The students in lower class income areas are the ones who ultimately suffer the most. I’ve never given much thought, or even exposed to the facts and issues these children have to deal with. I never really took into consideration the different aspects that play in these children’s lives. Perhaps, I thought that because they’re children, they do not worry about real life problems, because children always look so happy on the outside. But if there is one thing this video taught me, it is that even children have stress. Some more than others, based on location, and background, but regardless they all have some sort of stress. Something that has been echoing in my head since I’ve seen this video was when the narrator (who was a teacher or the principle perhaps) said: “some students just don’t care enough to figure out which word goes on the word wall because they haven’t seen their mother, or father in two, three days…” and that shocked me. It’s such a sad situation. I never really thought about the cause and effect of having a family who struggles around you to the point where my mother would be incarcerated, and my father not around because he chooses gangbaning, and drugs over his family, because I have never experienced that, or knew of anyone who has experienced that. But stuff like that, happens all the time in schools like these on the south side of Chicago.
Just recently, an infant was killed while her father was outside in the car with her! He was a gang member, and this child was caught in the middle. Because he made the decision of becoming a gang member, and doing what he does, this was the cause and effect. This was the role he played in the child’s death. He chose where and who he wanted to be in life. Where you grow up, you learn to live a certain way. I believe the choices we as adults make, especially when making decisions that will affect our young ones, will no matter what have an