Inequalities amongst education on the basis of income has been a heavily discussed topic since it first arose around the 1970s. No matter how many articles, books, and research go into this issue, a solution has yet to be seen. Impoverished students walk into class the first day already behind and as the years progress, so does the achievement gap. The low-funded schools they attend and the results that arise due to the socioeconomic status of their families are only two of the many factors that contribute to this discrepancy. There are gross inequalities amongst low-income and economically disadvantaged districts, causing unfairness in educational opportunities. There are over 5.5 million students enrolled in educational programs. These are students who, despite their capacity for opportunity or abundance of interest in learning, are not provided a quality education due to their financial status. From providing enough resources to a safe learning environment, these issues are all encompassed when it comes to low-income schools and they need to be addressed because every student deserves the best opportunities to succeed and an education is key in order to do so.

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This research will focus on low-income students and the ways in which their academic performance is connected to the type of education they receive and the financial status of their families. Questions pursued are what factors affect academic performance? Does money make a difference when it comes to education? Can more money help close the achievement gap in economically disadvantaged school districts? In what ways are low-income schools and students at a disadvantage? What can be done to help low-income students who are already behind? The following bibliographic entries are categorized alphabetically.

 Beatty, Alexandra S. “Schools alone cannot close achievement gap: a multifaceted strategy can complement school reform by addressing the many out-of-school factors that affect academic performance.” Issues in Science and Technology, vol. 29, no. 3, 2013, p. 69+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A331081926/OVIC?u=linde32981&sid=OVIC&xid=29453fc1. Accessed 5 Nov. 2018.

The weight of this study finds that factors contributing to academic performance goes beyond the classroom. Health and development, families and home environment, program responses, and intersection points in a child’s life all play a big part in a student’s life and chances of success in school. The importance of these factors is multiplied when applied to low-income students because they start school already behind and have a higher possibility of being exposed to things like inadequate school and home environments. This article also places a importance on early childhood intervention and displays how some of the most successful schools in the world are ones that invest in early childhood development and sustain the support throughout. This article would be helpful for the research paper because it shows how the socioeconomic status of a child is closely tied with the quality of education they receive and, thus, their academic performance.

Brown, Goldy, III, et al. “Leading for low income students: results from a study on school leaders in low income elementary schools.” Education, vol. 138, no. 1, 2017, p. 68+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A506951824/OVIC?u=linde32981&sid=OVIC&xid=60ed027b. Accessed 5 Nov. 2018.

This research looks into the connection between effective leadership and increases in student achievement. It included a survey given to one-hundred and eight teachers in six low-income schools, and research was conducted based on their responses and the success, or lack of, these schools have already achieved. Of the six, three schools had won statewide or receive national recognition for closing the achievement gap and three were low performing. This research looks into why there is such a big difference between these schools and if it has to do with the leadership that is displayed. The findings show how vital it is to have effective leadership, especially in low-income schools, and how an absence of it can mean a world of difference when it comes to student achievement. This article would be a helpful aid to the research paper because it displays a factor of education that could be having a drastic effect on low-income student’s learning and school outcome. By putting an importance on providing and displaying school leadership, the achievement gap present in low-income schools could be significantly reduced.

Camera, Lauren. “Poor Students Rarely See Dollars From ‘Free College’ Programs.” U.S. News – The Report, Sept. 2018, pp. C34–C36. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.lindenwood.edu: 2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=131781657&site=ehost-live.

 Lauren Camera, an education reporter at U.S. News and World Report, looks into the politics behind providing free college programs and how there has been findings that these ‘free’ or debt-free’ college programs are helping students from middle and upper-income families, excluding where most of the help is needed for low-income students and families. It is shown that there is money out there to aid low-income students in making it to and through college, but most of this funding for free college programs goes towards covering the tuition of middle- and upper-income families because they are “not poor enough” to qualify for other types of aid that a lower-income student could. It is not taken into consideration that low-income students may be paying the same amount for college on paper, but they start that payment process with less money and less security in the fact they will be able to pay it off. This article would aid in writing the research paper because it displays the opportunities that low-income students are not available to because of their financial status.

Dennis, Danielle V. “Learning From the Past: What ESSA Has the Chance to Get Right.” Reading Teacher, vol. 70, no. 4, Jan. 2017, pp. 395–400. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1002/trtr.1538.

Danielle Dennis, an associate professor of literacy studies in the College of Education at the University of South Florida, discusses the flaws that presented itself in the No Child Left Behind Act, especially those pertaining to low-income schools. NCLB expected to see results, thorough standardized testing, of increased student achievement. This type of pressure put on both students and teachers took away from the overall learning process and instead of focusing on continuous professional learning opportunities, everything was centered around accountability and meeting deadlines. Dennis wants to call the attention of the readers to ensure that history is not repeated and that with Every Student Succeeds Act, it is used in a way that will make the most opportunities for students and give them the biggest chance of succeeding in school. This research would aid in writing the research paper because it provides a foundation of knowledge of ESSA and NCLB, both centered around the idea of aiding low-income students, and displays how pertinent the issue of providing a quality education to everyone is.

Halle, Tamara G., and Beth Kurtz-Costes. “Family Influences on School Achievement in Low-Income, African American Children.” Journal of Educational Psychology, vol. 89, no. 3, Sept. 1997, p. 527. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.lindenwood.edu:2048/login?url= http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=9710121549&site=ehost-live.

Halle, a Co-Director of Early Childhood Research at Child Trends, and Kurtz-Costes, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of North Carolina examine the effects of socioeconomic status of both child and parent and the part it plays in education. The article includes research studies conducted displaying correlations between parent, student, and economic status. A lack of ones’ self being displayed by the parent contributes to the lack of self-concept and achievement held by their child. This lack of self-concept from the parent is taken on partly due to economic status and the stress and factors that arise because of it. The article would be helpful in writing the research paper because it displays the impact socioeconomic status has on the academic success of students and presents a link between parental beliefs and child outcomes.

Kraushaar, Josh. “Quality Education Would Improve Income Inequality.” Income  Inequality, edited by Noël Merino, Greenhaven Press, 2016. Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ3010979228/OVIC?u=linde32981&sid=OVIC&xid=b25905c1. Accessed 5 Nov. 2018. Originally published as “The Proven Way to Fight Income Inequality: Education,” Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2014.

Kraushaar, the political editor for National Journal, argues that by providing a quality education would diminish the income achievement gap that economically disadvantaged school districts find themselves in. He points out how political this issue has become and the lack of progress because of it. Politicians are constantly opposing education initiatives and talking about fixing education other than actually doing something. In other words, the steps being taken in order to help low-income schools and students are mostly for show and not being taken properly to enact action. This article would be a helpful aid in writing the research paper because it provides insight into the effects that could result from taking appropriate action and how much of a difference a quality education would create to economically disadvantaged schools and districts.

Marcus, Jon. “A new path to a college degree: match beyond helps low-income students succeed.” Education Next, vol. 17, no. 2, 2017, p. 44+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A488759523/OVIC?u=linde32981&sid=OVIC&xid=fea714d5. Accessed 5 Nov. 2018.

Jon Marcus, a higher-education editor at the Hechinger Report, reports on a program called Match Beyond that was launch in late 2013 and has had impressive results with closing the achievement gap of low-income students. The success produced from this program exceeded the national average for low-income students and has since evolved to helping more. This article provides insight into how programs such as Match Beyond help and can aid low-income students make it past high school and into college, opening up so many more doors and opportunities in their lives. It calls forth the attention of our colleges and universities to start adapting to the needs of different student populations. They have neglected the fact that there are students out their coming from nothing and need to open this educational opportunity to more than the rich. This article would be a helpful resource for the research paper because it shows how there are ways to go about reducing the limitations and additional pressure put on low-income students and make the opportunity of college more available and realistic.

Myers Jr., Samuel L., et al. “The Effect of School Poverty on Racial Gaps in Test Scores: The Case of the Minnesota Basic Standards Tests.” Journal of Negro Education, vol. 73, no. 1, Winter 2004, pp. 81–98. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.lindenwood.edu:2048/login ?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=13928574&site=ehost-live.

Myers, a professor at the Roy Wilkins Center for human Relations and Social justice, examines the correlation between students attending high-poverty schools and student performance. It is discovered that Black students have a higher probability of attending high-poverty school than White, so some emphasis is also placed on this correlation. The article displays how Black students’ test scores are not as impacted by school poverty as originally thought. The results are broken down between unequal funding and unequal impacts that this funding has on test scores. It is concluded that an abundant amount of the Black-White test score gap is caused by the different treatment students receive in regard to race not by school poverty. This study displays how economic status may not be a concern for academic achievement, providing an anti-thesis for the research paper, but how there are more issues preventing some students over others to receive a quality education.