Poverty remains an ongoing problem in today’s society. According to research, 9.2% of the world population lives in poverty. In the modern world, people need education to gain knowledge and work high paid jobs. Education develops self-dependency and prepares a student for life experiences. However, it becomes difficult to complete school for students who live in poverty. What effects does poverty have on education?
1. Low Academic Performance:
Low income students are more likely to have low academic performance. When I was in 4th grade, my dad traveled to the city to seek money. Two months later after my dad left the village, things got pretty tough. My mom used to sell tomatoes and oranges, but the money she made wasn’t sufficient. Even though the UNHCR distributed food to refugees monthly, the food wasn’t enough to feed the entire family. We usually had one meal per day. My mom thought about domestic farming to make it easier for us to survive. She bought a goat, and it produced two goats.
My brother and I had to take care of the goats. We used to rotate to take them to the bush to eat grass. Herding goats was my morning activity. When I got home after herding goats, I would check the kitchen to see if there were ashes. I would go to school with an empty stomach, and there wasn’t lunch provided at school. During my 5th hour, I would feel dizzy and find it hard to concentrate on what the teacher was saying. This affected my attitudes and emotions. I felt weak and uninspired, which developed negative connections that tore me down academically. I would be sitting in class worrying about when my next meal will come. Consequently, I became distressed and emotionally affected, leading to poor academic development.
2. High crime rate-
Students who live in poverty are more likely to commit a crime. Because of dealing with financial stress and having the desire to gain material, most students become thieves, gang members, and murders. A new study that was published on 02-11-2018, shows that “children growing up in poverty are seven times more likely to harm themselves or involved in violent crimes as young adults”.
The research was conducted by the University of Manchester and funded by the European Research Council. Using Danish national registers of over one million young adults, the study analyzed 21,267 patients who presented to hospital with self-harm episodes and 23,724 people who were convicted for violent crime aged 15 to 33. Professor Webb explained, “income inequality in Denmark is one of the lowest in the world, so we’d expect these findings to be even more pronounced in countries with greater levels of income inequality, such as the UK. We would also imagine that ten years of austerity in the UK would escalate and entrench these problems”(Study links childhood poverty to violent crime and self-harm). Being unable to afford school expenses makes students react and do something even though they know it’s illegal.
3. Students who live in poverty are more likely to become homeless:
This threatens their academic, emotional, and social development. They feel ashamed to participate in class activities. They barely have friends in school. A new study that was published on November 16, 2017 shows that , “More than 4 of percent of adolescents and 10 percent of young adults nationwide were living in the street, in cars or shelters, or couch-surfing at some point in the last year, according to a sweeping study by the University of Chicago released Wednesday. Among those homeless youth who were 18 to 25 years old, the primary reasons they were homeless were high housing costs, low wages and large student debt according to Matthew Morton, a research fellow at University of Chicago’s Chapin Hall policy research center who oversaw the study” (Young and Homeless in America).
4. More school dropouts:
Sudents who live under poverty are more likely to drop out of school. Back in 2013 when I entered high school, I almost dropped out of school. I was so excited about the big transition, moving to a new school and meeting new people. In Nyarugusu camp, the educational system we had was a little different compared to other parts of the world. In secondary school, all 9th grade students were required to choose a major, such as business, biology, and social science.
I decided to study business. Mr. Mwarabu, my accounting teacher, asked all the students to buy a periodic table. I went home and asked my parents for 1500 Tshillings to buy the periodic table. Both of my parents had no money, they told me to wait for a week. I needed the periodic table immediately to keep up with class activities. I was suspended for my accounting class because I didn’t buy the table within three days. I felt like I was being punished for something I had no control over. I couldn’t tell my teacher that my parents couldn’t afford buying the periodic table within three days. I was so ashamed of myself. I felt like I was unworthy and didn’t belong in the classroom.
5. 5. Child labor:
Students who live in low income families in some countries are more likely to do harmful jobs. Because parents don’t have money to pay school fees, students are forced to do dangerous jobs, including domestic service, fishing, and commercial agriculture. A new research, “Child labor in relation to poverty”, was published on July 5, 2011.
“The International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that the number of working children is about 250 million in the developing countries, of whom at least 120 million are working full time. Of these working children 61% are in Asia, 32% in Africa and 7% in Latin America. In Pakistan about eight million children are working in different occupations and two thirds of them are employed full time. The fundamental rights of child as survival, education, protection and development are grossly violated by child labor. The root cause of child labor is extreme poverty which forces the parents to employ their children for some extra money for daily living. This study was designed to collect information on dimensions of working children and to establish relation between poverty and child labor in Pakistan.”
6. Being unable to see Possibilities:
A lot of low income students grow up with fear and not having hope of being successful based on their family background. It becomes difficult for them to pick solutions that can help them in the long term. “How Poverty and Education are Related”, a new research made on April 20, 2020 indicates that, “Poor children aren’t aware of the various career opportunities available to them within and outside their community. They only have one agenda, which is to make money. They aren’t explained in detail as to the various different careers in which they can excel and eventually make money. Due to not providing them with enough required information, they tend to fall onto the wrong path for making money.”
7. Less job opportunities/high unemployment rate:
Students who live under poverty are more likely to have less job opportunities. I grew up in Kigoma, where a person needed to have a college education to get a job. Because most parents couldn’t afford to send their children to college, a lot of young people were unemployed. There was a lack of technological knowledge among students, which decreased the chance of creating new jobs. My brother opened a small business. He was selling clothes. However, it wasn’t effective because he had no access to resources, such as capital or knowledge for his innovation.
Conclusion
Poverty has been affecting student’s education over years. It’s our responsibility to reduce academic challenges caused by poverty to create a better nation for the next generation. In reality, we haven’t taken the steps that are needed to ensure low income students get the support they need. Student’s family income should have no connection to their access to opportunities. Every kid deserves to have a chance of getting a high quality education. Every kid deserves to work across the stage to receive a high school or college diploma. The government, school administrators, and parents should all work together to ensure the well being of all students.