Talk about starting off life in the wrong way:
So what if typical 3-year-olds are just out of diapers, still take a daily nap and can't tie their shoes? They are plenty old enough to be expelled, the first national study of expulsion rates in prekindergarten programs has found. In fact, preschool children are three times as likely to be expelled as children in kindergarten through 12th grade, according to the new study, by researchers from the Yale Child Study Center."No one wants to hear about 3- and 4-year-olds' being expelled from preschool, but it happens rather frequently," said the study's chief author, Walter S. Gilliam.
The descriptive statistics on subgroups will surprise no one, with white girls being the least likely to be expelled, and for-profit preschools being the most likely to toss the troublemakes. And what kinds of trouble could such young kids be making?
The study did not gather information on why the children were expelled. But Dr. Gilliam said a wide range of behavior could lead to expulsion: aggression toward the teacher or other children; actions that violate a zero-tolerance policy, like taking a toy gun to school; or anything that might cause a teacher to worry about injury and liability, like running out of the classroom to the parking lot.
It's a shame that the study didn't collect that information. It would be nice to know how many toddlers get expelled for being aggressive, as opposed to just hyperactive (or having clueless parents that send them in with toy guns).
The Daily News has NYC's local numbers:
One out of every 110 preschoolers is expelled annually from New York classrooms - a rate nearly 18 times higher than the number of older kids booted in grades kindergarten through 12, a study released today found. Hundreds of 3- and 4-year-old pint-size terrors were bounced - from public and private schools alike - for bad behavior ranging from pulling down classmates' pants to slipping water guns into class, according to Yale University researcher Walter Gilliam...Jean Mandelbaum, director of All Souls preschool on the upper East Side, was shocked to hear so many tots were being expelled. "Every school has a kid that is troubled in some way, but expelling a kid is a harsh thing to do. It's not something we do," said Mandelbaum.
Still, Mandelbaum and other educators said if young students are a danger to their classmates or themselves, they should be removed. "A school is not set up to handle everything," Mandelbaum said. "They are not therapeutic organizations or jails."
(Via Devoted Reader John K.)
Posted by kswygert at May 17, 2005 02:56 PM