Curriculums vary greatly between schools and districts, and high numbers of mobile children interfere with teachers' ability to organize and deliver instruction. Children who move often are two and a half times more likely to need to repeat a grade than children who do not move. Changing schools is hard on children emotionally, too.
Children are more likely to drop out of school if they change schools four or more times.
The Migrant Head Start Program, a federally subsidized educational program, has proven to be very beneficial to children who move frequently. However, there is some hope in recent years. Despite the deep emotional ties and traditions that bind the farmworker family, it appears that more students are now being allowed to stay behind in school when other family members migrate. Educators who work with migrant children say that 55 percent of migrant children graduate nationwide, compared with only 45 percent just a few years ago. The economic pressure on migrant children to drop out is also intense.