Out-of-Home Care and the Educational Achievement, Attendance, and Suspensions of Maltreated Children: A Propensity-Matched Study

Objective: To estimate the influence of out-of-home care on reading scores, attendance, and suspensions by comparing a matched sample of maltreated children who entered out-of-home care and maltreated children who remained at home. Study design: Linked administrative data for all children born in Western Australia between 1990 and 2010 was used, focusing on those with substantiated maltreatment before year 9 achievement tests (n = 3297). Propensity score modelling was used to address differences in preexisting risk factors (child, family, neighborhood characteristics, maltreatment history, and reading scores) and compare outcomes for children placed in out-of-home care and those remaining in in-home care. Results: Both groups of maltreated children had poor educational outcomes. After accounting for group differences in risk characteristics, there was no difference in year 9 reading achievement for the out-of-home care and in-home care groups. There was no difference in suspensions for the groups. The only significant difference was children in out-of-home care had fewer school absences than children in in-home care. Conclusions: Out-of-home care was not found to be a significant factor in the adverse educational outcomes of these children; however, there is a clear need for further educational support to address poor outcomes for children involved with child protection services.