The data can be viewed by state, county or school district, depending on the indicator. Various functions will also allow you to create maps, charts and graphs of selected data.

Here’s an explanation of the kind of reports that can be created with this new system:

What kinds of reports can I generate?

Posting our child-well being indicators online — in lieu of a hardcopy book — will enable us to make updates to the data in a timely fashion. Users will have instant access to information about health, education, poverty, employment and other child well-being indicators.

Please visit our site at www.papartnerships.org. You will need to register to access the data, but it’s a simple (and free!) process.

This issue of Partnerships will focus on some of the data that can be found in our online data system and what these numbers mean, ultimately, to children and families in Pennsylvania. And throughout this newsletter will be “screen-shots” of the kind of data pictures you can easily create with our new online system. We present these illustrations as examples of the way you can use data to augment your reports.

We hope you will find our new system useful and we welcome your feedback!

Joan L. Benso

Uninsured Children in PA Deserve Health Coverage
Though more than one million children (one in three) in Pennsylvania are enrolled in Medical Assistance (MA) or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), there are still more than 133,000 children uninsured, according to a recent survey by the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance. The majority of uninsured children — 68 percent — are 11 to 18 years of age.

Children who have health insurance are more likely to be immunized, receive regular check-ups and get prompt treatment for common childhood ailments such as ear infections and asthma. Children who have health insurance are less likely to use costly emergency room services for common childhood ailments treated by a primary care physician. Furthermore, children who have health coverage have better school attendance as they are more likely to avoid preventable childhood illnesses.

Pennsylvania finances CHIP and MA with both federal and state funds. Close to 13 percent of the total public health coverage is through CHIP.

CHIP has both a free program component and a reduced-cost component. Children who live in families between 200 and 235% of poverty are currently eligible for the reduced-cost program. However, about 21 percent of children eligible for free CHIP are not enrolled and 67 percent of children who are eligible for reduced-cost CHIP are not enrolled.

Despite concerted outreach efforts, lack of enrollment could be due to unawareness by parents and guardians of the programs, or a belief that their children would not be eligible for a variety of reasons. Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children spent the spring advocating for passage of “Cover All Kids,” the CHIP expansion legislation proposed by Gov. Ed Rendell. “Cover all Kids” would create access to CHIP to every uninsured child in Pennsylvania, regardless of family income. Extending coverage to all children would have dramatic impact on the health and well-being of the Commonwealth’s children.

As this issue went to press, “Cover All Kids” was being debated as part of budget negotiations. For an update, log on to www.papartnerships.org to read the July issue of Capitol Watch for Children.

The continued need for health coverage for children is illustrated through the growing enrollment in both MA and CHIP. Every year new kids join the programs as their parents’ employment status and health coverage change.

Tip: Visit our State of the Child Online Data System to see poverty breakouts of uninsured children

Low-Income Families Abound in Pennsylvania
PIn Pennsylvania, roughly one third of children live in low-income families. (For a family of four, this equals $40,000.) Though many of us would be inclined to believe the majority of low-income children live in urban settings, low-income children reside across the state, in rural and mixed rural counties alike. In fact, approximately 45 percent of children under age 5 in rural counties and 44 percent of children under 5 in mixed-rural counties live in low-income families. Parents struggling financially and living paycheck to paycheck must scramble to find money for life’s necessities. This puts undue burden on the family unit.

Poverty and hardship can severely diminish child well-being. Below the federal poverty line (100% of poverty — $20,000 for a family of four) children are more likely to have difficulty in school, become teen parents and, as adults, earn less and be unemployed more frequently.

Younger children are more likely to live in very low-income families and need assistance including public programs like Head Start, CHIP, MA and food stamps. As these children get older, slightly fewer are living in low-income families but still need assistance through programs like CHIP and the national free and reduced-price lunch program.

Families at various points along the federal poverty scale between 100 and 200 percent of poverty qualify for supports that help them provide for their children’s needs including health insurance, subsidized child care, and free and reduced-price school lunch.

Graphs, data tables and raw data files are available for most indicators.

Tip: Visit our State of the Child Online Data System to see the number of low-income children in your county or school district

Adult life for young people without at least a high school diploma is full of economic problems and few opportunities to advance skills or boost knowledge. Dropouts earn less than their diplomaholding peers. Low wages and high job turnover lead to family instability when these young people marry and have children. In addition, dropouts have higher rates of teen pregnancy, substance abuse and crime. Eighty percent of those incarcerated are high school dropouts.

Earnings estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Census show the median Pennsylvania income by educational attainment to be:

An unsettling trend growing across the country shows dropouts getting younger. In Pennsylvania, the greatest losses occur in the first two years of high school — 7.9 percent between ninth and 10th grades and 7.3 percent between 10th and 11th grades.

In order to help kids stay in school and graduate, Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children recommends the following promising practices:

Tip: Visit our State of the Child Online Data System to see Graduation Gaps by school district

Learning the Benefits of Early Education for Kids
Pre-Kindergarten
Enrollment in public pre-K programs has grown from 10,271 in 2005 to 12,023 in 2006. Research shows that children who enter kindergarten from high-quality pre-K have better reading, language and social skills than those who didn’t go to preschool. Furthermore, children who attended highquality pre-K scored higher on standardized tests such as the PSSA than children who did not attend pre-K.

The Education
Accountability Block Grant (ABG) 2005-06 mid-year report showed that 40 districts were using block grant funding to start, support or expand pre-K programs for more than 3,000 students. School districts including Reading, Lebanon, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh top the list for the number of students who are exposed to pre-K through support of the block grant program. According to a recent study conducted in Pennsylvania, school districts investing in pre-K could recoup as much as 78% of their spending on pre-K in education savings alone.

Full-day Kindergarten
Pennsylvania has seen a considerable increase in the percent of students enrolled in full-day kindergarten. In 1999-00, 28.9% of kindergarten students were in full-day programs compared to 54.6% in the 2005-06 school year.

Children in full-day kindergarten programs make more progress in literacy and math than those in half-day programs. And children who attend full-day kindergarten have lower retention rates and special education placements in the primary grades.

Of 501 school districts in Pennsylvania, 249 offer full-day kindergarten programs (05-06 enrollment). More than half ($117,136,959) of the ABG funding was dedicated to the creation, expansion or sustaining of full-day kindergarten programs for 58,000 students.

Head Start
Head Start is designed for children ages 3 & 4 who are living in families below 100% of poverty ($20,000 for a family of four). Statewide, based on current state and federal funding of 31,624 slots, roughly 68% of children living in poverty could participate in the Head Start program.

In Fiscal Year 2005-06 a $30 million appropriation from the state supports the Head Start program. Head Start enables low-income working parents to have high-quality child care for their children, but it also helps at-risk kids receive crucial early literacy skills they need before entering kindergarten.

Tip: Visit our State of the Child Online Data System to see Pre-K enrollment by school district.

Test Scores Show Students Struggling in Basics
The performance of Pennsylvania students on the PSSAs shows a startling picture of college and career “unreadiness.” Nearly 50 percent are not proficient in math and nearly 35 percent are not proficient in reading, making their prospects for successful postsecondary education or employment bleak. Students who struggle to gain proficiency are spread out across the state, in urban, rural and suburban school districts.

Rural district results indicate that roughly one in three 8th-grade students (36.8%) is not proficient on the PSSA math exam as compared to roughly one in two urban students (55.2%) and 27.5% of suburban students. In the best case, one in four students in suburban districts is not proficient.

Eighth-Grade Reading
The reading portion of the 8th-grade PSSA garners equally disappointing results: More than 34.7% of rural students, 55.2% of urban students and 27.4% of suburban students are not proficient in reading.

Eleventh-grade scores decline even further with half of rural students not proficient on the math portion. Urban district scores diminish as well, with 68.2% of 11th graders scoring below proficient in math. Almost 40% of suburban students are not proficient in math.

Fortunately, 11th grade reading scores improve with 32.1% of rural students, 26.5 % of suburban students and 57.3% of urban 11th graders not proficient in reading. But these results are far from deserving a victory lap.

According to No Child Let Behind, all students are to be proficient in reading and math by 2014. Clearly we have a long way to go to reach that goal.

Tip: To see how students in your school district fare, visit our State of the Child Online Data System at www.papartnerships.org

Who is Furthering Their Education in Pennsylvania?
In June, Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children issued a report called “Preparing PA Youth for Success in a 21st Century Economy.” The report examined a variety of issues: Are our youth ready to compete in a global 21st century economy? Do they have the academic foundation they need to be ready for college, career and technical education or work? What are the public policies the Commonwealth needs to adopt to address these issues and ensure our students are prepared and successful?

To be successful in a 21st century economy, Pennsylvania needs a highly-educated workforce with the knowledge and skills to compete. But too many young people graduate from high school (or fail to graduate) lacking the academic foundation and competence required to be successful in postsecondary education or careers.

Young people who are preparing for more education and training or work require a similar foundation including high levels of aptitude in math and English. A key point in the report explains that all young people don’t need to attend a traditional four-year college, but some form of postsecondary education is essential in order to gain the skills necessary to become competitive in the new economy. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 62% of jobs in 2005 were classified as “skilled” and required some postsecondary education as opposed to only 45% in 1991. Professional roles account for only 14% of jobs in 2005 versus 20% in 1990.

In the 2004/05 school year, 75% of Pennsylvania youth graduating from high school said they planned to pursue some type of postsecondary education. Multiple reasons influence a student’s decision to not further his education such as little career guidance and academic support given in the years prior to graduation, lack of understanding of the importance of continuing education, the rising costs of higher education, or the need to work to support a family.

In rural Mifflin County, more than one third of students said (in 2004-05 school year) that they did not plan to further their education. Similar survey responses (one-third or greater) were given by students at Altoona Area High School; Oxford Area High School in Chester County; Harbor Creek School District in Erie County; Muncy School District in Lycoming County and Pittsburgh Area School District.

Tip: See what students in your school district said were their after graduation plans. Visit our State of the Child Online Data System at www.papartnerships.org

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This Page Last Modified July 24, 2006