PovertyanditsImpactonEducationTodayandTomorrow.pdfVIP

L-TA09Capra.qxp:Layout 1 11/23/09 10:08 AM Page 75 Poverty and its Impact on Education: Today and Tomorrow by Theresa Capra ducation is an international must, a veritable human right, yet education—especially higher education—in Ethe land of the free is still remarkably elusive.1 As a community college professor and recent high school teacher and administrator in low-performing, economically depressed urban schools, I have witnessed the many obstacles associated with preparing students for college. Advanced courses are rarely offered in these schools due to a lack of perceived eligible students, and most instructional time is spent on remediation and preparation for standardized tests. Creativity is not highly valued; instead, obedience and repetition are applauded. Practically all of these students live in households where no one has any experience of higher education; thus, the expectation of attending col- lege is not as important as the message to “stay out of trouble” and “fin- ish high school.” Because teacher quality is tantamount to student achievement, the revolving door of teachers in poverty-stricken areas exacerbates the inferior education and also discourages pursuit of higher education.2 Motivating this population of stu- dents means being involved in every aspect of their well-being and, in many cases, monitoring them closely inside and outside of the classroom. This approach is quite different from what these students will experience if they attend college. Becoming a successful college student requires discipline, autonomy, responsibili- ty, as well as minimally developed communication and social skills. Needless to say, Theresa