Education and Poverty Commentaries
"Outside the schools, their community is one where child poverty topped 50 percent in 2000, according to census and state health data; that is four times the national rate for white children. Here, third-grade test scores are used to project future prison capacity when prison contractors lobby the state for funds."
"Finally, most schools spend vast amounts of time and resources trying to compensate for disadvantages some students bring to class. Some packaged programs call it 'asset building,' while others exhort schools to build 'bridges out of poverty.'"
"For Costis, education is a key factor in ending the cycle of poverty and homelessness, and that's why she's working to expand the House of Tiny Treasures program. Currently, 32 homeless children are enrolled, at a cost of $16,000 a year - paid for mostly with private donations. "
Posted March 19, 2012
Posted February 21, 2012
"Imagine a law that would enable low-income, academically at-risk children to receive improved educational opportunities, save taxpayers tens of millions of dollars a year and improve public schools."
Posted January 30, 2012
"One in eight children in Michigan lives in a household grappling with job loss and one in every 20 has had his or her life disrupted by a home foreclosure. This year, as in previous years, creating an economic climate that leads to more jobs remains the top priority for our governor and lawmakers. An emphasis on educating kids and putting their parents back to work is the best weapon for fighting poverty."
Posted January 17, 2012
Posted January 11, 2012
Posted January 9, 2012
" Preschool for disadvantaged children should not be another casualty of the budget wars."
"The result is that many schools would experience no layoffs, while high-poverty schools would have to shoulder a cycle of turnover and instability that would add to their challenges."
Posted January 3, 2012
"President Obama's remarks on inequality, stoking populist anger at 'the rich,' suggest that the theme for his reelection bid will be not hope and change but focus on reducing class disparity with government help. But this effort isn't limited to economics; it is playing out in our nation's schools as well."
"No one seriously disputes the fact that students from disadvantaged households perform less well in school, on average, than their peers from more advantaged backgrounds. But rather than confront this fact of life head-on, our policy makers mistakenly continue to reason that, since they cannot change the backgrounds of students, they should focus on things they can control."
"The mayor never cites any research to support his claims about what’s a good deal for students. Nor does he explain a sensible way to determine the bottom half of teachers — the ones who would be sent packing."
"Universities want to climb the US News & World Report ladder. And the surest way to do that -- expensive though it may be -- is to attract more and better applicants and reject all but the most qualified. Investing in a pipeline that also serves your competitors seems counterproductive. So why should a university care about this project? Three reasons are worth considering: money, mission and morals."
Posted November 7, 2011
"Low-income students, those eligible for free and reduced-cost lunch, have increased by about 60 percent in both districts. Currently, 26 percent of Red Bank students and 14 percent of Freehold students have limited English proficiency."
"Given a student population that is 86 percent low-income and behind academically, it is shameful how long Chicago has carried on with a diminished schedule. Emanuel has gone after the longer-day prize in his signature, take-no-prisoners way."
Posted October 3, 2011
"In return for a substantial hike in funds to help schools serve low-income students, states must measure how all their schools are doing, based on the state's education standards."
"Almost everyone has felt the effects of the Great Recession but, without question, it has hit those on the lower end of the economic spectrum the hardest. In Florida, one in six people is living in poverty, the highest that measure has been in more than a decade, the Miami Herald reported earlier this month."
"The goal was to make sure no schools served students drawn mostly from lower-income families. Absent costly extra resources, high-poverty schools apply a further drag on academic success among children who typically deal with more than their share of challenges already."
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