Local Teachers, Community Leaders Attend Workshop On Understanding Poverty
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Tim Robertson-trobertson@timesuniononline.com
WINONA LAKE - More than 1,300 area teachers, business professionals and community leaders gathered at the Orthopedic Capital Center Thursday for a workshop with author and educator Dr. Ruby Payne.
The workshop, based on Payne's book, "A Framework for Understanding Poverty," was aimed at equipping attendees to better work across socio-economic lines.
Payne explained the difference in mindsets of those living in poverty, middle class and wealth often causes misunderstandings and hinders communication of needs and expectations."How many of you have ever seen a run-down trailer with a brand new satellite dish outside?" Payne said. "This might not make a lot of sense to someone from a middle class mindset. It might make more sense coming from the mindset of poverty. Poverty's painful. A main tool you're going to spend your money on is entertainment."
She said the different mindsets can be more easily understood by promoting awareness of the hidden rules of each socio-economic class. Hidden rules deal with widespread values within a socio-economic class. For example, according to Payne, with respect to time, those living in wealth often value their time more than money and make decisions based partially on the basis of tradition and decorum. Those living in middle class often value the future more than present or past and make their decisions based on future ramifications. To those living in poverty, the present is most important and they often make decisions based on feelings or survival.
Payne said awareness of hidden class rules can help teachers respond more effectively to the actions and needs of their students rather than becoming frustrated or angry.
Cindy Tabor teaches kindergarten at Leesburg Elementary School. She said information from the workshop will be valuable to her as she teaches and disciplines students from backgrounds in poverty or wealth.
"They're coming from a whole different world than I grew up in," Tabor said.
Calvin Cox, a bus driver and mechanic for Tippecanoe Valley School Corp., said the workshop gave him a new perspective on interactions with students.
"You can start putting names and faces to situations," Cox said.
Awareness of hidden rules also can help students develop the tools they will need to succeed in school and social service clients build their adaptability to more lucrative work environments.
"Schools and businesses operate based on middle-class values," Payne said.
She said if teachers, social service providers and other community leaders can help spread awareness of middle-class rules without denigrating the hidden rules of poverty, they can equip those living in poverty with tools which they can use, if they choose, to help move themselves and their families into a better situation.
Payne also addressed strategies for teachers to use for transfer of knowledge, discipline and conflict situations across socio-economic lines.
During breaks in the workshop, attendees were able to gather together to discuss and process what they were learning.
Fifth-grade teacher Dave Robertson, Harrison Elementary School, said the information from the workshop was applicable to the broader community and also to his classroom.
"Our ethnic population has changed since I was a kid growing up around here," Robertson said. "With those changes there have been changes in economic situations. So, I'm looking for ways to better help some of my students who are new to this community."
Sylvia Aguirre, Zimmer corporate communications coordinator, and Kosciusko Community Hospital Director of Marketing and Public Relations Joy Lohse, said they attended the workshop to find ways to work better with an economically diverse community.
"In my field, we do a lot of community functions and we work a lot with the community," Aguirre said. "I hope to learn some good communication skills for connecting with different parts of the community."
"At the hospital," said Lohse, "we deal with every sector in Kosciusko County. By understanding various mindsets and various needs of community members, we can better serve them with quality health care."
Pastor Tim Sprankle, Leesburg Grace Brethren Church, said information Payne shared is also important to local churches. He said understanding poverty better can help churches respond better to needs in their communities.
"Historically, in both the Old Testament and New Testament, it's obvious that God's people are to care for people in poverty," Sprankle said.
Payne said education and community commitment are two vital factors in alleviating the affects of poverty on a local level.
"If you're not educated today, it's very hard to get out of poverty," Payne said. "School is just this incredible thing that makes a huge difference to the resources of kids. It's this whole thing of learning there's another way to live. We don't just shape the lives of the people in front of us. It's the generational transfer of knowledge. What you teach them, they'll teach their kids and their kids will teach their grandkids."
Payne said the obstacles brought by lack of education are often insurmountable.
"Seventy percent of people in prison come out of a poverty background," Payne said. "The state of Indiana builds it's jails based on fourth-grade reading scores. You can't educate poverty away, but you can build capacity."
Payne said coordinated community effort can make a significant difference. She said in cities like Grand Rapids, Mich., the business, government and education sectors have come together to fight poverty with efforts like welfare-to-work transition programs and social service offices located in factories.
"The bottom line is really about sustainability," she said. "Sustainability means that there's a commitment at all levels of the community. For a sustainable community, there have to be support systems. Not everyone has equal access to resources. Communities are only as strong as the capacity of the people in the community."
