POVERTY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnf_zs

4gy8s

EDUCATIONAL RESPONSES TO POVERTY

Philca, Stephanie, Mandi, Chloe

INTRODUCTION TO ERP Who is poor in Canada? Why is it important to address this

issue? Educational responses to poverty Negative effect of poverty.

WHO’S POOR IN CANADA? Definitions

Absolute poverty Relative poverty

Statistics Canada: LICO (Low-income cut-off) 1994, 1995 2009, 2010

How Canada’s Child Poverty Rate Compares to Other Countries

Single Mothers Higher risk More effected than the rest of the population

Absolute Poverty- describes a scarcity of basic necessity such as shelter,

running water, and food. (Uncommon in Canada) Relative Poverty-

a more subjective concept referring to an income insufficient to reach the average standard of living in a given society. (The majority of poor families struggle with relative poverty)

*Statistics Canada applies a relative measure known as the low-income cut-off (LICO), whereby families must spend 20 percent more of their income than the average family on food, shelter, and clothing in order to be recognized as living in poverty. In 2007, 11 percent of the Canadian school-aged population (5 to 24 years old) lived in such circumstances.

1994

1 person 9,017 10,331 11,525 11,671 13,800

2 persons 10,974 12,574 14,027 14,204 16,795

3 persons 13,665 15,657 17,466 17,687 20,914

4 persons 17,048 19,533 21,791 22,066 26,092

5 persons 19,413 22,243 24,814 25,126 29,710

6 persons 21,529 24,668 27,520 27,866 32,950

7 or more persons

23,646 27,093 30,225 30,605 36,189

1995

1 person 9,227 10,560 11,780 11,929 14,106

2 persons 11,231 12,856 14,338 14,519 17,168

3 persons 13,985 16,004 17,854 18,079 21,378

4 persons 17,446 19,967 22,274 22,555 26,670

5 persons 19,866 22,736 25,364 25,683 30,369

6 persons 22,032 25,215 28,130 28,484 33,680

7 or more persons

24,198 27,694 30,895 31,284 36,991

Statistics Canada Low-Income Cut-Off Levels

2009

1 person 12,050 13,791 15,384 15,579 18,421

2 persons 14,666 16,785 18,725 18,960 22,420

3 persons 18,263 20,900 23,316 23,610 27,918

4 persons 22,783 26,075 29,089 29,455 34,829

5 persons 25,944 29,692 33,124 33,541 39,660

6 persons 28,773 32,929 36,736 37,198 43,984

7 or more persons

31,602 36,167 40,346 40,854 48,308

2010

1 person 12,271 14,044 15,666 15,865 18,759

2 persons 14,936 17,094 19,069 19,308 22,831

3 persons 18,598 21,283 23,744 24,043 28,430

4 persons 23,202 26,554 29,623 29,996 35,469

5 persons 26,421 30,237 33,732 34,157 40,388

6 persons 29,301 33,534 37,410 37,881 44.791

7 or more persons

32,182 36,831 41,087 41,604 49,195

Statistics Canada Low-Income Cut-Off Levels

HOW CANADA’S CHILD POVERTY RATE COMPARES TO OTHER

COUNTRIES http://www.conferenceboard.ca/hcp/deta

ils/society/child-poverty.aspx

Report card (Canada has a ‘C’ grade since the 1980s) Canada ranks 13th out of 17

peer countries. More than one in seven children in Canada lives in

poverty Canada’s child poverty rate increased between the

mid-1990s and the mid-2000s.

SINGLE MOTHERS IN CANADA More At Risk for Poverty• Child poverty is not evenly distributed across Canada

as seen in the previous slides. It varies from province to province as well as between rural and urban areas. One common trend, however, is that in all provinces more than 50% of single-parent mothers live in poverty.

• The majority of poor children are living in two-parent families with a head who has less than high school education but has been employed full time for the year. The risk of being poor, however, is greatest for a child six years old or younger who is supported by a single mother with less than a high school education working part time or not at all. • Those who grow up poor have a higher likelihood of

being poor in adulthood

SINGLE MOTHERS IN CANADA CONTINUED…• Reasons For Being At Higher Risk• There is an increasing proportion of part-time,

short-term, no-benefit jobs in Canada• Minimum wage rates in Canada have fallen

steadily in real terms over the past decade• 1975- two wage earners at minimum wage

would have earned enough income to put them about 10% above the poverty line

• By 1985 the same couple would have been more than 15% below the poverty line

• Our estimates for 2010. Single mother working minimum wage ($9.40/hr x 40 hours per week x 50 weeks per year= $18,800 before taxes- federal taxes= $15, 980. Already below the LICO without even subtracting provincial taxes.

REASONS FOR BEING AT HIGHER RISK CONTINUED...

• Marriage breakdown separation or divorce• The Economic Council of Canada estimated that

divorce resulted in an average 40% decrease in annual income for women, and that the decrease remained severe for several years, whereas male incomes increased in the year after divorce

• Social assistance rates across Canada are too low to lift recipients out of poverty. Moreover, almost half of the working poor receive no benefits from unemployment insurance or social assistance. • Government payments to the poor do reduce the

impact of poverty, though many of these payments (Eg. 80% of unemployment payouts) go to families or individuals who are not poor.

• Canada spends a relatively small proportion of its wealth on income support for the poor

CHART OF PERCENTAGE OF THE SCHOOL-AGE POPULATION (AGES 5 TO 24) IN LOW INCOME, BY TYPE OF LIVING ARRANGEMENT, CANADA AND PROVINCES, 2007

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/81-599-x/2009004/c-g/c-g1-eng.htm

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE? Affection (to the kids and school) Poverty = fail to succeed? Lack of attention Maynes (1990, 1993)

recognition of child poverty’s effect BUT…

NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF POVERTY

Key barrier to educational attainment and educational improvement in Canada

Negative influence on students’ behavior, achievement, and retention in school

“Individuals who are poor…are confronted with an unremitting succession of negative life events (eviction, physical illness, criminal assault) in the context of chronically stressful, ongoing life conditions such as inadequate housing and dangerous neighborhoods”

Neuroscience of poverty: implications for teaching (article from EDUC 402)Chronic stress in children’s lives…makes emotional memories more salient and

easily attained than factual knowledge and learning obtained in school

Coherence Theory: Neurophenomenology Importance of being well nourished for brain –based learning

Peer influences can affect self esteem and willingness to interact with others

FREEDOM WRITERS

Low SES, gang violence,racial and ethnic diversity

Working through these issues as a teacher and overcoming the additionalstresses related to poverty

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYlVrL1FYro

EDUCATIONAL RESPONSES TO POVERTY

Improve instruction: Vygotsky approach to learning

Educate the public: Create awareness

Community involvement

Alison Redford: A step in the right direction http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX20xQ

9JvbY

DICUSSION Who’s responsibility do you think it is? Many schools agree that this is an issue

but they do nothing about it. What steps do you think should be taken to yield results? Do you think a higher GDP of the country would help?

What connections can the school make with the community to generate funding for these children in poverty?