The Impact Of Poverty On Education

Research Question:

How does poverty affect education and how can Christians play a role in improving it for low-income students?

Public education has often been dubbed the “Great Equalizer”­­—a system that gives a

quality education to any and every child, regardless of their race, income, gender, or background.

However, the United States operates two very distinct public education systems. One of

them—with high expectations, sufficient financial resources, qualified teachers, and an overall

culture of excellence—offers a high quality education that prepares all students for a successful

future. The other public education system that exists in the US is one that often lacks resources

and quality teachers. Society has low expectations

Country by country studies showed that many children in poverty drop out of school because the “monetary and nonmonetary costs of education are a great burden on the poorest households and act as a significant barrier to education” (164). There are many opportunity costs associated with education. For example, going to school limits the time a child is able to work to provide money for their family, and therefore, many children are pressured to drop out of school. However, the article holds that the amount of children in poverty can be reduced and school attendance increased by utilizing targeted Conditional Cash Transfers, in which families are given financial support on the condition that their child attends school. This article is significant in the study of the adverse effects of poverty on education because it shows that while education is supposedly “free” for all children, for those in poverty, it comes with great costs. When these costs become too burdensome, they are compelled to drop out of school, feeling that it is the only option. Therefore, living in poverty leaves many children with no hope of completing their education. However, by giving specific action that can be taken by the government, this article shows how children in poverty can be encouraged to continue

According to the study, “teacher quality is the single most important factor determining students’ achievement in school” (The Blame Game). In order to boost student achievement, we need teachers that are qualified, passionate, captivating, and positive. Unfortunately, there are many bad teachers within the public education system and due to tenure and seniority, it is very difficult to fire these teachers. Instead of getting fired, bad teachers are often reassigned to schools in more troubled, lower-income areas because people assume that the people in these schools do not care about the quality of teachers. This raises the question, “Why should there be a lower standard for teachers in low-income