These children enter school already disadvantaged and tend to remain underserved by schools' educational practices. If their academic deficits are not appropriately addressed by the schools, teachers' negative expectations of these students become self-fulfilling prophecies; and the likelihood of their dropping out increases. By the third grade, approximately 70 percent of eventual dropouts can be identified. To reduce the human waste caused by the parents of these children and by the schools, early intervention is needed. Teachers must accept each child as having worth without any evidence of gender, race, or ethnic bias. Identification strategies should focus on finding potentially at-risk children who are experiencing limited socioeconomic environments. Parents of such children should be assisted in more readiness preparation. Parenting education and child care also is needed. Headstart and remedial reading and mathematics courses with low student-teacher ratios also can prevent later dropping out. Mandatory kindergarten also can enhance school readiness and achievement. The use of standardized test results should be discouraged, and a mastery learning and tutoring approach should be used. Emphasis should be placed on maximizing school success and minimizing school failure. Use of such interventions could markedly reduce the incidence of school dropping out. 16 references. (Author abstract modified)