Payne, Ruby K. A Framework for Understanding Poverty. aha Process Inc, 2005.Written primarily for teachers, this book is a must-read for anyone working in the public sector. Packed with charts, tables and worksheets, Payne reveals how poverty is a complex issue that requires more than a singular financial solution. Showing how all socioeconomic classes have their own nuances and "culture," she demonstrates how poverty is a multi-pronged attack that forces people into survival mode and shuts down their ability to see opportunities. Not only does Payne offer a a framework for understanding poverty, but strategies for more effective ways of fighting it.
My boss recommended this book to me after I was baffled by an encounter with a patron who wanted me to waive her fines just because she was on public assistance. I am so glad that I have read this book. It has given me a more compassionate and fully-developed view of the many faces of poverty. More than that it offers hope and realistic ideas for beating it down.
Recommendations:
Growing up poor: a literary anthology edited by Robert Coles and Randy Testa
Essays, stories and poems are offered from literary giants, incarcerated teens, high school students and accomplished professionals who have experienced poverty. This collection offers a broad perspective of this major social ill.
Angela's Ashes: A Memoir by Frank McCourt
From poor Irish school boy to successful American high school teacher, McCourt documents his hard-scrabble upbringing in this approachable Pulitzer Prize winner.
Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools by Jonathan Kozol
A modern classic in the field, Kozol's book reveals the inequities of the American school system.
The Thread That Runs So True by Jesse Stuart
An older classic in the field, Stuart's touching memoir of being an educator in rural Kentucky is enchanting.
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