POVERTY IN THE LIVES OF OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR LEARNING

Research Questions

In what ways poverty impact the learning and school achievement of students?

How can teachers become more effective when working with students and their families experiencing poverty?

Finding #1: Students’ Disadvantage Socioeconomic factors impacting academic

success: housing, health care, quality or accessibility to preschool, employment situation, nutrition and environmental stress.

“…how children experience school is determined by the level of disadvantage they face.” “…children living in low-income families were more likely to be socially excluded, or to exclude themselves, within school.” Horgan

Finding #2: Teachers’ Power Teachers have limited influence over the

effects of how goods are distributed but they are able to produce relational effects by generating enabling possibilities through their practice. In high poverty contexts, this means writing new scripts that prioritize learning over control, such as the ability to engage in negotiated action, open-ended dialogue, collaboration, problem-solving and multi-purpose writing.

Finding #3: Developing Understading Development of awareness of socioeconomic

differences Development of empathy and caring attitudes Development of culturally responsive

teaching

Exercise: Driving Tour-Taking a Closer Look at Students’ Homes and Lives

Conclusions Importance of studying and understading structural

poverty. Innovation: thinking differently and allocation of

time and resources. Consistent whole-school approaches and

assessments to produce predictable effects. Students should experience participation in a

diversity of educational relationships and contexts (out-of-school activities).

Development of a sense of understanding through intensive, small group, Socratic conversation, instead of skill remediation.