Embracing Poverty, Making a Change

Ignorance is bliss, right? That's at least how the old saying goes. Paying no attention to the hardship around you makes life that much sweeter, even paradisal. Yet it's hard to think of even a single situation where ignorance would really provide the onlooker with real satisfaction. In fact, maybe the analogy "ignorance is anything but bliss" would be more realistic, especially in the context of poverty in education. 

Gone are the days when educators could continually shrug off a student's failing grades, blame their lack of interest on being lazy or chalk up disruptive behavior to the teenage attitude. Rather, it is now, more so than ever, our responsibility as teachers to investigate the underlying causes of such behavior to better understand the situation of our students and their families. 

Students living in poverty differ from those living above the poverty line in many more serious ways than just the income of their parents, size of their house, or the number of vacations they take each year.  In Teaching with Poverty in Mind, Jensen speaks of the ways in which poverty affects the physical and emotional capacities of those affected. For example, children born into poverty often don't receive the love, support and stimulation needed for optimal brain development. These types of development deficiencies are known to lead to emotional and social challenges throughout life such as lack of emotional stability, curiosity and social competence. Such limitations can not only severely impact a child's personal life but can also have detrimental effects on their abilities to perform as a student in an educational setting. 

As 21st century educators, it is essential that we help combat the effects of poverty in our student's lives by following these three fundamental steps: teaching core skills, assessing greatest areas of need, and providing hope and support for the future. By understanding the typical behaviors and reactions of students living in poverty, we give ourselves the best chance of being able to reach them on a deeper level, thus allowing for more substantial emotional and intellectual growth. There is no basis more important for having success in teaching skills, assessing need and providing hope for students in poverty than the teacher's ability to build positive relationships with students. Without relationships built on mutual respect, trust and understanding, the chances of a teacher successfully reaching out to an impoverished student are slim to none. 

Working with a student to help fill the gaps in their core emotional and social skills is often most successfully accomplished by leading by example. While it may seem easier to simply verbally correct a behavior, whether or not it be in a punitive manner, it is far more efficient to demonstrate how the student should act. As teachers we are role models, and must live up to that name by embodying and modeling the emotional and social attributes that our students lack. It is unreasonable of an educator to expect that a student knows right from wrong if they've never been taught what's appropriate. Building relationships with students that are based on a genuine desire to better their live can have an impact that lingers long after they've left your classroom. 

In my classroom, rather than punish a student for speaking out improperly or using inappropriate language, it would be more effective for me to explain to the student why their behavior isn't acceptable and provide guidance for how they should improve on their behavior in the future. Fulling embodying my position as a role model to my students and demonstrating behaviors such as respect, politeness, sensitivity and compassion with each and every one of my students will help those individuals who struggle in such areas learn what's appropriate. Taking the time to get to know my students by asking about their hobbies, favorite classes and goals for the future will help build a foundation for a trusting, positive relationship which will likely increase my chances of being able to make an impact in that student's life. 

Assessing the greatest needs of our impoverished students is not always easy; students will have a tendency to try to blend in with their peers and minimize any problems that make them different from others. Yet as educators, being able to pinpoint their struggle and determine their strengths and weaknesses is an essential step toward effectively intervening. Getting to the bottom of a behavioral issue, whether it be continual mood swings or negative social interactions, or picking up on symptoms of depression such as helplessness or anxiety, can help us to better understand the root of the student's tribulations. In Teaching with Poverty in Mind, Jensen explains that a typical emotional condition associated with poverty is chronic stress. Students suffering from this often come off as apathetic or rude when in fact they are usually dealing with underlying feelings of hopelessness or despair.

Recognizing these warning signs and knowing what repressed emotions they represent can help educators better tailor their instruction, behavior and classroom environment to their student's individual needs. 

Identifying behaviors associate with chronic stress in my classroom could potentially be a difficult task, especially when mood swings and irritability are typical among teenagers. In order to better my chances are successfully recognizing these warning signs, it would be helpful to reach out to other faculty in my school, such as fellow teachers, guidance counselors and administrators to discuss whether they have also noticed emotional red flags or have outside knowledge on that student's situation. Often being a teacher means being a problem solver, which implies taking on the responsibility of doing whatever it takes to better understand a student's home situation and how it is affecting their behavior. Collaborating with colleagues and forming an intervention plan together, as a unified team, can help increase the likelihood of successfully identifying students in need and getting them the support they need.

Thinking back to the idea that teachers are role models means that we have the power to make an impact on our students' lives. For students who have grown up in or are currently living in poverty are in special need of a positive, encouraging, and consistent presence in their life. Providing an impoverished student with support and hope for their future is one of greatest gifts we can give and can sometimes costs us nothing more than a warm smile, encouraging praise and a genuine desire to make a difference. Making an effort to show your impoverished students that you truly care about their well-being, and not simply the grade they make on their test, will help build upon the positive, respect-based relationships that are so essential. Consciously approaching sensitive topics or behaviors, such as the use of profanity or an inappropriate response, as "teaching moments" rather than opportunities for punishment will help give the student hope for success in your class. One way in which I could personally help provide hope and support for impoverished students in my class is to help them define realistic goals for their academic acheivement. Expecting a student who is living in poverty to perform at the same level as a student from a middle class family is completely unreasonable. Sitting down privately with a student and forming an academic achievement plan together for my class will help the student to feel more confident in their chances for success and less likely to give up from the get-go.

Above all else, approaching a situation of poverty with sensitivity and understanding is of the utmost importance. As teachers, we must do everything in our power to help our students succeed. For some, that means extra help after school or the opportunity for extra credit. For others, it means minimizing nightly homework assignments in order to help students who are responsible for taking care of their younger siblings while their parents work the graveyard shift. According to Deseret News, children who spend more than half their childhoods living in poverty are 90% more likely to not receive their high school diploma. Taking a stand against another impoverished student slipping through the cracks is not only in our best interest as a society, but it is our responsibility as 21st century educators. 


References:
Baker, C. R. (2012, October 22). Fighting poverty with education; Hope for breaking the cycle of multi-generational poverty. Deseret News. Retrieved from http://www.deseretnews.com

Children in Poverty [Photograph]. Retrieved February 18, 2014 from: http://noliesradio.org

Jensen, E. (2009). Teaching with poverty in mind. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Total Gray Matter [Graphic]. Retrieved February 18, 2014 from: http://www.sciencedaily.com

Poverty in the Classroom: Recognizing its Significance

Picture a high school classroom, any one will do, and think about what you might find inside. There are a few throwaways: four walls, a window or two, desks and a bulletin board, maybe a chalk board and a stack of ungraded papers. Now, look closer; who's inside? A teacher with chalky hands, a few females passing notes, a group of athletes building up hype for Friday's game, a tired freshman with his head down, and a young lady who never seems to have her shoes tied. With the exception of the paper airplane that just soared in from the hallway or the flickering fluorescent light in the back of the room, everything seems to be mostly in order, at least at face value.

Surely this image of the typical high school classroom can't be too far from the truth. Maybe not every student is making an A or even a B, but by and large, the playing field is level, right? If only this were the case. Think back to the group of athletes looking forward to the upcoming game; were the built up grass stains on number 54's jersey all that noticeable? Maybe not to everyone, but number 54 knows that trips to the laundromat have been happening less and less frequently ever since his mother lost her job three months ago. What about that freshman with his head down? He wishes he could blame his tiredness on a growth spurt, but instead he was up half the night listening to his parents argue about how they're going to afford his sister's unexpected medical bills. Lastly, how about the young lady with her shoes untied? She's the only one who knows they are hand-me-downs just as her mother and grandmother's were.

According to the NCES, nearly 10.9 million children, ages 5 to 17, are living below the poverty line. In other words, nearly 21% of all school-aged children are forced to cope with the detrimental circumstances brought on by poverty on a daily basis. Gone are the days when a teacher would wonder if an impoverished student would be in her class. The reality is that poverty affects nearly every school in America, whether it be in a rural town with limited resources or an urban community with the world at its finger tips. 

Even with just a few weeks of student teaching under my belt, I have already been exposed to how poverty can greatly affect a student's chance to succeed, their motivation to overcome academic obstacles, and the overall classroom culture. Recognizing that students in my class are coming from all walks of life has been the first step in working towards accommodating for their circumstances and finding strategies to maximize their success. For example, from observation and discussion with my cooperating teacher I have learned of students in my classes who are coming to school every morning without breakfast, who are living in a foster home with up to a dozen other children, and who have just lost a parent unexpectedly. Not one of these students comes from the same situation as their peers, yet all they want is to be treated like and have the same opportunities as everyone else.

The ways in which living in poverty affects the students I work with everyday varies greatly from case to case. For example, through observation I have noticed that a student who's never sure if there will be dinner on the table that night or a bed to rest their head is rarely one to act out or misbehave in class. Rather, they'll often seem distracted, uninterested, or unmotivated to learn. As discussed in Jensen's Teaching with Poverty in Mind, students exposed to "chronic socioeconomic deprivation" are deprived of environments that allow for the development of self-determination. Additionally, a situation of consistent low-income can cause depression and interfere with a student's ability to foster "optimistic attitudes" that can easily interfere with their intrinsic motivation and desire to learn.

Knowing that poverty comes in many shapes and sizes, I have also observed how a sudden loss of a loved one has affected a student. In one particular case, the unexpected death of a single mother left several school-aged children in the care of their elderly grandmother, grief stricken and unsure of their future. With such a sudden change of environment and family dynamic, it is likely that the student's grade and performance in class may suffer, understandably so. Add in the factor of economic hardship and the situation has just taken another turn for the worse, resulting in increased behavioral problems and an uncooperative attitude.

As an educator, student learning and academic growth should always be the number one priority, regardless of the extenuating circumstances or situations of poverty that my students are facing. In my opinion, developing effective strategies for teaching and motivating students living in poverty is just another part of becoming a 21st century teacher that can successfully prepare her students for life after graduation. For example, as educators, we must make ourselves aware of and sensitive to the backgrounds of our students in order to be better able to serve them in the classroom. In Teaching with Poverty in Mind, Jensen writes that many teachers are unaware of what living in poverty really means and how it can affect the emotional, physical and mental health of a student. Holding workshops and teacher discussions to better inform ourselves on the economic circumstances that our students are facing will help us to better understand truly what our students need from us.

In my classroom, knowing whether a student is coming from a home that cannot provide them with a stable environment can help me to develop realistic expectations and goals with that student. For example, if a student works a part-time job after school to support his family then assigning homework daily, which counts for 25% of his grade, doesn't seem realistic. Making accommodations for students in poverty doesn't mean expecting less of them, it simply means setting goals that are attainable and can help move the student towards a more successful educational experience.

Poverty is a circumstance that no child asks for, whether it be temporary or long-term. It is our responsibility as educators to embrace this aspect of diversity in our classroom and do everything in our power to enable students living in poverty to become successful, global citizens, regardless of their present situation. Providing encouragement, achievable goals, and methods for extrinsic motivation can help these students find a path to self-efficacy of which their current circumstances deny them.


References:
Children living in poverty. (2013, May). Retrieved February 4, 2014, from National Center for Education Statistics website: http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_coe.asp

Jensen, E. (2009). Teaching with poverty in mind. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Percent of Low Income Students in All Public Schools 2011 [Graphic]. Retrieved February 4, 2014 from: http://www.southernstudies.org