Economic stratification in the United States has greatly impacted the quality of education for students from low-income families. Previously, American schools had responded well to the ever-changing economic growth, as high and low-income families were awarded the same standards of education. However, the rising income inequality has been difficult for schools to keep up with, and as a result, many low-income students are being left behind.
The income achievement gap has steadily grown larger since the mid-1970s, and already affects children’s learning before they enter kindergarten. Between birth and age 6, children from high-income families now spend an average of 1,300 more hours in unique places outside their homes, schools, and day-care …show more content…
It has led to low-income students attending separate, and often times worse, schools than their wealthier peers. A 2011 report from the U.S. Department of Education stated that more than 40 percent of low-income schools receive less state and local funds than higher-income schools. According to the data “more than 40 percent of schools that receive federal Title I money to serve disadvantaged students spent less state and local money on teachers and other personnel than schools that don't receive Title I money at the same grade level in the same district.” The same data reveals that providing low-income schools with similar spending would cost “only 1 percent” of the district’s overall spending, and that by awarding extra resources to low-income schools would add “as much as between 4 percent and 15 percent to the budget of schools serving high numbers of students who live in poverty.”
Many different programs have been put in place to help lower-income students succeed. The programs aim to either prepare children for school or measure their personal and school’s achievement. Head Start and Early Head Start, No Child Left Behind, and New York City’s pilot program, Middle Class Child Care Loan Initiative, are just a few examples of programs meant to improve education for all students. Each program is designed to give students and families the ability to receive the same level of education regardless of wealth, and …show more content…
Highly qualified teachers and instructors that “hold a bachelor’s degree and a state standard teaching credential, as well as demonstrate knowledge of the subject taught.” Hiring highly qualified teachers helps to narrow the achievement gap between high and low-income students because it requires schools in low-income residential areas to hire teachers with the same qualifications as those teaching in higher-income areas. This allows low-income children to receive the same or close to the same standard of instruction as their wealthier
The income achievement gap has steadily grown larger since the mid-1970s, and already affects children’s learning before they enter kindergarten. Between birth and age 6, children from high-income families now spend an average of 1,300 more hours in unique places outside their homes, schools, and day-care …show more content…
It has led to low-income students attending separate, and often times worse, schools than their wealthier peers. A 2011 report from the U.S. Department of Education stated that more than 40 percent of low-income schools receive less state and local funds than higher-income schools. According to the data “more than 40 percent of schools that receive federal Title I money to serve disadvantaged students spent less state and local money on teachers and other personnel than schools that don't receive Title I money at the same grade level in the same district.” The same data reveals that providing low-income schools with similar spending would cost “only 1 percent” of the district’s overall spending, and that by awarding extra resources to low-income schools would add “as much as between 4 percent and 15 percent to the budget of schools serving high numbers of students who live in poverty.”
Many different programs have been put in place to help lower-income students succeed. The programs aim to either prepare children for school or measure their personal and school’s achievement. Head Start and Early Head Start, No Child Left Behind, and New York City’s pilot program, Middle Class Child Care Loan Initiative, are just a few examples of programs meant to improve education for all students. Each program is designed to give students and families the ability to receive the same level of education regardless of wealth, and …show more content…
Highly qualified teachers and instructors that “hold a bachelor’s degree and a state standard teaching credential, as well as demonstrate knowledge of the subject taught.” Hiring highly qualified teachers helps to narrow the achievement gap between high and low-income students because it requires schools in low-income residential areas to hire teachers with the same qualifications as those teaching in higher-income areas. This allows low-income children to receive the same or close to the same standard of instruction as their wealthier