If we can look past the stereotypes and myths into the scientific research and practical methods to combat the negative affects on the brain caused by living in poverty, we can raise up a whole new demographic of children to be effective learners in the classroom. He states that, “the culture of poverty concept is constructed from a collection of smaller stereotypes which, however false, seem to have crept into mainstream thinking as unquestioned fact.” (Gorski, 2008) He’s overall premise is the fact that there are myths associated with those in poverty (higher drug use, no work ethic, etc.) which are false. I also appreciate the examples put forth on the subject by Paul Gorski in his article dealing with myths and realities of the culture of poverty. The fact that it is brain-based, and that there are proven strategies to combat this makes me a more effective educator.
As a teacher, I always faced the reality of socioeconomic status as something I could ignore, or something I could simply avoid because there was “nothing I can do about it.” The simple idea that “The symptoms of poverty are not simply states of mind they actually change the brain,” (Jensen) completely changes the argument for me.
In my study, I have seen many opinions which seem to focus more on political situations and decisions rather than on the possible physiological and educational aspects. There aren’t enough words to describe my complete fascination with this subject.
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