I’m currently trying to figure out how to write a “Statement of the Problem” for what will eventually (and hopefully) be turned into chapter 1 of my glorious thesis. The problem is: there are so many layers to this problem! I am focusing on public k-12 education, funding sources (e.g. property tax, Title I, etc.), and socioeconomic factors that all contribute to mobility of low-income students. I’m passionate about this subject because I was a low-income student my entire life till about two years ago… (aka, when Michael came into my life and decided to carry some of my financial burden, which I’m 10,000% grateful for as it’s incredibly unnecessary).
What bothers me the most is that I can’t pinpoint which problem of this layered ordeal I want to focus on as my big problem. I have already compiled all of the k-12 school information from the Turlock Unified School District (TUSD), as Turlock schools will be my primary focus when I get to the specific problem. Where I specifically want to talk about students at Walnut Elementary and Osborn Elementary have incredibly different educational experiences afforded to them simply based on where their parents can afford to reside. I understand that Title I funding is supposed to bring a balance to this educational gap, but after reading the TUSD data, it doesn’t appear that the funding does much to bridge a gap as much as it does to simply update schools. Yes, updating the school is incredibly important, and incorporating technology is necessary, so is the addition of a couple science classes… but Walnut kids are already ahead of the curve.
I understand that socioeconomic factors play a huge role as the difference between middle-class/upper-class and working-class/poor families have different levels of involvement they can afford with their child’s educational experience, and that’s not something funding can necessarily provide, but it could make it easier. So, do I focus on socioeconomics (micro-level issues), or the “Every Student Succeeds Act” and the ripple effect of redlining (macro)? Oh, what to do, what to do…
It's so difficult because this is an area I'm incredibly passionate about, so my mind has a billion (give or take) ideas on how to approach it. I have four pages written, and I really only needed four pages for this portion of the assignment... but I haven't specifically addressed that localized problem yet, so I need to narrow and weed out some of the fluff... but it's all so good!
Hashtag nerd problems.
