Travis Wright, Ed.D April 26, 2018

Responding to a Critical Need In the United States, approx. 1 in 45 children are homeless. In Madison, 1 in 20 children under age 6 are homeless. 1250 homeless students attending MMSD– 350 are enrolled in PK-1st grade. Currently, in Madison, 530 children under age 6 live in homeless shelters. In 2015 alone, there was a 188% (26 to 75) increase in the number of families seeking Early Head Start services for children under age 3. The vast majority of resources are focused on the needs of adolescents experiencing homelessness.

Consequences of Homelessness Associated with risk across all major developmental tasks of childhood. 47% struggle with emotional problems 37% exhibit aggressive behaviors Lower levels of academic achievement and increased risk for suspension, expulsion, and identification for special education. However, many children do not conform to these risk trajectories, suggesting that intervening experiences may support the resilience of children experiencing homelessness.

Pathways to Resilience for Children Experiencing Homelessness How does MMSD 4K impact young children experiencing homelessness? How do young children experiencing homelessness and their families perceive and experience MMSD 4K? What are the opportunities for intervention to support the resilience for young children experiencing homelessness?

Key Findings Children experiencing homelessness are half as likely to participate in MMSD 4K as their more affluent peers. Children experiencing homelessness in 4K or Kindergarten perform 1/3 of a standard deviation lower on all report card measures in Kindergarten than children from other low-income households and 2/3 lower than non- economically disadvantaged children.

Key Findings

Key Findings These differences persist through 2nd grade and the size of the difference does not attenuate over time, indicating that homelessness is a significant risk factor for school success even after family housing stabilizes.

Child Behavior Problems Child Behavior Checklist Summary Parent Report Teacher Report N Percent Total Problems Any subscale in clinical range 12 44.44 7 31.82 Total problems in clinical range 5 18.52 4 18.18 Internalizing 9 33.33 Total internalizing problems in clinical range 2 9.09 Emotionally Reactive 8 29.63 Anxious Depressed 14.81 Somatic Complaints 3 11.11 Withdrawn 13.64 Externalizing 6 27.27 Total externalizing problems in clinical range Attention Problems 22.73 Aggressive Behavior Sleep problems -- 27 22 19% of children identified as homeless exhibited behavior problems/emotional distress in the clinical range on all subscales. 32%—44% exhibited behavior problems/emotional distress in the clinical range on at least one sub-scale.

Timing and Chronicity The younger the child at the time of homelessness, the greater the impact of homelessness on academic achievement. Attendance and behavior are most directly impacted during the year in which homelessness was experienced. Attendance and behavior are highly correlated. Chronicity matters. Children experiencing homelessness for two years perform worse than children identified as homeless in only one year. (In this sample, three years is not associated with lower outcomes than two years, but the sample size is very small.) For timing results, we removed children who were homeless multiple year. For example, on 2nd grade math scores, children identified as TEP in 4K performed .4 SD worse, those identified as TEP in K performed .3 SD worse, and the impact of homelessness was not significant if it occurred in 1st or 2nd grade.

Program Variables Children experiencing homelessness seemed to benefit most from school-based 4K. Children experiencing homelessness transition best to kindergarten when they attend 4K and Kindergarten in the same school, attend 4K with higher concentrations of children whose parents attended college, and, for behavioral outcomes, are the same race as their teacher. However, it was often the case that homeless children were not having the “average” experience in the classroom. Follow-up work is needed to better understand these dynamics.

Classroom Rating System CLASS Results School-Based Community-Based Mean SD Min Max Emotional Support 5.86 0.72 4.00 6.67 5.60 0.84 4.50 6.60 Positive Climate 6.31 0.91 3.70 7.00 5.70 1.05 6.76 Negative Climate 1.02 0.07 1.00 1.25 1.30 0.45 2.00 Teacher Sensitivity 5.50 1.01 2.70 6.50 5.00 0.79 6.00 Regard for Student Perspectives 4.95 1.51 5.15 1.28 3.75 6.75 Organizational Support 5.95 0.44 4.90 6.40 5.38 0.52 6.25 Behavior Management 6.15 0.85 Productivity 0.39 0.56 5.25 Instructional Learning Formats 5.10 0.65 4.20 0.78 3.50 Instructional Support 2.30 0.89 3.58 1.88 0.57 2.75 Concept of Development 1.90 0.80 1.70 0.62 Quality of Feedback 2.53 1.03 2.50 Language Modeling 2.48 2.25 1.50 3.00 Number of Adults 2.83 1.12 3.60 1.53 Number of Students 14.93 3.61 10.00 24.00 11.85 3.67 13.25 N Classrooms 12 5 N Sites 9 4 MMSD classrooms scored higher than national averages on CLASS Emotional Support and Organizational Support scales, but lower in the domain of Instructional Support.

Teacher-Level Findings Experience Matters! Children experiencing homelessness in classrooms taught by a teacher in the bottom quintile of experience had 6x the behavioral referrals of children taught by teachers in the mid-quintile. Children experiencing homelessness taught by teachers in the highest quintile for experience had lower behavioral referrals than any student group. Teacher Interviews indicated that their work with children experiencing homelessness was informed by and varied on two primary domains: academic expectations and perceptions of support needs.

Parent-Level Findings Parents report multiple pathways to becoming homelessness, but a lack of affordable housing and experiences of trauma were the major factors identified. Parents experiencing homelessness reported valuing education and indicated that 4K promotes their children’s social and academic development. Parent indicated that 4K is an important social support for them as well. The half-day structure and transportation challenges were identified as the primary barriers to 4K participation.

Recommendations Expand access to full-day 4K for children experiencing homelessness. Prioritize school-based placements and work to ensure that children are able to remain in same school for 4K and K, even if family housing stabilizes. Offer TEP support for children/families experiencing homelessness through 3rd grade, even if family housing stabilizes. Expand access to school-based mental health treatment.

Recommendations Avoid concentrating children experiencing homelessness in the same classroom, if possible. Provide on-going training and support for teachers and staff on trauma-informed behavioral support and instructional strategies. Emphasize Instructional Support, specifically concept development, quality of feedback, and language modeling, in on-going professional development.