things can a low-income person not afford that a high-income person can afford? But we don’t go there for now.
“So,” I ask, “these students who come from families who don’t make a lot of money, they have lower vocabularies. Why do they have lower vocabularies? What do income and vocabulary have in common?”
Slowly we get to the part about how if neither parent is home, especially when children are building their vocabularies, it is difficult to acquire a large vocabulary. I tell them about all of the baby books I’ve read that say you’re supposed to read toyour baby as early as when he is in the womb. Once he comes home, you should talk to him in complete sentences, not baby talk. They think this is funny and interesting.
As a class we interpret the data and eventually the goal is for us to create an outline. But suddenly the class isn’t interested in the outline. They want to go back to the part of the article that asserted that low-income students are not as likely to be high achievers. The same boys (and I don’t know why, but they’re all boys) continue to raise their hands and ask questions and tell me why the article is wrong. Just because your family doesn’t make a lot of money doesn’t mean you can’t do well in school. To them, one thing has nothing to do with the other.
Daniel Stevenson is a short, slender African American boy with large glasses and a backpack that takes up half his body. He is a vocal student and has no missing assignments. His hand goes up as I attempt to move on to the next set of data.
“Wait a minute, Mrs. Taylor. Are you trying to say that just because the
parents
don’t make a lot of money, the
kid
doesn’t do well in school?”
“Daniel, that is a great question. But let me remind you,
I’m
not saying anything. I’m reading the data from the article just like you are. The data suggest that students from low-income homes have a lower vocabulary, which hurts them when they get to school. You seem to have a different opinion.”
“Well, I’m just saying vocabulary is one thing, but what if that student works really hard in his classes? Why can’t he be successful then?”
“Mrs. Taylor.” Matt Davis’s hand goes up before I can address Daniel’s question. Matt always likes to tell me when his hand is up. Matt’s mother e-mails me once a week to check on his progress.
I call on Matt. “So what this article is saying is that if wecome from a low-income home, we’re already doomed from the beginning.”
“Do you think that’s what it is saying?” I ask.
“Well, I don’t think it’s right, but that’s what it says.” He throws his hand toward the overhead screen.
“But let me ask you this. This is a
statistic
. What does that mean anyway? What do we need to take into account when we look at a statistic?”
Several hands go up. The usual look of apathy has escaped their tired eyes.
How interesting
, I think to myself.
I call on Julia Scott. She is very bright and can usually articulate ideas that the rest of the class struggles with. And we haven’t heard from a girl in a while.
“It doesn’t mean that that’s what will happen to everyone. It just means that this author studied a group of low-income students and high-income students and that the low-income students had a harder time being successful in school.”
Daniel Stevenson’s hand goes up again. He starts talking before I can call on him.
“What if you only have one parent? Then your family income is automatically lower than families with two parents.” He smiles a little as he says this. He wants to be discreet in asking the question, but if there is one thing that ninth-graders are completely incapable of, it is being discreet. I know that Daniel lives with his mother. His father is out of the picture, though I don’t know why. Adam Dolman, who sits two rows in front of Daniel, lost his father two years ago when he was in the seventh grade; his mom told me about it at
“So,” I ask, “these students who come from families who don’t make a lot of money, they have lower vocabularies. Why do they have lower vocabularies? What do income and vocabulary have in common?”
Slowly we get to the part about how if neither parent is home, especially when children are building their vocabularies, it is difficult to acquire a large vocabulary. I tell them about all of the baby books I’ve read that say you’re supposed to read toyour baby as early as when he is in the womb. Once he comes home, you should talk to him in complete sentences, not baby talk. They think this is funny and interesting.
As a class we interpret the data and eventually the goal is for us to create an outline. But suddenly the class isn’t interested in the outline. They want to go back to the part of the article that asserted that low-income students are not as likely to be high achievers. The same boys (and I don’t know why, but they’re all boys) continue to raise their hands and ask questions and tell me why the article is wrong. Just because your family doesn’t make a lot of money doesn’t mean you can’t do well in school. To them, one thing has nothing to do with the other.
Daniel Stevenson is a short, slender African American boy with large glasses and a backpack that takes up half his body. He is a vocal student and has no missing assignments. His hand goes up as I attempt to move on to the next set of data.
“Wait a minute, Mrs. Taylor. Are you trying to say that just because the
parents
don’t make a lot of money, the
kid
doesn’t do well in school?”
“Daniel, that is a great question. But let me remind you,
I’m
not saying anything. I’m reading the data from the article just like you are. The data suggest that students from low-income homes have a lower vocabulary, which hurts them when they get to school. You seem to have a different opinion.”
“Well, I’m just saying vocabulary is one thing, but what if that student works really hard in his classes? Why can’t he be successful then?”
“Mrs. Taylor.” Matt Davis’s hand goes up before I can address Daniel’s question. Matt always likes to tell me when his hand is up. Matt’s mother e-mails me once a week to check on his progress.
I call on Matt. “So what this article is saying is that if wecome from a low-income home, we’re already doomed from the beginning.”
“Do you think that’s what it is saying?” I ask.
“Well, I don’t think it’s right, but that’s what it says.” He throws his hand toward the overhead screen.
“But let me ask you this. This is a
statistic
. What does that mean anyway? What do we need to take into account when we look at a statistic?”
Several hands go up. The usual look of apathy has escaped their tired eyes.
How interesting
, I think to myself.
I call on Julia Scott. She is very bright and can usually articulate ideas that the rest of the class struggles with. And we haven’t heard from a girl in a while.
“It doesn’t mean that that’s what will happen to everyone. It just means that this author studied a group of low-income students and high-income students and that the low-income students had a harder time being successful in school.”
Daniel Stevenson’s hand goes up again. He starts talking before I can call on him.
“What if you only have one parent? Then your family income is automatically lower than families with two parents.” He smiles a little as he says this. He wants to be discreet in asking the question, but if there is one thing that ninth-graders are completely incapable of, it is being discreet. I know that Daniel lives with his mother. His father is out of the picture, though I don’t know why. Adam Dolman, who sits two rows in front of Daniel, lost his father two years ago when he was in the seventh grade; his mom told me about it at
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