Thesis: Poverty is affecting children from low-income families in many different ways
I. Education
Children from low-income families fall behind the children from wealthy backgrounds.
Lower grades.
Many empirical studies have indicated that children from poor backgrounds have poor performance in academics. However, one study suggests that childhood poverty has adverse effects on performance than poverty at the adolescent stage. In fact, when families shift from above poverty level to lower level, there score decreases drastically. The arguments of poor ratings are linked to the parents’ educational backgrounds. Moore et al. (2009) argued that parents from poor families rarely finishes the high school education. Also, some may lack formal education understanding resulting to kids with the unprepeared mind of schooling. As a result, the children are raised in an environment which requires cognitive simulation. This directly affects their academic and cognitive attainment. Nevertheless, the kids attend schools which have inadequate resources compared to more prosperous schools in the neighborhood.
Less opportunity.
In most societies including the US, best opportunities are available for individuals who have interdependent skills, well social-emotional thinking, and high cognitive language. This attributes largely depends on social networks, family well-being, educational performance, and physical and emotional wellbeing. Unfortunately, the growth environments of poor children deprive them the necessary inputs required to obtain favorable opportunities. Therefore, poor kids have fewer opportunities due to lack of motor skills, academic skills, self-behavior regulation, social skills, motivation, curiosity, and communication skills (Engle and Black, 2013).
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Accordingly, the poverty stricken environment provides fewer stimuli towards new opportunities. The lacking stimulation results from best educations which give platforms for enrichment and motivation. Unfortunately, such platforms are lacking in poor communities across the United States. Isaacs and Magnuson (2011) argues that having limited achievement in education and involving in early age childbearing of poor adolescents significantly constrains possible opportunities.
Graduating from college or university is highly unlikely.
High dropout rate
The high school comprises mostly of adolescents. At this stage, they can feel the impacts of poverty such as being assimilated from other groups. Psychologists argue that poor social and economic status have a negative effect neuro-cognitive functioning of the brain. In this case, the children develop chronic stress due to poor social and health behaviors which adversely undermines their educational achievements. Poverty also affects emotional and social development. This results because of increased childbearing risks, lower esteem, and lack of positive mentors or peer relations. Unfortunately, they become obedient, impulsive, and arrogant. In fact, poverty, in this case, is described as the inner feelings including unhappiness, dependence, and anxiety. This attributes together with being aggressive makes these adolescents non-compliant with the school rules and regulations. Consequently, they end being suspended, expelled, or they just choose to drop out of the education systems. Eagle and Black (2013) suggests that poor performance recorded in preschool tends to have a long term impact in tertiary levels. Therefore, poor performance may also demoralize the young adult from continued learning. With such demotivation, they opt to drop out and get alternative sources of income.
According to Ratcliffe and McKernan (2012), school dropout results from continuous movement. Such family shifts are a result of looking for cheaper housing units, saving money, being evicted, and parental divorce. In the process, the children are less likely to complete high school as compared to those who are stable.
They seek for jobs at a young age
Poverty affects the availability of resources especially income for meeting daily expenditures. Due to this low income, most children try to look for alternatives to supplement the budget and raise money for education. The critical case occurs when the kids are raised by a single parent, or the parent(s) are physically or mentally incapable. This scenario leaves the child with no option but to take responsibility for providing. They, therefore, land to any job available. Some end up in extreme employments such as drug dealing and prostitution. The study of Ratcliffe and McKernan (2012) indicates that most poor children in the US experience consistency poverty. Consequently, they search for opportunities that can at least improve their living standards at an early age.
II. Health
A. High risk of diseases and premature death.
According to Moore (2009) sections with high poverty levels are characterized by cases of moral decay scenarios. Children in this regions are exposed to violent activities which affect their psychological thinking negatively. For instance, through internalizing behaviors of depressions. As a result, they develop the violent mind and act pout of disobedience. On the other hand, parents play a significant role in children violent activities for example by offering lower emotional responsiveness, using excessive physical punishment, and poor quality housing environment. Consequently, the kids develop as thugs, murderers, and prostitutes. Both of this practices leads to diseases and also cause premature death. For example, when adolescents end being prostitutes due to low-income levels, they are at risks of getting diseases such as sexually transmitted infections. On the other hand, acts of murder, homicides, and thuggery automatically lead to brutal killings by law enforcement officers (Pettit and Comey, 2012).
They suffer from malnutrition.
Obesity and chronic illness.
The United States national data reveals that outcomes of poor health issues such as chronic diseases and obesity. Specifically, these kids are born with low weights, and others end up dying in one month life span. Obesity occurs due to poor quality and lack of food. The families live in regions with food insecurity and thus lack enough food, and the diet is inadequate. Parents are most worried about finding something to eat. This makes most of their low incomes to be channeled to food budgeting. As a result, less or no income is devoted to health and cleanliness matters. The results lead to children who have ill-health complications and lack medication security (Lacour and Tissington, 2011).
Disability.
Inadequate food and the poor diet make children from poor setting in the US to develop disability complications due to Anemia, Marasmus, and Polio. Besides, childhood poverty is accompanied by stunted growth. These diseases make them grow with physical impairments leading to disabilities.
III. Community
A. Children from poor families are likely to live in inadequate housing.
Effects on physical and mental health.
Houses of poor people are characterized by poor sanitation, lack of ventilations due to congestions, and lead paints which pose health hazards. Adolescents living in these homes are likely to engage in health-compromising and risky behaviors such as smoking and sexual immorality. This factor adversely affects their development and achievement of physical, language, cognitive, and social-emotional dimensions. In addition, factors such as maternal depression, substance abuse by parents, trauma, physical and mental abuse, divorce, violent crime, and poor child care lead mental and physical challenges.
Ratcliffe and McKernan (2012) notes that poverty life leads to chronic stress which is associated with brain disorders and low working memory. Indeed, exposure to toxic stress during early life can result in a permanent transformation in function and structure of the brain. This develops a weak foundation in future behavior, health, and learning.
Adverse effects on educational achievements.
Poor background settings of the houses negatively affect the well-being of the children. In fact, they develop health problems due to poor sanitation and lack of nutritious food. These settings demoralize their motivation significantly in trying to achieve in class work. Lacour and Tissington (2011) illustrates that these poor households are characterized by illiterate environments, deep intellectual stimulation, and physically hazardous environments. Therefore, as a student, the child passes through all these challenges during learning. The hazards constrain the kids' ability to achieve in class work.
B. They miss out on social events, holidays and trips.
The family backgrounds of poor children are either characterized by single parents, less supervision by parents and increased parental distress. Additionally, they keep on shifting family structures with frequent moves. This makes them less affluent and thus negatively affects their emotional and social outcomes compared to those living in the relatively stable environment. Economically, low-income neighborhoods and families are less likely to engage in social norms such as trips and holiday vacations. The income level constraints such families in participating and even organizing such events. Therefore, the kids grow up with negative mindsets about the social life (Isaacs and Magnuson, 2011).
References
Engle, P., & Black, M. (2013). The Effect of Poverty on Child Development and Educational Outcomes. California Polytechnic State University , 1-16.
Isaacs, J., & Magnuson, K. (2011). “Income and Education as Predictors of Children’s School Readiness. Washington D.C: Brookings Institution.
Lacour, M., & Tissington, L. (2011). The effects of poverty on academic achievement. Educational Research and Reviews, 6 (7), 522-527.
Moore, K. A., Redd, Z., Burkhauser, M., Mbwana, K., & Collins, A. (2009). CHILDREN IN POVERTY: TRENDS, CONSEQUENCES, AND POLICY OPTIONS. Child Trends: Research Brief , 1-12.
Pettit, K., & Comey, J. (2012). “The Foreclosure Crisis and Children: A Three-City Study.”. Washington D.C: Urban Institute.
Ratcliffe, C., & McKernan, S.-M. (2012). Child Poverty and Its Lasting Consequence. Low-Income Working Families , 1-30.
