Essay On Childhood Homelessness

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Introduction.
I chose to research childhood homelessness, and how it impacts early educational and cognitive development. The negative effects of childhood homelessness are clear, but I am specifically interested in identifying the effects of childhood poverty and homelessness, and attempting to understanding the specific effects of homelessness. This issue is important for a variety of reasons; of the approximately 320 million people living in the United States, 1.35 million of those are homeless children (Yu, 2008, p. 2). If we as a society are unable to understand homeless children, we will be unable to meet their needs. These consequences are specifically relevant for teachers and school practitioners, since the school system is one of the best places to help these children.
This paper will cover 3 specific studies in detail, and will draw on other studies for other various information. The first study examined was done by Cumella, and focused on the psychiatric wellbeing of homeless children. The second study, done by Rubin, focused on academic ability and intelligence of homeless children. Finally, the third study, by Bassuk, looked at the number of developmental delays in homeless children. In all of these studies, the researchers collected data from homeless and …show more content…

260, 2001). It is interesting to note that the data from the CDI, although not significant, showed a larger difference for children aged 12-16 than children 6-11 (Bassuk, p. 260, 2001). The only test in this study with significant data was the DDST, which showed that 54% of homeless preschoolers showed at least one major developmental lag, while only 16% of preschoolers with homes displayed a lag (Bassuk, p. 259,

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