What does money really have to do with it?

 What does money really have to do with it?

Money has everything to do with it. The stereotypes of the less fortunate students come from the ignorant, high-income people. The same accessibility and opportunities are not given or provided equally, “we ignore the ways in which our society cheats them out of opportunities that their wealthier peers take for granted” (1). In addition to the lack of opportunities, these stereotypes are causing low-self esteem to the children in poverty. It is not fair to say a child doesn’t care about their grades when they can’t afford the same tutor or aren’t given the same resources as other students. Just like for Brenna where “In the end, the support of other teachers helped steer Brenna Reed from self-doubt to success” (2), we as future or current teachers must make the change ourselves if the system won’t do it. Although it is hard to manage things out of your control like field trips or school activities that are planned by principals, you can make a change straight from your classroom where every student and parent can succeed. 

What we can do

Focusing on test scores can be seen a different way; instead of punishment for the low grade, work on their weak spots one-on-one, “identify students in need or supports, and evaluate the effectiveness of programs and interventions” (3). A lot of low-income parents may be working multiple jobs causing them unable to attend after-school meetings or functions. Luckily, we now have platforms like zoom to where we can hold things like parent-teacher conferences virtually and adapt to the parent's schedule if needed. 

Resources

1.  https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/the-myth-of-the-culture-of-poverty 

2. https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/spring-2012/the-poverty-myth 

3. https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/secret-high-achieving-schools-ive-never-felt-unsupported