Poverty Slows Development

10/14/2008

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
Aristotle

Poverty can have negative effects on child and adolescent brain development which can lead to learning disabilities, behavior problems, and other psychological and emotional problems, reports Lex Alexander for the Raleigh News and Record. The article points out that with our recent capacity to look at brain development, we can more accurately measure the impact of poverty on development. The negative impact of poverty can be seen in children’s complex thinking and reasoning skills, impulse control, and their ability to create relationships and discern social cues.

"The brain doesn't just form; it forms over time," said Margaret Arbuckle, executive director of the nonprofit Guilford Education Alliance. "Environmental factors impact the development of the synapses and the architecture of the brain, so that as the brain is constructed, if there's not appropriate nutrition and there (are) stress and other health factors, that can impact the way the child's brain actually grows and develops."

"The results," Arbuckle said, "can be seen in children's complex thinking and reasoning skills, impulse control, and their ability to create relationships and discern social cues."

"When parents are living in poverty and super stressed ... through their emotional interaction with their children they send off signals to the baby," she said. Also, "poor parents don't have time to have that continual interaction of stimulus and response from the adult" that is essential to proper brain development. Such children are "likely to develop stress-related illnesses and mental health problems like depression and anxiety, which can then lead to risky behavior later in life," she said.

Exchange Resources on Brain Development

For an in-depth look at brain research and its applications in early learning settings, check out these two Exchange books:

Beginnings Workshops Book #4 - Curriculum: Brain Research, Math, Science

Beginnings Workshops Book #3 - Child Development

A New Career Helping Young Children Develop and Learn

Learn how to give a young child the very best foundation possible — with a Bachelor of Arts Early Childhood Development at National University.

For more information about Exchange's magazine, books, and other products pertaining to ECE, go to www.ccie.com.