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Reports & Research

KIDS COUNT Data Book, 2013

California County Scorecard of Children’s Well-Being, 2012-13

California Report Card, 2011-12

 

The Impact of Industry Self-Regulation on the Nutritional Quality of Foods Advertised on Television to Children, 2009

Educationally/Insufficient? An Analysis of the Availability & Educational Quality of Children’s E/I Programming, 2008

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Facts & Figures

Quality teacher training that responds to current, evidence-based research is crucial to offering the best learning environment for students. Social and emotional learning incorporated into instructional strategies increases achievement and positive classroom behavior.

Staff turnover is a critical threat to sustaining supportive relationships. Program operators struggle to retain staff at every level, which often results in poor continuity with respect to program goals and relationships with children and collaborating agencies.

Asthma hospitalizations and deaths are largely preventable and can be avoided with proper prevention and management. Only 35% of children with asthma, however, have received an asthma management plan from their health care provider.

 

Over one-third (39%) of California’s zero-to-five population live in families where the most knowledgeable adult does not speak English well.

For every $1 spent on immunizations, as much as $29 can be saved in direct and indirect costs.

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New Report Finds More Than 850,000 “Disconnected Youth” 
Neither in School nor Working in California

Dec 03, 2012

Oakland, CA — More than 850,000 California teens and young adults, ages 16- 24, are neither in school nor working, according to a new KIDS COUNT® report released today by The Annie E. Casey Foundation and Children Now. The percentage of so-called “disconnected youth” in California (18%) is higher than the national average (17%); it’s also up 35 percent, or more than 200,000, since 2000. Youth and Work: Restoring Teen and Young Adult Connections to Opportunity provides a snapshot of the nation’s disconnected youth, describes the barriers they face towards becoming financially stable, and draws attention to the supports they need to become engaged and connected.

The report finds that lack of education, opportunity and connection to school or work has long-term implications for disconnected youth. They are less likely to achieve financial stability as adults, which represents a significant cost to taxpayers, since the government would have to spend more to support them. As such, it is essential for teens and young adults to have opportunities to obtain real world work experience. This is especially true for low-income and minority youth, who are more likely to be disconnected. The report finds that nearly one in three African Americans, between the ages of 20 and 24, are disconnected compared to the national average of one in four.

“This report illustrates the need to provide teens and young adults clearer direction to college and careers, and makes the case for stronger connections between the experience they gain in and out of the classroom,” said Ted Lempert, president of Children Now. “In California, we have a proven strategy that is working in schools across the state. Two great examples of Linked Learning—The Law Academy at Richmond High School in Richmond and Digital Media and Design School at Kearny High School in San Diego—prepare children by providing them more learning opportunities that are connected to real world experiences.”

Linked Learning is an approach that connects traditional classroom instruction with technical skills taught through internships, apprenticeships and school. It prepares students for college and careers by embracing four core components: academic rigor, technical skill building, work-based experiences, and support services.

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