Credit hours:
1.50

Course Summary

A large contributing factor for the success of foster youth is educational stability. Young people involved in the child welfare systems deserve a quality education that allows them to develop the skills and competencies necessary for them to become successful adults. Learn what laws are in place to protect the educational experience of foster youth and special circumstances to consider.

In this course, you can expect to learn:

  • the importance of educational stability for a foster youth
  • how youth in foster care feel about their education
  • the unique challenges foster youth face in their pursuit of education
  • the role stability and positive advocacy contribute to a foster youth's education

Step 1

Read the article written by a New York youth:  "Too Many Schools" to gain perspective about the hardships many foster youth face attending school while in foster care.

Step 2

Review the Annie E Casey Foundation article,  "Youth in Foster Care Share Their School Experiences" , in which youth in and from foster care share their personal struggles with stability in education and how it has affected them long term.

Step 3

Review the following article,  "How will the every student succeeds act (ESSA) support students in Foster Care?" , which outlines what the Federal Law says about education for youth in care

Step 4

Review the article developed by Advocates for Children of New York, which speaks to  "The Importance of School Stability for Youth in Foster Care"

Step 5

Join the discussion in the comments below to answer the following question:

What do you think is the number one issue with young people frequently changing schools?

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Course Discussion

dsalmans's picture
1 week 14 hours ago

dsalmans said:

Instability is the number one contributing factor to children in foster care system and their success in the school system.
Kphillips's picture
2 months 3 days ago

Kphillips said:

I think that the it leaves the child with no consistency. The foster child is already being removed from their home, switching schools on top of that is completely changing their lives. With switching schools it could cause grades to fall, and the child might have a hard time leaving and making new friends.
manningfamily.alexis's picture
4 months 1 week ago

manningfamily.alexis said:

each school is different people and course so changing can be overwelming for them
StephAnne's picture
4 months 3 weeks ago

StephAnne said:

I think aside from the negative effects on school performance it affects friendships and social aspects which are also important to developing children.
vernazurc22's picture
5 months 2 weeks ago

vernazurc22 said:

The lack of stability in being in one school. Any move whether minimal or not is a type of transition that brings different changes.
khsmith11's picture
5 months 3 weeks ago

khsmith11 said:

Kids who are moving constantly have more of a chance to fall behind in their studies. Schools from one city to another are no always learning the same exact content, they may be moving at a different pace, or already covered a topic that the child hasn't learned yet. I feel that ultimately the kid then feels like they are "dumb" rather than being able to understand that their moving has created the issues they have. Stability and structure are what kids crave.
Robert Wood's picture
6 months 6 days ago

Robert Wood said:

Youth un foster care suffer greatly at the hands if the system when it can't protect them from numerous moves.
Kathy Wood's picture
6 months 6 days ago

Kathy Wood said:

Youth in foster care can have a major impact on their own journey by their own negative or positive behavior as well as reaction from peers.
tface's picture
6 months 2 weeks ago

tface said:

I think the number one issue is that there is the potential inability to foster strong social bonds which can lead to the distrust of others and a fear to make attachments.
boboluz's picture
6 months 4 weeks ago

boboluz said:

The main concern for foster children changing schools often is the common problem where their transcripts are not properly shared from the previous schools, resulting in the student having to repeat some classes multiple times, or even having to repeat grades and take longer to complete schooling.