Unequal Childhoods (Lareau, UCAL Press 2003) Social Science is STILL Science

The NJRCL basically redefines what poverty means and describes the need to make resources available to empovershed families. The report makes a point to mention that the current Federal standard for determining the poverty level and access to supportive resources has the following flaws:
1) Standards are based the cost of food
2) Assumes a two parent family with a stay at home wife
3) Doesn’t distinguish between employed families and unemployed families
4) The poverty line is consistent across all geographic locations
(NJ Real Cost of Living Index (NJRCL) from the Legal Services of New Jersey (LSNJ))

The author talks about many of the same resources and institutions that some of the families from “Unequal Childhoods” (Lareau, 2003) interface with on daily basis to survive. Changing the definition for how families, and which families, qualify for such programs would have a direct impact on said families. Redefining this definition could give families like the Brindles or the McAllisters more access to essential programs that would allow them to better provide for their families. Possibly this could give parents more time with their children allowing them to take a more direct role in their child’s education. This could have a profound impact on both those families that utilize the programs, and the families that don’t but whose taxes would be affected by a redefinition of poverty.

The first finding of the poverty report “living in poverty” maintains that employment is necessary for economic self sufficiency, but it doesn’t ensure it. This puts a face on the harsh reality that poor families have to deal with. Not only does employment not guarantee economic self-sufficiency,(and these poor families are typically in low income jobs), many of these families are also facing unemployment or are in single adult families, thus increasing the chance that the families will not be economically self sufficient. The second finding only compounds this issue: single mothers, (it was usually the case that the mother was the primary caregiver) are more likely to suffer from income inadequacy, but those with children (the subjects of the book) are also more likely. Suffice it to say, these families probably suffer from income inadequacy. They cannot afford the simple cost of the necessities of life.

Education is directly connected to income adequacy, at least according to the study in the report. More specifically, the more access you have to higher levels of education, the less likely you are to suffer from income inadequacy. In reality, this creates a self-perpetuating cycle where those without enough money don’t have access to higher education. Therefore, their families are less likely to have access to higher levels of education and so on and so forth.


The second article on poverty, “GROWTH OF POVERTY” basically criticizes the system with which government deals with the growing poverty epidemic in this country, It calls for a shift in the way we deal with poverty, curing the problem instead of simply treating it with programs like welfare.

I feel that this information is incredibly useful to me as a new urban teacher. Understanding the problems that some families are facing allows me to approach certain situations in a different, more effective manner. For instance, initially, I did not believe that students had absolutely no access to a computer, and held them to a real high level. I didn’t take into account that they really had no free time, and didn’t have the access to resources I assumed they must simply by living in proximity to them.
In terms of what I need to learn, I need to become better at working the system (as a member of the middle class) on my students’ behalf, or at least: how can I work around these issues so they don’t stifle the children’s ability to get a quality education.
Though I hate the cliché, this was a real eye opener in terms of modifying my frame of reference. It is one thing to hear about the achievement gap, it is one thing to hear about socio-economic disparities, it is one thing to hear about the different ways in which poor, working, and middle-class families raise their children indoctrinated through an educational institution or even the current presidential election campaigns. To see actual examples of children and families detailed, broken down, evaluated on the same characteristics by the same observer and to juxtapose them so, makes the issue all the more real. Even as I entered the classroom today, I started to approach issues with regards to lack of access in a very different light.
Enough of my fill in the blank answers for now, later I will update this entry with how I personally felt reading about the socioeconomic gap and the differences in child rearing styles eg: concerted cultivation.

Hasta--
--The Prof.