Poverty and special ed

The claim

Students living in poverty are more likely to be identified as candidates for special education services.

The facts

The link between poverty and special education is related to last week’s topic, the over-representation of minorities in special education. As I wrote in that blog post, many researchers have found that minorities are over-represented in special education classes. Most of those researchers believe that poverty is a major factor in minority students’ academic troubles. Coping with a disability is stressful for all children and families, but it is even more stressful when the family is living in poverty. Research shows a connection between poverty and disability rate, as children and adults in poverty are more likely to have higher rates of disabilities, and people with disabilities are more likely to live in poverty.

Based on his work at the National Center for Children in Poverty, Lawrence Aber reported that nearly 40% of children living in the United States often live a paycheck away from the poverty line. Although Aber found that poverty affects children from all races and ethnicities, the poverty rate among African Americans and Hispanics is three times as high as the poverty rate among whites. Persons living in urban and rural areas are more likely to live in poverty, but rates in suburban communities are rising as well. Aber also points out that even if you include all demographic data (race, ethnicity, gender, community classification) the U.S. would still have the highest poverty rate of any industrialized nation in the world.

Research shows that disability rates are rising among children living in poverty, while rates for children above the poverty line have remained steady. Many factors shape a child’s learning and development and can be categorized into social and biological factors. According to the research, living in poverty increases the exposure to these risk factors that compromise human development and often increase the need for special education services.

Biological factors are factors that are associated with the nature of human beings and their biological makeup. Some of the biological factors that are cause for concern in children living in poverty include lead and other toxin exposure, prenatal exposure to alcohol/drugs, and malnourishment. Most research has focused more on the more factors that can influence child development, especially for children living in poverty. For example, most children who live below the poverty line experience factors such as parental stress and poor child care settings early on in life. Limited access to books, poor quality childcare, and less interaction time between children and their primary caregivers are also contributors. These factors have a tremendous impact on children’s school readiness and achievement.

According to the National Research Council, the most influential factor of successful child development is the relationships developed between the child and their primary caregiver. These relationships are often — though not always — strained when the family is living in poverty. Research shows that families living in poverty tend to engage in less verbal discussion, which can limit a child’s vocabulary development. The amount of literacy tasks or exposure to books also tends be lower in these situations. Additionally, disciplinary principles and influential parenting approaches also tend to be lower among families living in poverty. According to studies, poor students are typically more likely to drop out of school or be suspended or expelled from school. School districts with high rates of suspensions and expulsions tend to have higher special education referral rates.

Conclusion

According to the available research, this claim can be considered to be fact: Families living in poverty are more often exposed to the biological and social risk factors that influence special education services. This correlation suggests a need for more attention from our educational system and for additional research in this field. Until it is recognized that poverty is playing a big role in the underachievement of America’s youth, improvements will not be made.

Surprisingly, the National Center for Children in Poverty found that the majority of people they surveyed did not believe that poverty was the major issue facing America’s children today. It is unacceptable for the educational system not to serve these children as well as it serves the middle or upper class. Children living in poverty have the same capacity to learn as their better-off peers; the difference is in their access to the proper care and resources. More attention to providing these resources can reduce the alarming rate of special education services reported for children living in poverty.