Successful Teaching of Out-of-School Homeless Youth: Teacher Competencies and Actions

• In Event: Graduation (and Beyond) for Youth Experiencing Homelessness: New Ideas From New Sources

Abstract

Problem Description & Framework

There are approximately 82,200 homeless youth in Germany [1,2]. School is rarely a place of safety and acceptance for them [3]. Consequently - and due to their living situations - the school dropout rate of homeless youth (ca. 30%) exceeds the average rate by a factor of five [4,5]. Many of these youth would like to obtain school degrees later, but no longer want to be part of the school system [3]. In Germany, there are street schools where homeless youth can catch up and complete their degrees. The success rates of street schools offer promise (Table 1). What can we learn from street schools about education for homeless students at home and abroad?

To understand their educational approach, I use the simplified supply-use model (Figure 1) [6]. The structural model considers various factors – including teachers’ competencies and actions – that have an impact on students' success [7,8]. However, there is no research in Germany on what teachers can and must do to successfully support homeless youth. Therefore, I explored the following question:
Which teacher competencies and actions best meet the needs of homeless youth in street schools?

Study Design & Results

Using a snowball system, I found twelve street schools; ten participated in our study. I conducted interviews with ten school principals and fourteen teachers (Table 2). Interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis [9]. The category system that emerged can be seen in Figure 2. Its interrater reliability was determined, with a Cohen's Kappa of 0.79, to be very good [10]. Due to space limitations, the focus is on selected results (see Table 3 for quotes).

According to the interviews, pedagogical skills are especially important for teaching homeless youth. This includes that teachers can establish relationships with them, even if their life experiences are fundamentally different. Furthermore, teachers must be aware of the special circumstances and learning needs of the youth and know that challenging behavior is the result of difficult pasts - in the family or at school. Teachers must thus show patience and understanding for any shown behavior. In addition, teachers must accept young people as experts on their own lives and learning processes.

Students must be given the right to co-determine how their learning and learning environments should be designed. Furthermore, teachers must be able not only to ascertain young people's individual learning needs, but also to respond to them flexibly.

Conclusion

The interviews show that street schools make each individual young person the priority of their educational approach. The findings obtained are comparable to various American study results [11,12]. The relationship aspect is central in street schools and strongly suggests that more space should be given to relationship-building in mainstream schools. In addition, teachers need to learn about the life situations and learning needs of homeless youth, through in-service training and other avenues, as this can promote understanding, patience, and acceptance. My results suggest that individual teachers can make a difference in the school success of homeless students.

Author

• Matthias Fischer, Staatliches Seminar für Didaktik und Lehrerbildung Heidelberg