Education in Australia the Educational Term Paper

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These researchers define poverty based on different thresholds and determine the child poverty rates resulting from these thresholds. The researchers found that in the three years studied, about 5.7 per cent of all Australian children were poor in all three years of the study, and this represented between 28 and 41 per cent of those in poverty in the first year. The study also suggested that there may be differences in the characteristics of families of children in persistent poverty and those in poverty in only one of the three years, with the families in persistent poverty representing the greatest problem to be addressed in any reduction effort.

However, as Bradbury (1999) states, the industrialized nations of the world have been more successful in reducing poverty among the aged, but in many countries the last two decades there has been a re-emergence of child poverty. Rates vary widely, but evidence shows that Australia has a relatively high child poverty rate. A more recent study (Fed:Child poverty in Australia increasing, study says [2002]) finds that the number of jobless families in Australia and the proportion of children living in poverty has increased. The study was by the welfare agency Anglicare Australia and is titled the State of the Family Report 2002, and it shows that poverty among children is significantly greater than among adult Australians, with an estimated 676,800 children growing up in jobless families. These children face a significant risk of living in poverty both now and in the future, and child poverty in Australia now stands at 12 per cent.

Theory Evidence supports the view that poverty perpetuates itself, though the precise reason for this is arguable.

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Cultural influences are often cited for certain populations, notably the indigenous population, but extending this view to the general population raises numerous issues of class definitions and how to establish a baseline. The view that poverty is the cause of educational deficit often devolves to the view that the poor get what they deserve, as Connell and White note (1988, p. 14).

The influences on students are likely more complex, with culture, poverty itself, government policies, and economic realities all playing a part. Teachers face certain issues as well, as Connell, White, and Johnston (1990) point out. They also find that the educational system was created for enlightenment alone and did not take into account many of the cultural and economic differences facing society today, differences which impact educational outcome, often adversely. Programs have been put in place to address poverty and to offer assistance, though these are often based on a view of the poor as the "other" in society, again leading to the view that the poor cause their own problems.

Clearly, though, even if poverty contributes to the low educational attainment of the poor, this fact does not mean the poor are the cause of their own problems but only that the social structure, economy, and other influences are not structured so as to overcome the tendency to perpetuate poverty. Changes are needed to address the underlying causes and to make clearer the link between education and opportunity, and also to assure that such opportunity does exist and is also open to all......

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