On my Way to Tech-Savvy Land: Education vs. Poverty

This week I came across several articles that talked about the impact poverty has on our students. These articles caught my attention because I taught at a school where many of our English Language Learners enrolled at our high school only having a third grade education. I loved teaching this population because I was able to see major gains at the end of the school year. Easier said than done though. Many of our students not only had to worry about how to survive in a new country and how to learn a new language to fit in, but how to catch up with the rest of their peers, especially in math class.

The fourth article in the links below delineates differences between middle-class and low income students and gives suggestions on what we as educators can do. Some of the differences that stood out for me were: Effort, Health and Nutrition, and Relationships. In my experience, these three factors were the most important because many times teachers think students are just being lazy or rude, not knowing that a child may not have had breakfast that day, may be worried about being evicted, or scared to go back home because dad is an alcoholic. This is why I strongly believe in building positive rapport with our students. Once students realize you want them to succeed in life and at school, they will put forth maximum effort... at least in your class.

At first, I was a bit worried about how our students from low-income families would react to technology in the classroom, since they have little to no access at home. Surprisingly, they seem to perform better than expected. Why? From what I have seen, many students feel they can go at their own pace and not feel judged. In a report written by Linda Darling-Hammond, Molly B. Zielezinski, and Shelley Goldman, they stated that, "One of the benefits of well-designed interactive programs is that they can allow students to see and explore concepts from different angles using a variety of representations", which allows for the achievement gap to narrow and increases our graduation rate.

Please take a moment to look over the articles below and share your feedback. How do you use technology at your school to engage students from low-income families?

"The Consequences of Poverty for Children and the Nation"
"An Inside Look At The Mental Health Epidemic Plaguing Homeless Youth"
"Kentucky Education Report | A Kentucky Teacher Talks Poverty and Testing"
"How Poverty Affects Classroom Engagement"
"Using Technology to Support At-Risk Students’ Learning"