Sidewalks, Storms, and Barriers to Education for Children Living in Poverty

Why Global Citizens Should Care

A fundamental human right is an education. However, many children still do not have access to education, particularly those who are girls or live in poverty.

There are numerous obstacles that prevent poor children from receiving an education. Some are more subtle than others, like not having a place to go to school. like the teacher at the school not having received the necessary training to effectively assist children in learning.

A society's overall health and longevity can be improved, economies can grow, and even climate change can be stopped by expanding education access. However, a number of factors can restrict children's access to education in many developing nations. Language and gender stereotypes, as well as an overreliance on child labor, can stymie efforts to provide high-quality education. Children from disadvantaged communities who are the most vulnerable in the world are more likely to skip school.

The following are some of the most pressing issues in global education that require immediate attention:

1. A Lack Of Funding For Education

There has been a clear shift over the past two decades toward investing more and more foreign aid in education. There has been a nearly 30% increase in the number of children who complete primary education. Children without access to education are still at risk of dropping out of school in many developing nations, particularly in Asia. The fact that developing nations cannot rely solely on their own resources to fund education is a major issue; additional foreign aid is also required. The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) estimates that educating a child for 13 years takes an average of $1.25 per day in developing nations. That amounts to $9 billion annually. Of course, not all of this money needs to come from donors in other countries; however, it does demonstrate how much is required to keep kids in school and help them learn without fear of dropping out because of financial constraints or other obstacles like illness or disability.

2. Having a Trainer Who Isn't Trained

The most significant factor in predicting how well students learn is teacher effectiveness. Insufficient teachers prevent universal primary and secondary education. Additionally, there are a lot of untrained teachers employed at the moment. Children are not receiving adequate education as a result. There are 130 million school-age children who are not mastering reading, writing, and math.

3. No Or Worst Classrooms

A child cannot learn without the right environment. In a lot of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, kids often have to learn outside or in classrooms that are overcrowded and falling apart. Additionally, they lack the necessary textbooks, school supplies, and other tools for success. For instance, the first-grade classroom average in rural Government Schools is 130 students. The issue isn't just a lack of classrooms; it's also a lack of all the essential amenities you'd expect from a school, like toilets and running water.

4. A Lack Of Learning Materials

In many regions of the world, six or more students frequently share outdated and damaged textbooks. This isn't just a problem in these countries. It's a global problem that has been going on for years, and schools aren't keeping up with the growing demands of our ever-changing world, making it worse by the day. Teachers either don't have access to the materials they need to prepare lessons or they don't have enough time to prepare adequately without them. Old textbooks aren't relevant or interesting enough for today's students. New textbooks are too expensive for many poor families.

5. The Exclusion Of Children With Disabilities

Students with disabilities are less likely to attend school and have a higher risk of dropping out or dropping out before completing primary education. More than twice as many students are suspended or expelled from school as their non-special education peers. This group is particularly at risk of being denied their right to education due to discrimination, a lack of accessible schools, and teachers lacking training in inclusive teaching methods.

6. Being the ‘Wrong’ Gender

Simply put, one of the primary reasons children are denied an education is a gender. A generation of young women has been left behind in education, despite recent advancements in the field. Over 130 million young women worldwide are not enrolled in school at the moment. In the developing world, one in three girls wed before the age of 18 and typically drop out of school.

Girls and their families benefit from keeping them in school, but many poor families are forced to choose which of their children goes to school. The belief that it is less important to educate a girl than a boy causes girls to be left out of opportunities. They are, on the other hand, sent to work, forced to get married, or made to stay at home to help with the housework and care for siblings.

7. Hunger And Poor Nutrition

There is a serious lack of information about how hunger affects education systems. Losing four grades of education can result in severe malnutrition to the point where it affects brain development. Around 155 million children under the age of five are thought to be stunted, according to estimates. Poor infection-related stunting and inadequate stimulation can have an impact on a child's cognitive abilities as well as their ability to focus and concentrate in school. Children who are stunted have a 19% lower chance of being able to read by the age of eight. On the other hand, eating well can help prepare you for good learning.

Children's ability to concentrate in school is also affected by inadequate nutrition: Since many children do not have access to breakfast prior to attending school, they arrive hungry and exhausted. This results in a lack of energy throughout the day, which has an impact on cognitive abilities like concentration and memory loss, which in turn leads to poor academic performance.

8. Toxic Stress

Children can suffer irreparable harm as a result of trauma from war, violence, neglect, abuse, and other forms of abuse. If the stress continues, they are more likely to experience negative health effects. It has been demonstrated that toxic stress shuts down the hippocampus, a brain region necessary for learning. The body's stress response 'puts the brakes on the functions of the hippocampus and changes its structure and function.

9. The Expense Of Education

Children may be excluded from an educational system that is heavily funded by parents and the state because of poverty. They may drop out of school even if they are fortunate enough to attend it because they need to work or support their families financially.