POVERTY AFFECTS TEACHING AND LEARNING
It’s hard to argue that poverty does not affect education. It’s hard to argue that children who come from homes where they may be wanting— wanting for food, for time, or for resources— don’t enter the school door with a little less than others. And it’s hard to argue that children living in poverty and attending schools that are underfunded, under resourced, and understaffed are not literally up against the system.
We have established a system where those who are poor are more likely to stay poor, and lately we have seen a sharp increase in those considered poor.
Poverty is an issue that more and more of our nation’s children are coming face to face with. The price that children of poverty must pay is unbelievably high. Each year, increasing numbers of children are entering schools with needs from circumstances, such as poverty, that schools are not prepared to meet.
The rise in the number of children in poverty has contributed to making our nation’s classrooms more diverse than ever before. This, indeed, makes both teaching and learning more challenging. This issue can remain a challenge for teachers, as opposed to becoming a problem, if focus is placed on student learning as opposed to teaching.
Teachers need to be tuned in to the culture of poverty and be sensitive to the vast array of needs that children of poverty bring to the classroom. Social contexts have a significant impact on the development of children. The social world of school operates by different rules or norms than the social world these children live in.
Focus should be placed on finding a harmonious relationship between the cultural values of students and values emphasized in school. Considering that so many different cultures are represented in our society, we often encounter students who belong to more than one cultural group.
High-mobility is a symptom of poverty and its surrounding social factors. Children of poverty may live in places that rent by the week or even day. They may move from town to town as their parent searches for work or runs from problems (such as an abusive spouse, criminal record, financial responsibilities). They may live in homeless shelters or battered women’s shelters that only allow brief stays. They may live on the streets. The conditions they live in and their day-to-day life experiences can have a significant effect on their education and achievement. Moving is a very emotional event for children. Combine this issue with the multitude of other issues faced by mobile and homeless children and the impact on their emotional, social and cognitive development can be overwhelming.
School attendance is often irregular. Transfer to a new school becomes the norm. Aside from the differences from the general school population due to other aspects of their poverty, mobility compounds the difficulty these children have making friends. They may behave hostilely or be totally withdrawn due to past attempts to make friends. With regard to both the academic and social aspects of school, they may figure, “Why bother? I’m just going to move again.” They also often come to school with no records from their previous schools; and it may be difficult for schools to track the records down. Teachers have no idea what these students have learned. It is challenging for schools to place these children in classrooms and get them additional services they may need. Even if placement is successful, these children will likely move again within the school year. It is also challenging to help these students to learn at least something of value while they remain in our classrooms.
Children become aware of social and economic status differences at a very young age. They also grow increasingly aware of both their own social status and that of their peers, developing class-related attitudes during their years in elementary school. Teachers can help children to develop caring and sensitivity toward different cultures including social classes. Activities and lessons should be based on how children perceive themselves and the world at the various stages of development.
— oOo— The author is Teacher III at Porac Elementary School, Porac East District