Connections: A Second Chance

Maybe because such kids, given the right set of circumstances at the right moment, can bounce back, as the article by Debra Viadero in this month's research section (beginning on page 20) makes clear. A growing body of research suggests that a fair number of children touched by adversity actually fare reasonably well in the long run. And researchers have been able to pinpoint a few factors that they believe contribute to this resiliency. They include a caring, competent adult--often not a parent but a teacher or mentor--and a school program that offers individualized instruction to accommodate children of varying abilities. Recovery High offers strong doses of both. What's more, studies indicate that many youngsters who prove resilient have, as one researcher put it, "a knack for finding an environment that's good for their own development.'' Even though the students at Recovery High may have wandered down "the wrong path,'' most have sought out the school to save themselves. "I needed to get help,'' one student told Hill. "And seeing how this was basically a school for addicts to recover, I knew this was probably the only place I could do that.'' This teenager, it seems, is back on the right path or at least heading...