Remaining Problems
Several challenges continue to face schools and communities as they attempt to deal with problems of crime and violence among youth:
- In addition to helping to reintegrate young people who are already
in trouble and outside the education mainstream, educators and other
concerned members of the community need to redouble their efforts to
prevent the youngest children from taking a similar path. In the wake
of recent school shootings, the public has exerted increasing pressure
on school officials to identify at-risk youngsters as early as possible
so that appropriate intervention services can be provided. In attempting
to respond to public demands, school officials are hindered by the fact
that human behavior is not often predictable, particularly when a troubled
individual may display few outward signs.
- Overcrowding in juvenile detention and correctional facilities often
means that, before another youth can be detained or confined, officials
must decide who will be released in order to make room for the new resident.
Many times the youth being released are not fully prepared for reintegration
into mainstream schools and society. These youth and their families
may need additional or enhanced services to help support them through
the transition.
- Educators sometimes have unfounded fears and prejudices regarding
juvenile offenders. Preparing educators to work with these youth is
essential. The preservice curriculum in university-level teacher preparation
programs should equip young teachers with the skills and knowledge they
need to work with the full spectrum of students, including those who
have had contact with the juvenile justice system. At the school level,
open lines of communication and well-trained, informed teachers can
make the crucial difference in reintegrating juvenile offenders into
mainstream education.
- Lack of coordination and collaboration among schools, juvenile justice
systems, and community social institutions has been a serious impediment
to the development and delivery of effective aftercare programming for
juvenile offenders.23
Petty turf battles, power struggles, and refusal to share information
must give way to a spirit of cooperation and teamwork to better serve
the needs of troubled youth and their families. This call for unity
has been made before but has often gone unheeded because of funding
limitations, community resistance, competition for resources, or lack
of leadership.
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| From the Courthouse to the Schoolhouse: Making Successful Transitions | |