Poverty/Homelessness
(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Poverty/homelessness is unfortunately something that a lot of young people experience. A homeless student is defined as “students who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nightime residence, that is, students living in shared housing, hotels or motels, shelters, and unsheltered places” (Cai, 2020). A theme I noticed in the documentary The Homestretch, was that a lot of the homeless students don’t have a good relationship with their parents. For example, one of the students in the film expressed how her mother got rid of her because she is a lesbian. Due to this, she moved in with her grandma but it only made her depressed because she broke her down so bad. Another student in the film was living with his teacher because he had nowhere to go. This is what makes a lot of the youth homeless and causes them to sleep in shelters or out on the streets. It is very sad to see that this is the reality for many young students. After watching this documentary, it really opened my eyes that you never know what other people are going through. Especially as a future teacher I will be more observant of my students and their living situations. Another theme I found when reading through articles was homeless students still get the right to an education. The McKinney-Vento act states “enroll in school immediately, even if lacking documents normally required for enrollment” (Mc-Kinney Vento Homeless Education, 2021). This is crucial for homeless students to know they can still attend school. I would imagine homeless students feel embarrassed or shameful that they don’t have a permanent living situation and may be discouraged to attend school but with this act they can attend school regardless of their living situation.
The book No Fixed Address by Susin Nielsen relates to the themes presented above because it is about a mom and a son who have been evicted from their apartment. The mom threatens her son that if he tells anyone he will be taken away and put into foster care (Nielsen-Fernlund, 2020). This relates to the themes because the mom must feel embarrassed about the situation and doesn't want her son telling people. This can cause a bad relationship between the two because if the son sees a solution for help, and takes it, his mom can get mad that someone now knows they are homeless. A song that relates to this topic is In The Ghetto by Elvis Presley. This song gives you the feeling of having no true home (Presley, 2013). I chose this song because homeless people don’t have a true feeling of home. They bounce between the streets, shelters, friends houses, etc. By listening to this song, one can help understand what it is like to be homeless.
It is also important to think about mental health when it comes to homelessness. Being homeless at a young age can cause things like anxiety and depression. As teachers, it is important to know the signs and get help for our students. Even stepping in to find them a place to stay is helpful.
References
Cai, J. (2020, July 27). Homeless Students in Public Schools Across America: Down but Not Out
. National School Boards Association. https://www.nsba.org/Perspectives/2021/homeless-students
De Mare, A., Kelly, K., & Taber, K. (Producers), & De Mare, A., & Kelly, K. (Directors). (2014). The homestretch [Streaming video]. United States: Bullfrog Films.
Mc-Kinney Vento Homeless Education. (2021). New York State Education Department. http://www.nysed.gov/essa/mckinney-vento-homeless-education
Lozano, A. V. (2023, February 18). California city bans people from living in tents amid homeless crisis. NBCNews.com. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/california-city-bans-people-living-tents-homeless-crisis-rcna70852
Nielsen-Fernlund, S. (2020). No fixed address. Yearling Book.
Presley, E. (2013, December 15). Elvis Presley - in the ghetto (official audio). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ-r0bilzhU
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