Statistics Related to Exceptional Students and Delinquency

The amount of research related to crime, incarceration and primary contributing factors is endless, but the findings tend to point in the same direction. Some consistent commonalities, among incarcerated adults, include 1) deprived socio-economic status, (2) unemployment, (3) poor school performance (especially at it pertains to low literacy rates), (4) broken homes and (5) mental illness. This information applies to juvenile offenders and/or their family members also.

The statistics contained in the information below were published by Pamela Wright, who is an attorney who specializes in the advocacy of students with special needs. She included the following data in an article titled From Emotions to Advocacy: The Parents' Journey. This article describes the frustration and feelings of inadequacy that many parents face when dealing with the issues related to special education and advocating for their children. Write states:

Researchers have found that most special education programs fail to confer adequate educational benefit to many of the youngsters they are designed to serve. The statistics are sobering:

• 74% of children who are unsuccessful readers in the third grade are still unsuccessful readers in the ninth grade. (Journal of Child Neurology, January, 1995)

• Only 52% of students identified with learning disabilities will actually graduate with a high school diploma. Learning disabled students drop out of high school at more than twice the rate of their non-disabled peers. (Congressional Quarterly Researcher, December, 1993)
• At least 50% of juvenile delinquents have undiagnosed, untreated learning disabilities. (National Center for State Courts and the Educational Testing Service, 1977)
• 31% of adolescents with learning disabilities will be arrested within five years of leaving high school. (National Transition Longitudinal Study, 1991)
• Up to 60% of adolescents who receive treatment for substance abuse disorders have learning disabilities (Hazelden Foundation, Minnesota, 1992)
• 62% of learning disabled students were unemployed one year after graduation. (National Longitudinal Transition Study, 1991)

A meaningful education will help turn these figures around.

One of the biggest risks that exceptional students face is becoming just another statistic related to juvenile incarceration. Unfortunately, educational institutions are unable to keep up with the demands within the current system. This is why it is so important for teachers, parents and other members of the educational team to be proactive in supporting students to achieve success in school and in their personal lives.

Wright, P. (2008, 11 22). From Emotions to Advocacy: The Parents' Journey. Retrieved from http://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/Emotions.html