How come public schools in poorer neighborhoods aren’t as good as public schools in affluent neighborhoods?

Question

With everything going on in our nation (USA) and around the world, this question has come up many times: How come public schools in poorer neighborhoods aren’t as good as public schools in affluent neighborhoods?

Many people have been telling me that some states, like CA, have a general fund for public schools where they collect tax money and distribute it amongst schools evenly. Whether that fund exists or not, how come, for example, LAUSD schools in Crenshaw, CA are worse than schools in more affluent neighborhoods of Los Angeles.

I am having trouble finding articles or even understanding about this. I was hoping someone with more understanding can explain.

In: Other

Answer 1

Although one anecdote doesnt make a statistic I can tell you about my wife who is a good teacher and has worked in both poor and more affluent schools.

It is not the resources available or the quality of teaching, it is the amount of time the teacher has to spend actually teaching.

In the poor schools a lot of effort is spent in coping with behavioural problems, bullying, truancy, vandalism, attitude, poor attention span and the negative affects of the kids homelife and bad parenting that they bring into the classroom. Schools are noisier, control is difficult, violence is higher and many of the kids are having problems simply coping with life which gives them little time or mental space to take an interest in education.

In the more affluent areas, kids arrive looking forward to school, listen attentively, participate happily in activities and are just bursting to learn. Behaviour is rarely a problem. Truancy almost non-existent.

I don’t want to suggest from this that poor=bad kids or even bad parents but poverty brings with it a whole host of challenges that in many cases overwhelm the kids and their families and result in behavioural problems that make teaching difficult.

Incidentally, this is in the UK where, if anything, schools in poor areas get more money than elsewhere so it is not about budgets, resources or teacher’s salaries. It is also not about teaching ability. My wife reckons the best teachers she has known were those in poorer schools who could only do that job if they were totally dedicated and at the top of their profession.