NO LONGER SUPERFLUOUS, THE EDUCATIONAL REHABILITATION OF THE HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED. FINAL REPORT / NATHANIEL J. PALLONE.

THE SOUTH BEND PROJECT ON THE EDUCATIONAL REHABILITATION OF THE HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED WAS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE TRAINING IN BASIC EDUCATIONAL SKILLS FOR 100 HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED AND ASSIST THEM IN DEVELOPING FAVORABLE WORK ATTITUDES TO EQUIP THEM FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING, DETERMINE THE EDUCATIONAL AND VOCATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP, AND TO EXPLORE INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES AND CURRICULAR PROVISIONS. OF THE 160 ELIGIBLE FOR ENROLLMENT, 108 ENROLLED IN THE PROJECT, THOUGH 14 TERMINATED, USUALLY TO ACCEPT EMPLOYMENT, IN THE FIRST WEEKS. THE PROGRAM CONSISTED OF TRAINING IN LANGUAGE ARTS AND ARITHMETIC AND GROUP GUIDANCE ACTIVITIES. AT THE END OF 20 WEEKS, THE TRAINEES WERE TESTED AND ON THE BASIS OF RESULTS ENTERED VOCATIONAL TRAINING OR CONTINUED TRAINING FOR ANOTHER 16 WEEKS. SOME FINDINGS WERE -- (1) A LARGE MAJORITY OF HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED WERE EDUCATIONALLY RATHER THAN MENTALLY RETARDED, (2) IT IS HIGHLY LIKELY THAT SUCH INSTRUMENTS AS THE CALIFORNIA TEST OF MENTAL MATURITY AND THE G SCORE (LEARNING ABILITY) OF THE GENERAL APTITUDE TEST BATTERY ARE INADEQUATE TO MEASURE THE LEARNING ABILITY OF THE HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED, (3) SEX DIFFERENCES SEEMED MORE PROFOUND THAN RACE DIFFERENCES IN THE UNDERLYING SOCIAL-PSYCHOLOGICAL-EDUCATIONAL-ECONOMIC DYNAMICS, (4) THE UNDEREDUCATED HARD-CORE UNEMPLOYED COMPENSATED FOR EDUCATIONAL DEFICIENCY OF FROM 1 TO 3 YEARS IN A 20-WEEK PERIOD, AND (5) THE INSTRUCTIONAL EXPERIENCES WERE ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASES IN BOTH EDUCATIONAL APTITUDES AND INVENTORIED MENTAL ABILITY AND WITH CHANGES IN SOCIAL BEHAVIOR TRAITS IN MORE MATURE, MORE SOCIALIZED DIRECTIONS. (MM)

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