ticking time bomb
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Ticking Time Bomb
Never in our nation’s history have the demands on our educational system been greater or the consequences of
failure as severe. The difference between success and failure in school is, quite literally, life and death for our
students.
For students who fail in our educational system, the reality is
that there are virtually no paths of opportunity.
The likely pathway for students who struggle in school is an
adult life of poverty, incarceration, and/or
dependence on society’s welfare systems.
-- Dropouts on average earn about $12,000 per year, nearly 50 percent less than those who have a high school diploma
-- They are more likely to experience health problems
--Rouse/Muenning, 2005: www.centerforpubliceducation.org
Poverty…
Nearly one out of two adults,
are functionally illiterate or near illiterate, without the minimum skills
requiredin a modern society.
Larry Roberts, Illiteracy on the Rise in America http://www.wsws.org
Poverty…
44 million cannot read a newspaperor fill out a job application.
Another 50 million more cannot read or comprehend above the eighth
grade level.
Larry Roberts, Illiteracy on the Rise in America http://www.wsws.org
Poverty…
Poverty…
43 percent of people with the lowest literacy skills live below the
government's official poverty line
Larry Roberts, Illiteracy on the Rise in America http://www.wsws.org
Incarceration
Across the United States, 82% of prison inmates are
dropouts
Ysseldyke, Algozzine, & Thurlow 1992
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2248/is_n126_v32/ai_19619426/pg_4
Incarceration
70 percent of all prison inmates are functionally illiterate or
read below a fourth-grade level.
http://www.proliteracy.org/downloads/ProLiteracyStateOfLiteracy%2010-25-04.pdf
Incarceration
State prisons look at 3rd grade reading levels to predict how many
prison cells will be needed in 10 years.
Incarceration
85% of juvenile offenders have reading problems.
http://www.literacybuffalo
Incarceration and Special Education
The incidence of learning disabilities among the general population is
around 5%. This is in sharp contrast with the number of LD students in
the criminal justice system, estimated to be as high as 50%.
Bell, 1990: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2248/is_n126_v32/ai_19619426/
pg_4
Social Costs
75% of those claiming welfare are functionally illiterate.
http://www.covinaliteracy.org/facts.htm
Social Costs
A 10 percent increase in the graduation rate would likely reduce the murder and assault arrest rates by about 20 percent
Moretti, 2005: www.centerforpubliceducation.org
Social Costs
Increasing the high school completion rate by just
one percent for men ages 20-60 would save up to
$1.4 billion per year in reduced costs from crime.
Moretti, 2005: www.centerforpubliceducation.org
With such high stakes, educators today are like
tightrope walkers without a safety net, responsible for meeting the
needs of every child with little room for error.
Ticking Time Bomb
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