Confront Poverty to Improve Education

by Juan Carlos Ordóñez at www.ocpp.org

Oregon’s path to achieving excellence in education just got steeper.

No, this development has nothing to do with Oregon’s recent decision to seek a waiver of the No Child Left Behind federal law, which itself may be a good move. Indeed, it has nothing to do with testing, teachers or even schools.

Rather, the pall over education was the news that Oregon’s child poverty rate increased again last year, with more than one in five kids in the state living in poverty. For until Oregon makes sustained progress in eradicating poverty, excellence in education will remain out of reach.

It’s no secret that children who grow up in poverty face serious obstacles to learning. Compared to better-off children, poor kids are more likely to be exposed to pollution, toxins, noise and crime. They are more likely to experience family instability and separation, as well as hunger and violence.

http://www.ocpp.org/2011/10/03/cp20111003confront-poverty-improve-education/