Schools Face the Facts of Poverty

A good indicator of poverty is the percentage of students who come from families who are at or below the Poverty Line.
Children who attend these schools face so many disadvantages over their more affluent peers. If you thought things were bad before the financial crisis, they just got a lot worse.

According to the newest report from the U.S. Department of Education, 16,122 schools in the U.S. are considered to be "high poverty" schools. ”High Poverty Schools” are defined in part as children who are coming to school hungry each day.

In public schools, if more than three-quarters of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, they are labeled as such. Between the 1999-2000 and 2007-2008 school years, the percentage of high poverty schools rose from 12 to 17 percent. The alarming part is these figures don’t take the recession into account. Think about the stark reality of these statistics.

The report also indicates that the overall poverty level of children rose, leading researchers to believe that more children are signing up for free meal programs.

Let’s face it−children who attend high poverty schools face incredible difficulties beyond the mere fact they are poor. Put simply, they are not treated the same as their middle or upper class peers.
How so? For one, they are far less likely to be taught by teachers with advanced degrees. Most well-educated teachers flock to affluent districts where they don’t have to worry about the issues surrounding poverty.

Also, studies indicate that low-income students are less likely to graduate from high school. For example, an average of 68 percent of 12th grade students in high poverty schools graduated in 2007-2008, compared with a shocking 91 percent at low poverty schools. Even worse, high poverty school graduates enrolled in a four-year college or university 28 percent of the time, whereas 52 percent of graduates from low poverty schools did the same.

Like it or not, something has to be done. Children are our future. Programs like Head Start help preschool aged children and their families, but what happens when they graduate from the program? Who is advocating for them when they enter the school system?

We all need to advocate for quality education for all students. No child should be educated differently based on his or her income level. After all, obtaining an education is part of breaking the cycle of poverty. It may not be the ultimate solution, but it is a good place to start.