The Effects of Poverty on Teaching and Learning

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by Karen M. Pellino
**What's All the Hype?**
Poverty is an issue that more and more of our nation’s children are coming face to face with. The
price that children of poverty must pay is unbelievably high. Each year, increasing numbers of children are
entering schools with needs from circumstances, such as poverty, that schools are not prepared to meet.
This paper will examine the effects of poverty on teaching and learning. Poverty as a risk factor will be
discussed as will a number of the many challenges that arise in teaching children of poverty. Implications
of brain-based research for curriculum reform and adaptation will be presented.
The Concept of Being At-Risk
The term at-risk refers to children who are likely to fail in school or in life because of their life’s
social circumstances. It does not appear that any one single factor places a child at-risk. Rather, when
more than one factor is present, there is a compounding effect and the likelihood for failure increases
significantly. Poverty is considered a major at-risk factor (Leroy & Symes, 2001). Some of the factors
related to poverty that may place a child at-risk for academic failure are: very young, single or low
educational level parents; unemployment; abuse and neglect; substance abuse; dangerous neighborhoods;
homelessness; mobility; and exposure to inadequate or inappropriate educational experiences.
Being able to identify and understand children who are at-risk is critical if we are to support their growth and
development. In order to do this, warm and caring relationships need to be developed between teachers and children.
This will enable teachers to detect any warning signs that may place children at-risk for failure, interfering with their chances
for success in school and life (Leroy & Symes, 2001). Academic and behavioral problems can be indicators of impending
failure. Among such behaviors are: delay in language development, delay in reading development, aggression, violence,
social withdrawal, substance abuse, irregular attendance, and depression. Teachers may have difficulty reaching a
student’s parent or guardian. They may also find the student does not complete assignments, does not study for tests, or
does not come to school prepared to learn because of poverty related circumstances in the home environment. These
children may be unable to concentrate or focus. They may be unwilling or unable to interact with peers and/or adults in
school in an effective manner. These issues not only have an impact on the learning of the child of poverty but can also
impact the learning of other children.
Challenge: Diversity
The rise in the number of children in poverty has contributed to making our nation’s classrooms more diverse than
ever before. This, indeed, makes both teaching and learning more challenging. This issue can remain a challenge for
teachers, as opposed to becoming a problem, if focus is placed on student learning as opposed to teaching.
Teachers need to be tuned in to the culture of poverty and be sensitive to the vast array of needs that children of
poverty bring to the classroom. Social contexts have a significant impact on the development of children. The social world
of school operates by different rules or norms than the social world these children live in. Focus should be placed on finding
a harmonious relationship between the cultural values of students and values emphasized in school. Considering that so
many different cultures are represented in our society, we often encounter students who belong to more than one cultural
group. They may be poor in addition to being non-English speaking or of an ethnic/racial/religious minority group (Bowman,
1994; Marlowe and Page, 1999).
High-mobility is a symptom of poverty and its surrounding social factors. Children of poverty may live in places that
rent by the week or even day. They may move from town to town as their parent searches for work or runs from problems
(such as an abusive spouse, criminal record, financial responsibilities). They may live in homeless shelters or battered
women’s shelters that only allow brief stays. They may live on the streets. The conditions they live in and their day-to-day
life experiences can have a significant effect on their education and achievement. Moving is a very emotional event for
children. Combine this issue with the multitude of other issues faced by mobile and homeless children and the impact on
their emotional, social and cognitive development can be overwhelming.
School attendance is often irregular. Transfer to a new school becomes the norm. Aside from the differences from
the general school population due to other aspects of their poverty, mobility compounds the difficulty these children have
making friends. They may behave hostilely or be totally withdrawn due to past attempts to make friends. With regard to both
the academic and social aspects of school, they may figure, “Why bother? I’m just going to move again.” They also often
come to school with no records from their previous schools; and it may be difficult for schools to track the records down.
Teachers have no idea what these students have learned. It is challenging for schools to place these children in classrooms
and get them additional services they may need. Even if placement is successful, these children will likely move again
within the school year. It is also challenging to help these students to learn at least something of value while they remain in
our classrooms.
Children become aware of social and economic status differences at a very young age. They also grow
increasingly aware of both their own social status and that of their peers, developing class-related attitudes during their
years in elementary school. Teachers can help children to develop caring and sensitivity toward different cultures including
social classes. Activities and lessons should be based on how children perceive themselves and the world at the various
stages of development. For example, children who are in the age range of 7-12 years are less egocentric. They focus on
internal characteristics or traits of people as opposed to external, observable social class differences. They also recognize
similarities and differences among groups. At around age 11, children can consider causes and solutions to poverty.
Taking into account a spiral curriculum, at earlier ages children can become acquainted with social class and other
cultural differences. During the latter years, the topic can be revisited for deeper understanding. This is a great opportunity
to include community service learning projects in the curriculum, such as volunteering as a class in a soup kitchen. It is
important that these activities be followed with both group discussion and individual reflection to help children think critically
about their experiences (Chafel, 1997; Gomez, 2000).
As teachers, these aspects of poverty make planning and preparation absolutely critical. Content
needs to be related in varying ways to meet the needs of the diverse students in the classroom. We have
to consider the cultural values of these children as we arrange their learning. Constructivism is a key
concept in that it respects student differences and allows students to use their own prior knowledge and
experiences to make connections and learn. It affords students the opportunity to become active learners
by questioning, hypothesizing and drawing conclusions based on their individual learning experiences. If
there is limited foundation for children to draw upon, we need to help them develop a base of knowledge
and experiences so they have somewhere to start.
By providing emotional support, modeling, and other forms of scaffolding, teachers can help students use their
strengths, skills, and knowledge to develop and learn (Marlowe and Page, 1999). Learning experiences and problem
solving based on real-life problems can help them deal with some of the issues they may be faced with in their lives.
Learning by doing gives students the opportunity to be active and imaginative problem solvers (Bassey, 1996). Thus,
diversity actually presents us with a chance to enhance the quality of education for all our students and provide them with a
variety of opportunities to develop into productive citizens. As our schools and nation become more diverse, the need for
understanding and acceptance of differences becomes more important. Our challenge is to provide children with an
effective multicultural education that will foster awareness, respect, and acceptance.
Challenge: The Achievement Gap
The difference in academic performance among children from different classes or groups (ethnic,
racial, income) is referred to as the achievement gap. Children of poverty generally achieve at lower levels
than children of middle and upper classes. The causes are numerous and are related to both the social
environment in which poor children live and the education they receive in school. Factors such as the
quality of student learning behaviors, home environment, past experiences with education, and teacher
attitudes are among the many influences on student achievement. Slavin (1998) proposes that schools can
have a powerful impact on the academic achievement and success of all children by viewing them as at-
promise rather than at-risk and preparing them to reach their full potential.
A good education is often the only means of breaking the cycle of poverty for poor children. These
children need an education that is founded in high standards and high expectations for all. Curriculum
alignment must exist to ensure that a rigorous curriculum and assessment accompany and are aligned with
the standards. What occurs in our classrooms has a significant impact on student achievement. The
curriculum should be challenging to prevent decreased opportunity for higher education, which translates
into less opportunity in life for them.
Content should be of high quality and be culturally relevant. A watered-down curriculum is
unacceptable. Teachers should be knowledgeable of the cultures in which their students live so they can
plan effective and engaging lessons. Additionally, instructional and classroom management techniques that
work well with some students don’t necessarily work well with poor children. The perspective and
experiences of the children need to be considered (Goodwin, 2000). Other aspects that can help close the
achievement gap are discussed in the following sections: motivation, readiness and parent/family
involvement.
An article by Haycock (2001) addresses issues related to poverty and the achievement gap through
research conducted by The Education Trust in the late 1990’s. They questioned both children and adults on
what they suspect are causes of this achievement gap. One comment among those made by the children
was, “ ’What hurts us more is that you teach us less.’ “ Haycock (2001) concludes: “…we take the students
who have less to begin with and then systematically give them less in school.” What schools do obviously
matters. What also matters is effective teaching.
Challenge: Student Motivation to Learn
One of the social issues facing children of poverty is emotional trauma. The emotional climate can
often be very stressful and emotionally depriving. The lack of emotional nurturing can lead to feelings of
alienation, inadequacy, depression and anxiety. Aggressive or impulsive behavior and social withdrawal can
also result. Emotional security and self-esteem are often lacking. There is a craving for attention and a
need to belong (Ciaccio, 2000; Brophy, 2000). The characteristics that are lacking in the poverty
environment are those that help foster effective learning and academic success. Emotional draining and
negative self-status can literally zap the motivation to learn out of children.
We need to place an emphasis on sparking that desire to learn or (motivation) by not only helping to
restore the child’s self-image but also by encouraging students to see the demands and rewards of
schooling. Children will work hard, for intrinsic rewards, only if they have a very good reason (Ciaccio,
2000). We need to make them feel that they are lovable, important and acceptable human beings by
making them feel secure and good about themselves and by building trusting respectful relationships with
them (Bassey, 1996). The teacher may be the dependable and caring adult, often the only adult of this
kind, who is a consistent and reliable figure in their lives of unpredictability and change (Bowman, 1994).
Positive and respectful relationships of this nature are essential for at-risk students (Hixson and Tinsmann,
1990; Ciaccio, 2000).
Educators also need to work to foster resilience in children, focusing on the traits, coping skills, and
supports that help children survive in a challenging environment. Children need our help if they are to
adapt successfully despite adversity; alter or reverse expected negative outcomes; and thrive in spite of
negative circumstances. We need to set high expectations for all that communicate guidance, structure,
challenge, and, most importantly, a belief in the innate resilience of children. We need a curriculum that
supports resilience (Benard, 1995).
Ciaccio (2000) also discusses the technique of total positive response to student misbehavior as a
method of developing relationships with students and a method of effective classroom management. Every
incidence of student misbehavior is dealt with in a positive versus negative manner in an effort to disarm
students that may exhibit some of the most challenging behaviors. Total positive response involves the use
of positive strategies to meet student needs, combined with caring and total acceptance. The challenge is to
find the positive in the negative. Because at-risk students have egos that are often severely damaged,
criticism can cause them to tune teachers and authority out. Additionally, emotionally damaged students
cannot effectively deal with criticism and channel it to improvement. We must make it our responsibility to
find ways to generate and maintain student interest and involvement on a consistent basis by making our
classrooms safe, accepting, interesting and engaging places (Haberman, 1995). By creating lessons that
have meaning to these children, teachers are responding actively and constructively to the background or
prior knowledge and experience of their students.
The concepts of agency and conation, which encompasses self-efficacy and self-regulation, are key
to understanding motivation as it relates to children of poverty. The living environments and the culture of
poverty often leave poor children with low levels of motivation to learn. Besides the fact that all of their
energies may be directed elsewhere in their struggle to survive, they may have poor experiences with
schooling or may perceive that they don’t really need school to be successful. They may translate money or
belonging into success, and perceive careers in criminal activity that permeate poorer neighborhoods (such
as drug dealing, prostitution, gambling, theft and gang involvement) as lucrative careers and as the only
ones possible for them.
Children from low SES live in environments with social conditions over which they have little control.
It is not their choice where they live. It is not their choice that their parent may be unemployed or
disabled. It was not their choice to be born into poverty. They often have the feeling they want or need to
escape this environment and do better; but they feel they have no control over the nature and quality of
their lives. The concept of agency is that an individual can intentionally make things happen through their
actions. This is an underlying concept in social learning or social cognitive theory. If we can show children
that they can be agents, we can enable them to play a part in their self-development and take responsibility
for their learning, personal development and achievement (Brophy, 1998; Bandura, 2001).
As agents, children do not simply undergo experiences. They become actively engaged participants by using
sensory, motor and cognitive processes to accomplish tasks and goals that give their lives meaning and direction. They
explore, manipulate and influence the environment. We need to get children to act mindfully to make desired things happen
rather than let themselves be acted on by their environments.
When many children from low SES run into difficult challenges they engage in negative self-talk and may perceive
their failures as challenges they cannot overcome. They may not increase their efforts and may become despondent if they
interpret failure to mean they are personally deficient. Because of the culture they live in, they may also feel exploited or
disrespected and respond hostilely or apathetically. Goal setting is a critical aspect of agency because it allows individuals
to construct outcome expectations. This provides direction, coherence and meaning to life, elements often lacking in low
SES students, and can also enable these students to transcend the dictates of their environment.
Conation refers to the connection between knowledge, affect and behavior. It is the intentional,
goal-oriented component of motivation that explains how knowledge and emotion are translated into
behavior. Conation is a proactive aspect of behavior that is closely related to volition (the use of will or
freedom to make choices about what to do). It is necessary in order for an individual to become self-
directed and self-regulated. Conation is especially important when addressing issues in learning. It is
something that is often lacking in low achieving students, particularly those from low SES backgrounds
(Huitt, 1999). A critical task facing teachers is to help students develop conative attitudes, skills for self-
regulation (goals, plans, and perseverance), and self-efficacy (the belief that something can be done).
SES affects behavior through its impact on an individual’s aspirations, sense of efficacy, personal
standards and emotional states. A strong sense of efficacy can help strengthen resiliency to adversity often
found in the environment of the low SES student. Low SES students often live in chaotic and unstructured
environments. They live day to day. They may be unable to manage their emotions, have poor role
models, and feel they have no choice or control over their destiny.
Students with low SES may also be depressed, have a fear of failure due to past experiences or have
acquired failure expectations from their parents. They may be truly capable children who, as a result of
previous demoralizing experiences or self-imposed mind-sets, have come to believe that they cannot learn.
If they doubt their academic ability, chances are they envision low grades before they even complete an
assignment or take a test. This has an effect on goal setting in that these individuals also tend to set lower
goals for themselves. They may have no real personal goals or vision, but only fantasies of what they hope
for. If they do have goals, these children need to learn how they can achieve the goals and develop
awareness of the possible self. Goals need to be difficult but attainable in order for significant achievement
to be recognized. We need to assign challenging tasks and meaningful activities that can be mastered
(Huitt, 1999; Pajares, 1996).
Through exercises designed to help these children identify what is important to them, we can begin
to help them develop conation. Personal reflection, through the use of a journal, can be a very effective
tool for this purpose. Periodic journal reflection on what they think their lives would be like if money and
time were not limiting factors and what they think they would do in the future can also be helpful to
students. Inquiry learning can help to foster the development of conation, focusing on skills such as
problem solving, fact finding, probing, organizing, reforming, adapting, improvising, revising, constructing
and envisioning.
If a student can become self-regulated, they can mediate the negative environmental influences
they may encounter. Unless they believe they can produce desired results, students have little incentive to
persevere in the face of difficulty. Efficacy beliefs influence whether people think pessimistically or
optimistically and in ways that are self-enhancing or self-hindering. Teaching the use of self-talk techniques
through role playing and group activity can be helpful in identifying thoughts that are often inaccurate and
negative. This can also help students to persist longer at challenging tasks as opposed to simply giving up,
resulting in higher levels of achievement (Huitt, 1999; Pajares, 1996).
The social environment has an impact on goal-oriented motivation. We need to work towards
developing conative components that enhance self-direction, self-determination and self-regulation. Low
SES children need to realize the possibilities in their lives, set goals that they can attain and experience
success directly, through mastery experiences, and vicariously, through the success of others. Teachers
should focus on the learning process, effort and striving, not solely on the ability of the child or results.
Personal standards should be stressed as opposed to normative standards. Because success helps to raise
self-efficacy, we should do whatever possible to help our students succeed and work to strengthen
confidence through our words and actions.
Student self-beliefs have great influence on whether they fail or succeed in school. We need to
provide intellectual challenge and create classroom climates of emotional support and encouragement to
help students meet the challenge. We need to nurture the self-beliefs of our students and provide them
with successful models that transmit knowledge, skills and inspiration. Improving self-efficacy can lead to
increased use of cognitive strategies and, in turn, higher achievement. A high sense of efficacy also
promotes pro-social behaviors such as cooperativeness, helpfulness, sharing, and mutual concern for
welfare. Many of the difficulties students encounter are closely connected to beliefs they hold about
themselves and their place in the world they live in. Academic failure is a consequence of the beliefs that
students hold about themselves and about their ability to have control over their environments.

Challenge: Lack of Readiness to Learn

Readiness is a multi-dimensional concept that considers behavioral and cognitive aspects of a child’s
development as well as adaptation to the classroom. When considering the poverty factor as related to
readiness, it is important to note that poverty is not just about money; it is about how an individual does
without resources and with all of the baggage that goes along with being poor (Slocumb and Payne, 2000).
When readiness is considered, it is generally considered with regard to readiness for school entry.
However, after researching the topic of poverty, readiness really needs to be considered at all age levels as
the student approaches any new learning experiences or activities. Regardless of when intervention begins,
the whole idea is to educate children beyond their poverty and give them the intellectual and social skills
needed to succeed in life (Renchler, 2000),
Children from poverty start out in life at a disadvantage. Their mothers may have no or inadequate
pre-natal care. They may have insufficient early health care. If the parents are fortunate to have jobs,
affordable day care may be of poor quality (Slavin, 1998). Additionally, poor children do not have the same
kind of experiences that children of other social classes do. The experiences they miss out on are those
that could help in the development of skills and academic achievement. Some examples would be the use of
home computers; visits to zoos and museums; attendance at pre-school programs; availability of literature
and educational reading materials; interaction with educated, literate and well-spoken adults; and being
read to by a parent.
The social environment that is present in conditions of poverty affects the development of these
children by limiting the ways they learn to live in social groups. Opportunities for intellectual development,
such as the development of cognitive skills and thinking patterns, are the result of social interaction.
Children who live in poverty conditions are unable to develop mutually satisfying social relationships.
Language is an important tool in the process of learning to think. If children have limited opportunity to
learn language, organize perceptions, and develop other higher order cognitive processes, their ability to
solve problems and think independently is negatively affected (Benson, 1995; Bowman, 1994; Guerra and
Schutz, 2001).
The quality of a child’s earliest experiences has great influence on future development and potential
to succeed. Intervention should be implemented at an early stage to stop the process of failure before it
begins (Slavin, 1998). Early childhood education programs (such as Head Start) can help at-risk pre-
schoolers overcome the disadvantages that come with being poor and ensure that they enter school ready
to learn by providing emotional nurturing and intellectual challenge. These programs foster the
development of language abilities and cognitive skills. They provide children with experiences that will serve
as a foundation of knowledge for future learning. They also provide children with the opportunity to observe
pro-social behavior and develop positive relationships with adults and peers (Spectrum, 1999).
Readiness from the perspective of older children has not only to do with the development discussed
above but also with creating a support system that will enable children to be free to focus on learning. By
encompassing more aspects of the lives of these children, schools can give them a better chance at
succeeding. This may include developing a support network with community partners by offering or
referring students and families to community programs that meet health, social, and recreational needs. It
may also involve keeping schools open and accessible to children and their families during evening or early
morning hours so they have safe, quiet places to study and have access to athletic facilities, recreational
activities, computers, libraries, tutoring and other resources. This can provide poor children with a full range
of support so they can develop a sense of connectedness or belonging with their schools and can
concentrate on learning and being students (Maeroff, 1998).

Challenge: Relationships with and Involvement of Parents and Families

Developing positive relationships with parents and families of low socio-economic status and getting
them involved with their children’s education and school activities is a challenge. In order to address this
challenge it is first necessary to understand the dynamics of parenting in the context of poverty. Parenting
is a critical process affecting many developmental outcomes for children living in poverty. Parent ability is
weakened by living in poverty conditions and by the emotional and psychological stress associated with
living in poverty (Kaiser and Delaney, 1996).
Parenting is the means through which children experience the world. Because the parent-child
relationship is the primary context for early behavioral, social and cognitive development, negative effects
on parents due to poverty factors in turn have a negative effect on the development of the child. Children
rely on their parents to mediate their environment, respond to their needs and provide emotional
stimulation and support. If, because of poverty related stresses, the parent does not do this, the child’s
development could be delayed or be otherwise negatively affected (Kaiser and Delaney, 1996).
Conditions required for families to be successful are often lacking in the environment of poverty:
stability, security, emotionally positive time together, access to basic resources, and a strong shared belief
system. Thus, family relationships suffer when individuals live in poverty. Parents exhibit less capacity to
be supportive and consistent in their parenting, provide less vocal and emotional stimulation, are less
responsive to their children’s needs and model less sophisticated language. Parenting style is more punitive
and coercive and less consistent (Kaiser and Delaney, 1996). Overall, parental support and involvement in
school activities is lower among poor parents. This does not necessarily indicate a lack of interest. It
reflects issues related to poverty such as time (especially if they work shifts or more than one job),
availability and affordability of child care and/or transportation, as well as possible negative personal
experiences between the parent and his or her own school when growing up (Kaiser and Delaney, 1996).
The importance of strengthening and supporting parents and families cannot be emphasized enough.
Areas of positive functioning need to be supported in programs that help families and children work to build
or re-build their lives. Preventive programs can also help families of poverty. Any of the programs can
build on the children’s strengths while simultaneously providing needed services to families (Schmitz,
Wagner and Menke 2001). Research shows that most parents, regardless of their socio-economic status,
love their children and want them to succeed. Many of these parents need to learn strategies that can help
them cope and help their children get a chance at breaking the cycle of poverty (McGee, 1996).
Home-school collaboration is particularly important for children of poverty in helping to facilitate
better educational outcomes (Raffaele and Knoff, 1999). Because relationships with these families are
often the most difficult to cultivate, teachers and schools need to make an extra effort to reach out to
parents and families of poverty, helping them to help their children. Research suggests that the more
parents participate, the better student achievement is. Sometimes reaching a parent can be difficult if they
have no phone, do not speak English or cannot read. It is even more critical that we find ways to reach
these parents. Once we do reach them, however, there is no guarantee that they will be positive,
cooperative, or receptive. We must do our best to attempt to foster a positive relationship with them in
face of resistance, keeping in our minds and trying to convince them that their involvement is for the
benefit of the child. McGee (1996) mentions that a significant discovery was made by researchers studying
poverty and homeless families. They discovered that human relationships must take precedence over
academics. They found that only if parents trusted teachers and felt accepted by teachers could the
teachers stand a chance of getting through to them.
Teachers can inform parents of simple, time-efficient ways to help their children at home. Activities
involving parents with their children can be scheduled such as family math, science, reading or technology
nights. Teachers can provide literature and articles for parents to read on parenting issues. Teachers and
schools can schedule conferences and activities at school during convenient times for parents. Child-care
and activities can be provided for children while conferences are held. Meetings and activities can also be
held at community centers or locations more accessible to families without transportation. One author
mentioned the importance of providing food at meetings and activities when homeless families are involved.
However, this sounds like a good idea when any families of poverty are involved (McGee, 1996).
Parents should know that they are welcome to observe the class and spend time helping out in the
classroom, lunchroom or during activities. Parents should be encouraged to view student work,
accomplishments and portfolios when they come to school so they can become more aware of their child’s
abilities and talents and can discuss them with their children in a meaningful way. Parental involvement
sends a message to all children, not only the child of the involved parent, that school is important. Parental
involvement can also be contagious, especially when other children observe positive interaction among the
teacher, student and parent.
Teachers should keep parents informed of what is going on in the classroom and encourage parents
to talk to their children about school. A monthly calendar of topics and activities can help parents to discuss
topics both as they approach and after they have been studied. We can encourage parents to read with
their children or have their children read to them. A class trip to the local public library where every
student signs up to receive a library card is a great opportunity for children to get excited about literacy.
Parents can then receive mailings from the library as to free activities for children and adults that can help
to develop literacy and technology skills and give parents an opportunity to spend time with their children.
Libraries can also provide parents with resources for finding employment and writing resumes.

Brain-Based Research, Learning and Poverty

Knowing how the brain functions can have a great influence on how teachers address the emotional,
social, cognitive and physical learning of students. Because it is known that perceptions and emotions
contribute to learning, brain research provides rich possibilities for education. Research findings encourage
us to expose children to a variety of multi-sensory early learning experiences and encourage even very
young children to work with patterning, sorting, classifying, using number games, and exploring shapes.
Emotions are a significant aspect of life for children of poverty. Emotions have a connection to memory in
that they help to store information and also trigger recall. Emotions affect the actual capacity of children to
grasp ideas. One of the most prominent emotions in children of poverty is fear. Brain research indicates
that constant fear has a negative effect on learning. Additionally, a person’s physical and emotional well-
being are related to their ability to think and learn. Considering that children of poverty may be poorly
developed, both physically and emotionally, and that their home environments are often emotionally
stressful can explain why they often encounter difficulties in school (SEDL).
Classroom environments that are safe and trusting can enhance learning. Environments should be
high in challenge and low in threat. An atmosphere of relaxed alertness should be maintained. The living
environment of many poor children is high-stress, so one of our immediate concerns should be to keep the
stress level and perceived threat in the classroom at a low level. Fear and threat can cause the brain to
downshift. Downshifting is biological response that focuses solely on survival needs. Poor children often
have a feeling of helplessness, low self-esteem and may be fatigued. Thus, when their brains downshift
they will not go any further than addressing survival needs. New information and experiences will be shut
out. Attention will be affected because the brain keeps repeating thoughts or unresolved emotional issues.
Additionally, cortisol, a stress hormone, will be in abundance; and the result will be emotional volatility.
Downshifting can also cause behaviors such as vigilance and resistance or defiance. Students under these
conditions can only learn in concrete ways, not abstract ways. This needs to be considered when planning
lessons and when considering classroom management (Caine, 2000).
Cooperative learning and shared decision making can help to build a sense of community and foster
development of relationships, both student-teacher and student-student relationships. This can help
students of poverty to develop a sense of belonging and a sense of connectedness to their school (Kovalik
and Olsen, 1998). Helping students to find ways to handle strong emotions productively can help them to
deal with emotions such as anger, fear, hurt and tension in their daily life experiences and relationships. If
students can deal with these emotions effectively, they will be free to learn. Brain based research supports
the constructivist theory of learning: students build understandings based on prior knowledge and
experiences. Intellectual development is gradual and dependent on external stimulation. If there is
deprivation, as may be the case for children of poverty, their intellectual development will likely be
delayed.
We need to be aware of the emotional needs of our students. If children are lacking in emotional and
intellectual development, they may have difficulty with language development. Difficulty with language
development may prevent a child from developing higher order thinking skills that eventually lead to
independent problem solving. This will make it difficult for them to learn and develop several of Gardner’s
multiple intelligences. Gardner’s theory states that all seven intelligences are needed to function
productively in society. In order to help motivate students, teachers can use a teaching style that engages
all or most of the students, with the goal of exciting students about learning.
While all students possess all seven intelligences, each child comes to school with different areas
developed. Poor children may come to school with musical or bodily-kinesthetic intelligences more
developed due to the types of experiences and modeling children of poverty may have in their home
environments. This is also an indicator of the child’s learning style and possible strengths and weaknesses.
This information can tell teachers what a child’s learning style is by indicating how easy or difficult it is to
learn when lessons are presented in a certain way. Learning styles also allow teachers to properly assess
student progress (Brualdi, 2000).
Emotions have an impact on memory, as previously mentioned, because emotion drives attention
and attention drives learning and memory. If content has no motional relevance to students, they will not
recall it. Thus, when developing lessons and units we need to find topics that are both relevant to our
students’ lives and of interest to our students. Again, in order to do this, we need to have developed
relationships with our students. We cannot just guess at what they find interesting or what is relevant to
their lives. We need to find ways to relate content to their lives (Kovalik and Olsen, 1998).
Brain-based learning research has shown that the brain does not store memories, but recreates
them every time we recall. We have pathways for specific types of learning. We can use methods of
instruction to help students to access information stored in different pathways and retrieve memories
needed to learn new information (Jensen, 1998). Since the brain learns by capturing, sorting and holding
onto information, we should create classrooms and experiences to capitalize on the brain’s natural abilities
and promote student learning (Parry & Gregory, 1998).
Sensory memory decides what should go on to short-term memory and what should be discarded.
Our attention is focused on anything the brain finds new, exciting, pleasurable or threatening. The more
closely new information conforms to what the learner perceives as interesting, useful and emotionally
stimulating, the more likely it is to be integrated. This supports the importance of anticipatory set,
contingent value and engaging activities (Parry & Gregory, 1998).
We, as teachers, need to introduce information in new and exciting ways and make the learning experience
challenging yet enjoyable. Children must be exposed to language patterns and have interactions on which to build a
foundation of knowledge. New information should be introduced and examined in context in order to create a link for the
student to help recall the learning experience and the information learned. Retrieval is better in contextual, episodic, event-
oriented situations (Jensen, 1998). We need to refocus attention frequently, change activities and vary modalities to keep
the learner stimulated (Parry & Gregory, 1998). Lessons should be multi-sensory and employ the use of motion, rhythm
and manipulatives in an effort to facilitate learning (Jensen, 1998).
Activating prior learning at the start of a lesson is beneficial because it enables the students to bring
information up to the level of conscious thought, from long-term into short-term or working memory.
Making connections between separate pieces of information aids the formation of concepts or
generalizations, which increases the possibility the material will be transferred into long-term memory and
made available for recall. Poor children may need more attention in this area because of the level of their
emotional and intellectual development or lack of a knowledge or experience base.
Additionally, advance organizers help students to organize, integrate and retain information to be learned.
Research has shown a high correlation between the use of advance organizers and increased learning and retention of
material. Graphic organizers and maps organize knowledge into conceptual frameworks, making it easier to understand and
recall the information. They organize and present information in an accessible way. They display relationships, connect new
learning to prior learning and organize information into a more usable form (Fogarty, 1997).
Rehearsal is important because information can be held much longer if it is given conscious and continuous
attention. Repetition and review help to practice retrieval of information. Without rehearsal information stays in short term
memory for less than 20 seconds. This is an important concept when considering literacy and reading instruction. Children
of poverty often have difficulties with reading development. For a new reader or a reader with problems, the repetition and
patterns found in multi-sensory instruction help to keep information in short-term memory long enough for it to be processed
and transferred to long-term memory (Fogarty, 1997).
Brain congruent activities can help make the curriculum more meaningful. If the brain can access stored
information that is similar to new information, it is more likely to make sense of the new information. Activities should help
children to link new and existing information. This can help students see that they already possess some knowledge about
the new topic and are, in fact, dealing with information that has meaning or relevance for them. This is important for poor
children in helping boost self-esteem and confidence in learning situations. Since students retain and apply information in
meaningful ways when it is connected to real-life experiences, lessons that involve solving authentic problems and
simulations should be used. This can also help children of poverty to develop their problem solving skills and begin to
realize their abilities (Westwater and Wolfe, 2000).
One last issue in brain research has to do with nutrition and children of poverty. The foods that children eat or do
not eat affect their brain development, functioning and behavior. Chemicals released in response to both stress and from
foods can prevent higher order thinking. Children of poverty are exposed to great amounts of stress and their nutrition may
be poor. Chronic stress causes the body to deplete nutrients, inhibits the growth of dendrites and limits interconnections
among neurons. The results are: no nutrients are available for learning; thinking is slowed; learning is depressed. When
protein foods, often lacking in diets of poor children, are digested, tyrosine is released into the bloodstream. Tyrosine
becomes L-dopa in the brain and is then converted into dopamine. Dopamine produces a feeling of alertness,
attentiveness, quick thinking, motivation and mental energy. Fear of failure, isolation and trauma, usually present in poor
children, cause dopamine to be converted into norepinephrine. This causes alertness to be converted into aggression and
agitation. Thus, when nutrition is poor, children: have difficulty tolerating frustration and stress; become apathetic; and are
non-responsive, inactive and irritable (Given, 1998). How can they even attempt to learn?
Given (1998) also discusses serotonin, carbohydrates and their effect on brain functioning. Carbohydrate foods
cause the production of serotonin. Low levels of serotonin are associated with depression and low self-esteem.
Additionally, the body manufactures its own serotonin when an individual experiences positive self-esteem, success in
problem solving and other accomplishments. One implication for teachers is to find ways for all students to be successful,
thereby increasing levels of serotonin. Another implication is to make sure that students have access to the breakfast and
lunch programs available as well as nutritious snacks.
Implications for Curriculum Adaptations
I have discussed curriculum throughout the paper as it pertains to each dimension. In summary, the following are
highlights of what must be considered when developing curriculum in schools or classrooms where students of poverty are
involved.
• Provide all students with a rigorous curriculum.
• Have high expectations for all students.
• Make students responsible for their own learning.
• Provide support to students and their families. Involve parents. Early intervention is critical.
• Help children to succeed.
• Create an environment and use activities that foster mutual respect, resilience, self-esteem, self-
regulation and self-efficacy.
• Develop relationships with students to identify their needs (emotional and intellectual) and identify
their individual learning style.
• Emphasize that each student is unique with value, talents and abilities.
• Promote awareness and acceptance of diversity. Encourage students to recognize similarities as
well as differences.
• Use principles of constructivism to make learning interesting, valuable and relevant to students.
Teach for meaning.
• Provide developmentally appropriate, meaningful learning activities and use thematic or integrated
instruction, cooperative learning, inquiry and authentic learning.
Poverty should not be an excuse for us to expect less from our students. They indeed come to us with numerous
issues and challenges that interfere with their learning. We need to focus on their learning, find ways to help them
overcome these challenges and gain the most they can from their education. Their education is likely their one chance to
break the poverty cycle and escape. Just because they are poor doesn’t mean they cannot succeed. It is actually one of
the best reasons for them to succeed.
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