Life Outside School

By: Loredana Petriello

Not only are students from low-income areas ill equipped with tools at school, but they also have a lot of problems to deal with outside of school that other students from higher-income areas may not have. Students that come from low-income families usually have to start getting a job at an early age so they can help support their family. They may have to work long, tough hours, on top of going to school and getting an education. What happens in some cases is that students may drop out of school because they become discouraged and don’t see themselves going anywhere. By dropping out, they will be able to work more hours and make more money. “…it’s just unfair to expect students who face so many challenges outside of school to do well at school. And, many will say that until the parents or the communities or poverty itself changes, our schools are powerless to do much more than they are doing now.” (Haycock) Unless we give them the proper tools and a fair chance at education, we can’t really expect them to be on the same level as the rest of the students in the country. It is unfair to low-income students that they cannot be on the same level as everyone else just because they come from a lower-income family. That shouldn’t determine how well they do in school and how far they get in life, but unfortunately that is becoming the case for most students. These students simply cannot succeed with what they are given at school because what they are given is not enough.

Works Cited

Haycock, Kati. "National Journal Online -- Education Experts –

Consensus? Bipartisanship? Really?" National Journal

Online. National Journal Group, 4 Feb. 2011. Web.

1 Mar. 2011.