Using survey and interview data, this study investigates the coordinated effect of student circumstances and school structures on the school experience of youth at risk. By subordinating students to ascribed authority, restricting teaching strategies, minimizing critical feedback, and forcing students to choose among equally credible responsibilities, large group instruction and inflexible time schedules hinder the achievement and retention of youth at risk. We examine seven dilemmas attributable to these familiar school structures and conclude with implications for restructuring schools. This paper reviews conditions in the environment that put the children of Hispanic migrant farm workers at risk for developing physical and cognitive disabilities.
Factors associated with hindering children's development can, in turn, affect academic success.
Debilitating factors include inadequate environmental protection, poor housing, and lack of access to health care and other community resources. Strategies to facilitate positive changes in the working and living environments of farm worker families, as well as interventions to improve medical and educational services for these children, are suggested. A Study of Promising Practices by Elizabeth H. Gibbs, Dollean A. Perkins, and Jeanne B. Repetto Students in special education drop out of school at a higher rate than their nondisabled peers. Programs that combine promising practices from transition programs for students with mild disabilities and dropout prevention programs may be able to improve services and increase the holding power of schools. Results of a study that identified promising practices in both dropout prevention and transition programs are discussed in this article.