Reference no: EM133515472

Assignment

A. Before answering any of the following questions or watching any of the videos for this unit, write down your uncensored thoughts and current beliefs and attitudes about poverty and "poor people."

B. How were your thoughts and beliefs formed?

C. How have these influenced your attitudes about poverty?

D. How might these affect your practice with people living in poverty?

E. The "culture of poverty" refers to the belief that people learn to be poor from growing up in impoverished areas. In "The Myth of the Culture of Poverty," Paul Gorski argues that this belief needs to be scrutinized and debunked. Given his assertions, what could you say or how could you educate someone endorsing this contentious belief?

F. Using the readings, videos, and Spent simulation, apply critical thinking skills to discuss how much of the process of escaping from poverty may be explained by motivational factors (i.e., human behavior) and how much can be attributed to the existence of a safety net of support (e.g., education, health care, crime prevention, job training, affordable daycare, family support, presence of opportunities) located in the community.

G. To inform your response to this question, do two things: rewatch the video Critical Thinking from week 1 and read the articles listed below. Poor people must cope with the stigma of poverty and are often blamed for being poor. This was alluded to in the section "Are Recipients Worthy or Unworthy" in Chapter 2. Use academic reflection and critical thinking skills to explore how any of the beliefs you wrote down in response to the first prompt may contribute to stigma, e.g., recipients of public assistance are undeserving or poor people live off the system.