Introduction

Today's Student Academic Success and Socioeconomic Status: An Introduction

How prevalent is this problem?
What can be done about it?

In today’s school system, students are becoming more divided in terms of their educational levels. While many students may graduate with a vast amount of accomplishments, there are also a large portion of students that fall considerably below average. These extremes have led to the determination that there is an issue with the current education system. With the current decline in the economy, more students come from low socioeconomic families and have to deal with living along the poverty line.

The main components that inhibit a successful learning environment stem from student home life, family education, family income, and the skewed education system. Students from lower income families tend to have issues developing academically in comparison to students from high SES families. Many low SES families lack education themselves, therefore, do not encourage their children to receive a quality education. While this may not always be the case, there are many instances where education is not as important as putting food on the table. Also, the school system is developed to where one must have resources to be able to succeed in school. Many student’s attending public school do not have the money, therefore, are automatically set up to fail. The issue many of these students have is that they tend to fall behind and lose hope. This should never be the case in regards to problems in the educational system, and it is simply unacceptable that student’s today are failing because they are not being set up for success.

Given the current aspects that are not allowing students to receive a proper education, it is logical for one to be concerned for the future of America’s leaders, politicians, scientists, etc. Changes are imperative in improving education in order to improve society as a whole. An issue of such magnitude cannot be corrected by one simple alteration. As Helen Ladd states, that in order to make changes in such as wide range of people, it will have to involve a broader and bolder” procedure to changing the current policies. In order to better these children, it is imperative that the quality of our educators change as well as the curriculum that is taught. It is also imperative that children are encouraged to strive for success at school as they might not be at home.

What exactly is socioeconomic status and how does it affect people? The American Psychological Association provides the following description:

Socioeconomic status (SES) is often measured as a combination of education, income, and occupation. It is commonly conceptualized as the social standing or class of an individual or group. When viewed through a social class lens, privilege, power, and control are emphasized. Furthermore, an examination of SES as a gradient or continuous variable reveals inequities in access to and distribution of resources.

Exactly how much does ones socioeconomic status play a role in the quality of education? Research indicates that low SES "prevents access to vital resources and creates additional stress at home." 

This report intends to answer the stated concerns that have widened the educational gap. This issue is one that is currently dividing our country and must be fixed before it is too late for these students. This report aims to identify the specific issues associated with these stated gaps, and to analyze the most efficient way to resolve this problem. Information gathered from scholarly literature and primary behavioral studies are analyzed in this study to determine the severity of this issue, and to conclude how to approach the proposed recommendations.