“At-risk” labels: An educational construct of early social exclusion for children living in disadvantaged environmental contexts

Within schools, children are commonly labelled as “at-risk” as early as kindergarten, a label that they may carry through their years of schooling and that impacts how teachers and other school administrators interact with them, and ultimately their academic trajectory. According to the epidemiological definition, this “at-risk” label is appropriate because it represents the higher likelihood of the child developing problems in the school environment. However, this concept of “at-risk” is problematic within the field of education because in this milieu, labels of “at-risk” are fundamentally connected to children’s social and economic disadvantage. Accordingly, this paper will frame socially inequitable educational codes such as “at-risk” as a public health issue contributing to early social exclusion through dropout and disengagement at the school level. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is (a) to present a systematic, multidisciplinary review of the literature on “at-risk” children and youth in educational contexts and the environmental factors that lead to these labelling practices, and, (b) to discuss primary interventions alternate to “at-risk” labels that can be implemented in schools. Results primarily indicate that children living in lower SES neighbourhoods, with higher exposure to violence, who are male, or from single parent households are more likely to be labelled “at-risk” than their peers, highlighting that children’s environments are strongly associated with the notion of risk. Determining methods of supporting these children and youth in their educational experiences will impact both their physical and mental health through the life course.