Michelle Cortes
Professor Schloeman
ENG 101
13 November 2014
Poverty and Literacy: Report
Abstract
Poverty and literacy are connected in many different ways, however most of them are
negative. By looking at the eSources provided by Professor Schloeman, it is seen that because of
an absence of educational background in the home, we see an absence of literacy in the children.
Another perspective is the materials needed to teach children properly, and how the lack of these
materials affects their learning, as well as the stress levels involved.
Introduction
“According to a Department of Health and Human Services report the percentage of
children living in ‘extreme poverty’ doubled since 1975—at the end of the decade the number
stood at 10 percent, or 6.3 million children.” (Baughman). Poverty is a huge issue not just in
America, but all over the world. Although there are many different aspects in which poverty
impacts, one of the larger viewpoints is the effects it has on education. Literacy is a very
important part of life, and it seems as though coming from wealthier families allows children and
adults to have a more advanced understanding of what schools are teaching. Some ways that
literacy and education are affected by poverty include lack of exposure to education all together,
lack of materials, the stress levels it causes, and the effect it has on education at a college level.
Methods
For this specific report I used sources from Gale Virtual Reference Library, OneFile, and
Opposing Viewpoints. The most helpful data base was Gale Virtual Reference Library because
of its simple search tool and simplicity.
Findings and Discussion
The family that a child is born into has an extremely large impact on the child’s life,
including how it effects their educational opportunities. By falling below the poverty line, it
becomes much easier to focus on the lack of basic needs instead of a child’s education. If a child
is not exposed to something, obviously said child will not know what that something is. When a
child is born into al already illiterate family that is what they are taught, illiteracy. One example
are the parents/ caregivers. If a child’s guardian was not given the education that they should
