Poverty in the United States Essay

In the United States, poverty is mainly classified into two categories, absolute poverty and relative poverty. It is measured in terms of poverty threshold which comprehend poverty as a lack of those goods and services that most of conventional people in the society take them for granted. Absolute poverty is defined as the lack of least amount of food and shelter indispensable for maintaining life. On the other hand, relative poverty exemplifies how income relates to the median income and not necessarily that a person is lacking anything. The results from the statistics indicate that approximately 20 percent of the American population lives in poverty. One main cause of poverty in America is existence of culture of poverty which passes from generation to another generation (Mink, O’Connor, 2004). Based on the conception that anything is possible in America, the poor are thus said to be the source of their poverty. They always prefer to live life for the moment and show less interest about the future. As a result, poverty continues to increase as the underprivileged people feel lesser, unreceptive, desperate and incapable. Fluctuations of economic performance in U. S have necessitated the high rate of poverty. For instance, during recessions, the rate of unemployment increases, working hours are abridged and family incomes stagnates thus leading to poverty. Various aspects of educational system can play a major role in curbing this problem. For instance, teachers need to be tuned in to the culture of poverty and be sensitive to the enormous assortment of needs that children of poverty bring to the classroom (Mink, O’Connor, 2004). Educational systems operate in various rules and norms that will allow harmonious relationship between the cultural values of the affected children and values of prosperity and wealth emphasized in schools. References Mink, G. & O’Connor, A. (2004). Poverty in the United States: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics and Policy, Volume 1. London: Routledge