To Kill A Mockingbird Essays: Poverty In Education

Many kids in the United States have been affected by poverty at some point in their lives. In fact, one in five children have been affected by poverty. A survey was done within the last year by the Scholastic company that interviewed a group of the State Teachers of the Year and asked them what they thought were some of the effects of poverty. Some popular answers were that it affects the way you perform in school greatly and that we need more anti-poverty programs to help out with these children. Poverty affects the success of students in many ways. These include not having the academic achievement that more advantaged kids did, not having experiences other kids did, and not having the early development they needed.

A Framework for Understanding Poverty is a book, written by Ruby K. Payne for the purpose of helping educators impact their students in poverty through opportunities. This book examines experiences from all economic classes in order to evaluate the differences in education among each class. Payne talks about the different types of poverty and the resources needed to be a stable and educated person. Poverty is “the extent to which an individual does without resources”.

Sleepy Maycomb, like other Southern towns, suffers considerably during the Great Depression. Poverty reaches from the privileged families, like the Finches, to the Negroes and “white trash” Ewells, who live on the outskirts of town. Harper Lee paints a vivid picture of life in this humid Alabama town where tempers and bigotry explode into conflict, which is also known as Maycomb's usual disease. Racism and poverty plays a big role in this book because the setting is i n the south and takes place during the great depression.

A Framework for Understanding Poverty is a valuable tool to the helping profession. It has a lot of good information about the cultural differences between classes. It offers practical solutions to many problems commonly encountered when educators have problems with their students who live in poverty. The book helps educators to assist students who live in poverty survive in the middle-class world. Payne 's work has been eye opening in

Who is to blame for the enormous number of people living in poverty? There are ¨forty-nine million Americans [who] do not know if there will be food on their table [in the] next week¨ (¨Our Views¨). In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows how these numbers can be a result of an individual's actions or because ¨of a system that [leaves] them powerless¨ (¨Our Views¨). Although it may be easier to believe that people are in poverty due to their own bad choices, in reality many people are trapped in poverty because of their lack of opportunities in society.

Fifty years after the declaration of war on poverty, an increasing number of children still grow up in poverty in this country. Poverty is now more determinative than race as a predictor of student educational success (Reardon, 2013). The achievement gap between the poor and the more economically advantaged child has actually widened over the last three decades (Reardon, 2013). If we are to provide all children with equal and excellent educational opportunities, it is imperative that we utilize the most effective strategies and enhancements to overcome the educational disadvantages that poor children experience.

In this time and age the United States contains a high number of students in the public schools who are under the poverty line. Poverty is defined as the state of being really poor financially. Poverty in the United States has become a complicated problem that causes a variety of diverse challenges for children and their families. Although the economy of the United States is showing great signs of improvement, poverty remains a serious issue. While examining poverty and children education in several articles all authors seem to agree with the fact that poverty does have an affect in the academic development of a child. However, there are several disagreements in other areas. The authors that this essay will be

Poverty is on the rise all around the world especially across the United States. This is a problem that is affecting many aspects of life for both the victim and the people around them. Students living in poverty have to tolerate many unfortunate circumstances on a daily basis which can have a significant effect on their growth, development, and educational experience. Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds can still have the same success as the average student, but it takes a little extra effort and a leap of faith. Although it may be challenging for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds to achieve success in school and the real world, it is not impossible.

The stereotypes of people living in poverty in America are so deeply imbedded in our society. We as educators may need to examine our beliefs and open our mind to new interpretations of the behavior of those struggling without basic needs. Doing so, however, is the first step to improving our success and effectiveness with educating students in poverty and helping end the cycle of suffering. Educator’s attitudes and beliefs shape you tone of voice, your body posture, your facial expressions and your actions towards students. Working daily with students who are classified as living in poverty. I believe it is our duty as educators to work with student’s effect by generational poverty. One thing I do not see a lot of is help

Poverty is the condition of being without the provisions for living day-to-day, and it is frequently related with necessity, adversity and privation of funds through a widespread array of situations (Poverty. n.d.). Ideally, young kids should be able to collect memories of their childhood of when they played free in a safety environment that provides nurture, learning, and happiness in order to achieve their greatest potential. On the contrary, young ones live a life far from that. Poverty has extensive shattering effects and they distress children directly. One of the biggest impact of Childhood poverty is related to Learning. Youngsters living in poverty face learning difficulties due to factors

“It is better one hundred guilty persons should escape than that one innocent person should suffer” (Benjamin Franklin). Sleepy Maycomb, like other Southern towns, suffers considerably during the Great Depression. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows that poverty reaches from the privileged families, like the Finches, to the Negroes and “white trash” Ewells, who live on the outskirts of town. Harper Lee paints a vivid picture of life in this humid Alabama town where tempers and bigotry explode into conflict. The main conflict of the book revolves around a man named Tom Robinson, who is accused of a crime. This novel is revolved around three central themes: racism, poverty, and domestic violence.

Poverty is something that significantly impacts the lives of many people. Cuthrell, Stapleton, and Ledford (2010) stated in the article Examining the Culture of Poverty: Promising Practices that the number of children in the United States living in poverty is nearing 13 million. Cuthrell et al. (2010) also stated this means one of six children is poor. These statistics justify that poverty is a pivotal issue educators need to understand to benefit those students that are living in poverty. In the article The Importance of Making the Well-Being of Children in Poverty a Priority it states, “children from low-income families are more likely to suffer from preventable illnesses, fail in school, become teenage parents, and become involved in the justice system” (Prince, Pepper, & Brocato, 2006, P. 21). This shows that there are many obstacles and barriers that people living in poverty will have to face and overcome. It is very important that both people living in poverty and those that work with individuals that live in poverty become educated on how to conquer these obstacles. School Counselors are going to play a large role in helping students that are being raised in poverty. They will not only help the students that are living in poverty, but the school staff and parents as well.

The Effects of Social Inequality in To Kill A Mockingbird According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, inequality is defined as “an unfair situation in which some people have more rights or better opportunities than other people.” Set in Maycomb County, Alabama during the early 1930s, prejudice and inequality towards others was becoming prevalent. In To Kill A Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, social inequality is a common theme in the novel that shows separation between specific groups in the neighborhood. Social inequality focuses on the words people say and the actions they commit that create separation.

Harper Lee is a strong minded woman who shows how she feels on social justice through Atticus Finch in her book To Kill A Mockingbird. She shows how you should stand up for what you believe in no matter what. Atticus stands up for Tom Robinson because of how he feels about the case rather than his skin color unlike most of every other white person. Harper Lee reveals some of the truths through Atticus examined in the Novel. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, the author shows her beliefs of Social Injustice as it pertains in inequality of races. She does this through Atticus Finch’s words and actions in response to the conflicts in the text.

For those who live in the United States, some do not see the correlation between poverty and its effects on people’s behavior to their academics. Poverty affects many students at a young age depending on the location they are in as it prevents underprivileged kids to seek higher education. However, with new opportunities [in effect], kids in poverty can have the same education as privileged kids. Poverty stricken students are disadvantaged when trying to obtain a higher education. Children in poverty lose their motivation in school when they do not have the support of their parents. Some other issues students face includes parents not being able to assist their child in school. Another is that the child is not able to go to school because they have to work instead and support their families. Although public education is available to all children, those that live in poverty are deprived of its full potential due to the factors of low family incomes as well as the lack of self-motivation and the importance of having an education.