Education is very important for society as well as for individuals. A person would earn an average of $419 per week if he/she went to high school, but did not graduate, $595 per week if he/she completed high school, $1,039 if he/she went to college and earned a Bachelor’s degree, and over $1,200 if he/she earned a Masters degree. I’m not sure if those figures are current, but I do know there is a huge difference in the earning power of one who receives more education than a person who does not continue with his/her schooling.
It is quite possible that there is a problem between the rich and poor children in the school system and their learning abilities, but I believe that one study showed that a great many performed much better when there was no pressure with being measured by their ability, their view of how they would be seen and judged by others, or if they were the center of attention. These things would make me nervous enough where I may not pass the tests.
Inequality affects learning success through its influence on the ambitions, standards and esteem of people who are lower down on the social ladder. The same values that the middle class, teachers, and policy makers see as the path away from poverty and to success are not always seen that way by the people they are trying to teach.
In my opinion, the experiments Jane Elliott, performed on her students in 1968 was cruel and unusual punishment. I would imagine that most of these students were very much traumatized by the experiments. Who knows how long this affected them throughout their schooling, as it takes most people a very long time to get over the trauma they have been subjected to.
Large regional differences in educational successes are documented by the International Adult Literacy Survey, showing mainly that equality vs. inequality plays a large role even If the parents are well educated and are of high social status. In the chart, the U.K. and the U.S., where inequality is high, are displaying the highest literacy scores, and in Finland and Belgium, which are more equal, the lowest. I do not understand this concept; however, I do know that children learn best in thought-provoking surroundings where they feel certain that they can and will succeed.
There is great importance of the early years in a child’s life for later progression, as they begin to learn right from birth. The first few years of their life are critical for developing their brain. I witnessed this first hand with my brother’s child. Actually it began while Ryan was in the womb. Whenever his parents’ favorite music was playing, Ryan showed his displeasure by kicking a lot. They found that his favorite music was country and whenever they played it he was very calm. They even read to him while he was in the womb and after he was born, taught him the alphabet, etc. He is now 12 years old and is doing very well in school, in a band, and in sports. My brother and his wife would be considered middle class. I can’t imagine most rich people spending much quality time with their children, as they are usually too busy either working or socializing. Their children are brought up by a nanny and they are sent off to boarding schools. Poor people in many cases are tired when they get home from their multiple jobs to care properly for their children, no less be greatly involved with them. Other poor people who are unemployed may be detached completely from their children, leaving them to bring themselves up. As a result, they do not want to be in school to learn, thus quit school. However, there is a small portion of poor children who have lifted themselves above the squalor and gained high achievement in school, and then went on to become very successful in life. This was not brought out in any of the experiments that were performed or studies that were done. Why? I agree that inequality does play a huge role in everyone’s lives—whether they become successful or not.
Maternity leave laws help mothers bond with their child, which is very helpful in nurturing the child. Other programs, such as provisions of family allowances, tax benefits, social housing, health care, programs to promote work/life balance, enforcing child support payments and high-quality early childhood education help alleviate the need for therapeutic education.
In her book Educational Failure and Working Class White Children in Britain, Gillian Evans shows how the classroom activities are expected to prepare children to play and relate at home, but it is not the way working class families are bringing up their children. They resent the way the educational system imposes on them middle-class values, because they are fearful of losing their ways that they highly regard. This does not mean that they don’t have dreams of advancing themselves; however, in more unequal countries it is more difficult for them to acquire these opportunities and what they expect. It is unfortunate that the ambitions of children in countries where educational attainment is lower, children who want above average jobs will be unable to attain them because they will lack the qualifications to obtain them. Inequality brings about unrealistic aspirations so it causes to great disappointment to children. Also regrettable is the fact that these children will not come to this realization until they have completed their schooling. Why can’t they accomplish their dreams? As I mentioned earlier, some have made their dream of success come true. Why can’t society as a whole assist these children to become what they want to, instead of putting them back into the hole that they have dug themselves out of?
Pamela Kaye 