Unfortunately in America, we still have people that have to make this bargain--grow up too fast to get out of poverty, or be a kid and never get out. On page 264 of Outliers, Marita talks about waking up a 5:45 AM and, basically, doing school work until 11PM, as a student at KIPP, Knowledge Is Power Program (Gladwell, 2008). That's something that even I, a college student, don't do. Because she is the child of a single mom, who lives in the lower income Bronx of New York, she is not given the same opportunity that someone in the Upper East Side of Manhattan would be. If she does not attend KIPP, she will most likely remain in poverty the rest of her life. At merely twelve years old, she realizes this is her only shot to better her education; she realizes the situation she and her mom are in and takes it upon herself to get out of it.
While this is truly admirable, it's something a young girl should never have to face. Here it is, the 21st century, where dogs have chips implanted in them in case they get lost, and people have brain surgery and go home the next day, people are not only living in economic poverty, they are living with educational poverty. We have a free school system from kindergarten to senior year, and it is a shame that people who live in lower income areas are not getting the same education as those in middle or upper class districts.
Marita sacrificed her childhood, the time she should be running around and playing and carefree, for a strict routine of 14+ hours of schooling and homework. It’s remarkable that she values her education so—something I think more people should do, but it is sad that she has to go to such lengths. By doing so, however, she is putting herself on the fast track to an undoubtedly high paying salary, and hopefully with her brains and determination, it will be doing something she is incredibly passionate about and enjoys. She sees things in a very adult way; instead of thinking about right now, she’s thinking about her future.
What I am most concerned about is that when she gets older and starts college and her career, will she reach a “breaking point?” Will she realize she was essentially robbed of her childhood, or gave it up rather, and begin to resent her mother for being in poverty? Or, on the other end of the spectrum, will she realize everything her mother did to get her there and take a greater amount of pride in herself? I hope the latter.
Glawell, M. (2008). Outliers: the story of success. Little, Brown and Company.
I like your conclusion. The questions make me want to look up Marita and ask her how she feels about the whole situation now. Psychologically, this school may have harmed Marita greatly. Parents who tend to miss out things while they were a child try to force it onto their child. I wonder if Marita has or will have children and how she'll handle them. I mean, will she push them into a high class school at the age of 12, or will she let them have their childhood? No matter which way she chooses, this school is provided during middle school, where kids want to act old for their age anyway. Maybe that explains Marita's maturity.
ReplyDeleteI know we aren't exactly supposed to be commenting on the writing style as much as we are supposed to be talking about the content, but I really enjoyed the way you opened the essay. I like when you mentioned " people are not only living in economic poverty, they are living with educational poverty". This really provided an interesting lead-in to the rest of the post. And I completely agree that it seems unfair that people with more money can recieve a better education. This really goes back to what Gladwell mentions in his book: the idea that success has a great deal to do with opportunity. Things that we are not in control over like when we are born and what kind of a family we are born into can play a major role in our success. And what Marita does is take the opporutnity that she is presented with and runs with it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, parents often live vicariously through their children...and what a shame.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah, did you hear about the mom in Ohio that was jailed for putting her father's address on her own to get her kids into a better public school? It's crazy! I agree with Gladwell that opportunity plays a big role in success, but I think it's ultimately up to the person whether or not they are successful.
http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/27/jailed-for-choosing-a-better-school/?scp=1&sq=Kelley%20Williams-Bolar%20&st=cse
I think it's horrible how parents try to live their lives through their children. When I was growing up, I played basketball for many years and my parents didn't push me or anything. However, I had friends that played in the same leagues who had parents that absolutely would not allow them to quit playing. Why would anyone want to do this to their child? It's good that Marita's mother made this decision for her but her situation is much different. Academics are way more important than sports.
ReplyDeleteIf I started somethng, my mom usually wouldn't let me quit, but I certainly didn't have to continue on the next season. But I agree one hundred percent, academics are way more important. My mom always tells me my education is the only thing that can never be taken from me and the older I get the more I realize how true this is.
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