to education, homeless students as a group have the worst outcomes on almost every measure, including performance on standardized tests, absenteeism and school drop-out. The systemic causes and consequences of homelessness are deeply entrenched. Fortunately, with advocacy groups, the mayor and elected officialscalling to support education policies like theCommunity Schools Initiative it may be possible to make a difference in homeless students' lives here and now.

The mayor's Community Schools Initiative takes serious aim at resolving the issues that span many school communities and that I witness on a daily basis. I work as an occupational therapist in Bronx District 10 where the highest number of homeless students are enrolled. A cornerstone of the Initiative is that school sites become resource hubs for vulnerable families, thereby making access to social services and programs easier. The program adopts a "whole child" approach that sees schools as places where social-emotional, mental and physical health are valued as much as academics. Quality and accountability to performance measures are emphasized to reassure families, communities and donors that success matters. Without a doubt, it is a tremendous step in the right direction.



[For more of this story, written by Marilena Marchetti, go to http://citylimits.org/2016/02/...nked-by-test-scores/]

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