A Mind Shaped by Poverty:Ten Things Educators Should Know by Regenia Rawlinson

Author:Regenia Rawlinson
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 9781936236725
Publisher: iUniverse
Published: 2011-08-08T00:00:00+00:00

6

Second-Rate

I believed second-hand clothing was all I could ever hope for. Growing up, I had two older sisters and a host of female cousins. My mother made much of our clothing, and a lot passed down from my sisters or my cousins. My sisters passed their clothes to me after they outgrew them. They often needed mending but were in good enough condition to wear to school. I passed my clothes down to my younger sisters if they were not worn too badly or torn beyond repair. My cousins passed their clothes down to us when they outgrew them or just did not want them any longer. I did not own lots of clothes, and those I had were usually not stylish. Other students snickered, pointed, and giggled. I knew they meant me, though they never admitted it when I confronted them. My clothes were not always pressed. I did not try to make them look nice or color coordinate them. I just put them on, and that was that. I really did not care.

My parents raised hogs, cows, and chickens. They killed a hog and a cow to obtain enough meat to last during winter. They cleaned the intestines (chitterlings) and cooked the feet, liver, and head immediately. My mother cooked the chitterlings separately from the rest and used the liver and head to make a hog-head cheese or hash. She fed us the liver the next morning, fried with gravy over it.

We ate the whole hog: liver, head, and intestines. These were not the choicest cuts. I thought only poor black people ate them. I have to admit, while they did not look inviting, they tasted good. My mother is a great cook. We ate them because my parents could not afford to throw anything away. We had to eat second rate.

Many children growing up in poverty have to settle for second best for a lot of the time. Their parents often shop at thrift stores or flea markets. They live in second-rate neighborhoods in second-rate housing. They attend second-rate schools and are treated like second-rate citizens by many. They use second-rate transportation. Their parents work second-rate jobs. They often receive second-rate medical attention.

In the classroom, a second-rate attitude shows up in the way students approach work. They are accustomed to second-rate things, so they may not understand what first-rate looks, feels, or tastes like. The work they produce is acceptable to them and would be acceptable to others in their environment, but many teachers grade it as second-rate. Some teachers say the child is lazy and unmotivated to do good work. Others may accuse the child of rushing and working haphazardly. In fact, the child may have spent many careful hours on the work. Parents often comment on how hard their children work.

Melissa was a tenth grade student and my counselee. Reviewing her records, I noticed that her standardized tests scores were high, and she made mostly As in coursework. Yet she decided to take mostly technical preparatory courses.

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