Single-Parent Households

The structure of a family can basically make or break a child’s future. “According to the Census, children in married households are the least likely to be in poverty, at 11 percent. Children living in single-mother households have poverty rates more than twice that of children in single father homes (48 percent vs. 22 percent)” (“Child Poverty…” 1). Parents who remain married actually set their children up for success. “...marriage decreases a child’s probability of living in poverty by 82 percent” (Marripedia 1) Children who grow up in married families begin to see the beneficial effects and will in turn choose to live their lives this way. It is true in some cases that children raised in single-parent households will grow up to live successful

About 30 percent of women whose first child was born out of wedlock are poor, compared to 8 percent of women whose first child was born inside wedlock. According to a simulation study, if single mothers were to marry their child’s father, only 17 percent would be impoverished. One hundred percent of unemployed single mothers who do not marry the fathers of their children live in poverty; according to the same simulation, should these mothers marry their child’s father, only 35 percent would be impoverished.”(Marriapedia 2)

The majority of all single-parent households are single-mother homes. High poverty situations are also hold true for parents who are divorced or even choose to cohabit their children (Marripedia 4). Overall, a child will most likely remain out of poverty in their future if they are raised in a dual-parent household.

Educational systems give children the tools they need to grow as a human being. However, education is one of the many areas that poverty affects, especially those still in the high school and under range. “Lack of education has long been pointed to as one of the many obstacles that impede the poor’s ability to raise themselves out of their situation” (Trager 146). With students not having the chance to a full education, the poverty cycle continues. “Parents who did poorly in school themselves may have a negative attitude about their children’s schools and, in an effort to protect them, may even discourage their children from participating” (Jensen 11). These negative connotations damage a student’s ability to learn and may cause them to drop out. Without proper support, students feel they may not need to continue their education. “It is proven that, poor children are also more than likely than well off children to attend poorly maintained schools with less-qualified teachers, and their day-care facilities - if available at all - are less adequate” (Jensen 11). This, however, never the child’s fault, almost always falling back on the parents. “One study found that only 36 percent of low-income parents were involved in three or more school activities on a regular basis, compared with 59 percent of parents above the poverty line” (Jensen 16). According to Donna Hyatt, a 35