My youngest daughter spent most of her pre-teen years believing that Band Aids could cure all of her problems.
Small scratch? She asked for a Band Aid. Bug bite? She wanted a Band Aid. She slid down the pole the wrong way at the playground, broke the growth plate in her foot, and she asked for a Band Aid.
I even remember one time she came to me and said that she needed a Band Aid because her feelings hurt.
There was something magical in those pieces of rubberized fabric because she would immediately stop crying when the Band Aids were applied. So why am I talking about my daughter’s fascination with Band Aids? Well, because that sort of first aid treatment is what I am beginning to believe is one of the biggest downfalls of our education system.
The other day, I was reading through a comment section-turned-debate thread on social media around whether or not schools should reopen because, if for no other reason, a lot of kids relied on schools to feed them and to monitor them for signs of child abuse and neglect. Some people pointed out that the schools were the lifeline for so many kiddos while others believed the problem was that “schools need to make the parents be parents.”
And me? Well, I guess I lie somewhere in the middle.
There seems to be a lot of discussion as to whether or not it’s the schools’ responsibility to carry the load of feeding kids. Should kids have to rely on the school system to eat? No, I don’t believe schools should be the only line to food security that children have. Do I think it makes sense for school systems to feed kids? Um, kind of, I guess. I mean, during regular school years, my children spend more waking hours in school every day than they do at home. Schools get reimbursed for every meal served, including summer feeding, and more money is given depending upon the poverty rate of the student body. I also see the well-being of children to be directly related to success in school year-round, so I can understand why summer feeding programs have become a mainstay.
But do I think that this is the right answer to the problems of food insecurity and food access? Nope. I think it’s a Band Aid on a gaping wound.
Anyone who knows me knows that I am a loud voice for the conditions of poor people. I realize probably better than most that we have a dire need in our communities for food pantries and feeding programs, but I also believe that we should be working to create a society where these sorts of assistance are exceptions and not the norms. Why did it become necessary for school systems to provide summer meals? Because kids and families were struggling with food insecurity, right? But why were the families facing food insecurity in the first place? And why, instead of throwing a Band Aid on a box of food that is supposed to provide meals for a week, doesn’t the education system stand up and push for a more just and equitable society that allows families the opportunity to provide food for themselves?
I have grown tired of hearing how COVID-19 is going to be the death of the public education system because our public education system has been on oxygen for years. Sure, the coronavirus has brought important issues, such as food insecurity and abuse and neglect, to the forefront, but every single one of these problems is directly related to our state’s poverty level.
Kids not getting enough to eat? Poverty. High absentee rates? Poverty. Low test scores? Poverty. Lack of health and dental care? Poverty. Thousands of students struggling with homelessness? Poverty. Grandparents acting as guardian due to the opioid crisis? Poverty.
Yes, I know that not all of West Virginia’s public-ed kids are living in poverty, but the fact remains that we have one of the nation’s highest child poverty rates, and until the public education system begins to not only acknowledge that fact but works to push for legislation that improves the quality of life for these families, nothing is going to change.
If we want to see marked improvements in the way our students achieve academically then we have to address the trauma of poverty and the effects it has, not only on education, but on brain development and the social emotional wellness of these kids. When we are told by our leadership that our state is at a greater risk of COVID-19 than most of the country, that’s because every risk factor can be directly tied to our scandalous poverty rate.
Band Aids aren’t covering the wounds. Advocate. Educate. Or we’re going to continue to bleed.
Onward,
Amy Jo
