Equal Education In America Essay Research Paper

Equal Education In America Essay, Research Paper

How many times has the United Negro College Fund aired the commercial including the phrase: A mind is a terrible thing to waste? The world would be rich to equate the repetitions with dollar bills. This famous slogan was a means to promote higher education. Unfortunately, there are many people who do not fit the description of a college student due to poverty. An uneducated parent feels powerless in this society. A young teenage mother may feel that there is no feasible schedule possible to fulfill her dreams. An elementary student looks to his parents and teachers for answers to the question marks surrounding his environment of lack. The people that are in these types of situations are held down by poverty. Children who have financial hardship comprise a sizeable portion of Texas public schools. According to an article published in Family Circle magazine, teenage births increased by more than sixty-five percent during the 1980 s. There have been studies that prove persons receiving government assistance i.e. welfare have high illiteracy rates. What is the solution for the people suffering from these impoverished circumstances? It is of utmost importance that we prioritize and organize to set forth change . Our immediate attention as a nation will only make our economy stronger by putting a halt to the cycle. Poverty has the power to stagnate achievement. However, knowledge is power no matter where one may live. In order to break the power of poverty we need to educate our parents, offer vocational training for young single mothers, and encourage pursuit of higher education through the community.

Children of poor and poorly-educated parents are often caught in a vicious circle of educational failures. (Block 72) Their rate of success is much lower than the rate of their middle-class peers. This is largely contributed to the level of education one receives and is able to pass on to his children. Many under privileged people are unarmed with the necessary knowledge to steer their child towards educational improvement. There are also many people are unaware of scholarship programs and what it takes to apply for one. If the information were readily available many would still be unable to adhere to a specific goal plan due to the absence of strategic planning and the high illiteracy rate of adults. These ideals must be instilled at an early age by the parent. Failure to do so results in an immediate disadvantage to the child. According to a 1993 federal report: Only about forty-five percent of high-poverty homes receive a newspaper, nearly half the rate of higher-income homes. About fifteen percent lack dictionaries compared to three percent for more affluent families. Poor parents spend more time doing chores with their children, while other parents take their children on educational outings. Poor parents are less likely to have finished high school. ( Bazeley 727) These facts come with great consequence for the child and are great examples of what happens in the average low income home. The time is overdue for parents of poor homes to become more active in their child s education from early childhood. There are open Senate meetings and hearings that the common citizen can sit in on and react to but it takes someone who is willing to obtain drive to react for the sake of their future in America. It should become natural instinct for a parent to become actively involved in the pursuit of education for their child to excel. It is important for parents to get strong and learn in order to insure that their child will not experience life the same way they did.

When people use the literary skills they are learning in their work , they not only improve their literacy and productivity levels but also increase their language use with their children and in their communities. (Lewis 186) This supports the need for vocational training for mothers on welfare who are usually teenagers. Offering education to single parents and teenage mothers would also give them a better foundation in which to build their family upon. The real key to helping the young mothers is early prevention. There is a high mortality rate among teenagers who experience early pregnancy. It is a signal for an automatic start on the road to government dependency such as subsidized housing and welfare. Usually the children are born with drug and/or alcohol dependencies which automatically puts them in a negative position when it comes to their education. This escalates the need to reach the teen mothers when they are about to reach their sexual peak. The main focus is to guide the teenager into practicing abstinence delaying sexual activity. This job ties into the need for the parent to be more involved with the education process and progress. However once a child is born into that situation the young mother is placed in the position to be responsible. Vocational training would provide the foundation and confidence that the mother on welfare needs. This will allow her to boost her self esteem and will automatically affect the child in a positive way.

The most important of all things is to offer encouragement while the child is young. It is very rare that a child will possess the drive to overcome adversity while he is young. It is the parents responsibility to offer the goal of a higher education. Through the attainment of higher education the walls of pove