Culture of Poverty Coined by Oscar Lewis extrapolation from small sample size to rash generalization Flood of research agrees

ees there is no such thing as a culture of poverty Differences in values/behaviors among poor equal to those between poor and wealthy Stereotypes, however false, have crept into mainstream thinking as unquestioned fact Myth: Poor people are unmotivated and have weak work ethics oor working adults spend more hours working than wealthier counterparts 83% of children from low-income families have at least one employed parent ~60% of children have at least one parent who works full-time and year-round Many poor adults must work two, three, four jobs Myth: Poor parents uninvolved in children's learning (they don't value education) Low-income parents less likely to attend school functions due to less access, not less care Myth: Poor people are linguistically deficient What often are assumed to be deficient varities of English (Appalachian, black), are no less sophisticated than so-called standard English Myth: Poor people tend to abuse drugs and alcohol Poor people no more likely than wealthier counterparts to abuse alcohol or drugs Drug sales more visible in poor neighborhoods, but in reality drug use equally distributed among poor, middle, wealthy Considering alcohol, wealthy are more likely than poor to be substance abusers Culture of Classism Most destructive tool deficit theory Leads us into low expectations for low-income students We blame the students instead of the situation Situation: Poor suffer disproportionately the effects of nearly ever major social ill Lack of health care, living-wage jobs, safe&affordable housing limits potential Most of us, as educators, feel powerless to address these bigger issues But at the very least, we should tackle classism in our own schools and classrooms