WILV4700: [Link].

CAPSTONE ASSIGNMENT

MARKING GUIDELINES
REFLECTIVE TASK 2023

Student Name: NANDISA MBATHA

Student Number: 2019148093

I declare that this assignment is my own work written in my own words. Where I have drawn on the
words or ideas of others, these have been acknowledged using complete references according to
departmental guidelines.

Student signature: NZS MBATHA

The overall mark for the assignment will be allocated according to the profile given for each of the
individual criteria listed overleaf.

 Criteria rated 1 for most categories indicates an excellent piece of work, with an assignment
mark of 75%+ (a First-Class grading).
 Criteria rated 2A for most categories indicates a good piece of work, with an assignment
mark of 70 – 74% (an Upper Second grading).
 Criteria rated 2B for most categories indicates an adequate piece of work, with an assignment
mark of 60 - 69% (a Lower Second grading).
 Criteria rated 3 for most categories indicates that while the piece is competent, some areasneed
improvement. It earns an assignment mark of 50 – 59% (a Third-Class grading)
 Criteria rated F for most categories means that the assignment does not adequately meet the demands of the
task. It earns an assignment mark of less than 50%.

The following assessment criteria are listed to help you and to give you guidance and
structure incompleting the Reflective Task/Assignment:
REFLECTIVE TASK: The candidate … F 3 2B 2A 1
Identifies significant events and describes them briefly andconcisely.

Evaluates the experience and suggests what he/ she has learnedfrom it.

Includes convincing reasons/ details/ explanations.

Considers options and alternative responses to similar situations.
Suggests possible future changes in the light of his/ her reflection.
Interrogates his/ her own assumptions, ideas and positions.

STRUCTURE: The candidate … F 3 2B 2A 1

Shows evidence of ordering thoughts/Index.
Gives a clear ‘route map’ for the rest of the assignment in theintroductory
paragraph

Writes strongly and convincingly:

 Problem statement
 Significance of the topic/title
 Literature around the title
 Personal Reflections
 Grade 4 reflections

In General:
 Each paragraph is clearly related to earlier sections.
 There is evidence that ideas have been ordered.
 Pulls the reflection together in a meaningful final
paragraph (Concluding remarks).

STYLE: The candidate … F 3 2B 2A 1

Shows evidence of editing their work, which is largely free of language,
spelling and punctuation errors.
Presents work of a professional standard: layout, neatness etc.
COMMENT:

1 2A 2B 3 F1 F2 F3
75 +% 70–74% 60–69% 50-59% 45-49% 40-44% -39%
GRADE
THE IMPACT OF POVERTY ON THE STUDENT’S EDUCATION IN HIGH SCHOOLS
Poverty remains a stubborn factor on children’s education. It a factor in school drop-out despite
pro-poor policies to address barriers to access. This is partly because poor learners continue to be
faced with other access costs such as uniforms. (Strassburg et al., 2010a). poverty is really a
stumbling block for most students because almost everything in this century requires money and
without the buying factor you are restricted from achieving goals. This essay outlines the impact
and effects of poverty on learners in their high school level

The challenges poverty has on learners in high school.

The main aim of learners going to school is independency, but in order for them to achieve it
they need to obtain their matric certificate with flying colours then go to varsities to obtain their
degrees and get a job. However, one’s background can sometimes prevent them from achieving
great things they want for themselves. Learners who are within he poverty pool are struggling to
keep their heads up high in relation to their school work due to many factors such as having little
to no food to eat., thus resulting to lack of concentration because how can one concentrates on an
empty stomach.
Furthermore, learners end up suffering from stress because they are not able to enquire to a
teacher if they feel like they did not understand because some other learners will tease them or
make fun of their situation. Poverty is vast challenge to an extent that you can find that the
learner lost an opportunity to further their studies since an application to a university requires
money, not forgetting how loss of hop can shatter one’s willingness to do something that might
change their situation for the better. If there is no helping hand the chances of poverty stricken
learners making it to varsities is close to zero.
The significance of the topic I have chosen.

The reason behind me choosing this topic is that I think that learners who come from poor
backgrounds deserves a fair chance to education without any poverty obstacle. They need to be
given the hope that your home situation does not define you or neither stop you from going after
everything you rightfully deserve. Hope alone won’t make them feel enthusiastic about
education rather we implement hope into action and help them out to achieve their dreams
regardless of their home background. We have to partake in boosting their confidence with
regards to coming to school with torn shoes that doesn’t matter, what matters is how well you
perform at school.
Poverty has delayed many dreams and it is up to our generation to make a change and give all
our learners a fair chance to better education.
My Review (literature) regarding the poverty in high school.

A literature review is a piece of writing that has previously been published by academics who have
completed sufficient research on a given subject (Conrath,2001). Reviewing something that has
already been published serves the purpose of learning more about the review that was not
discussed.

Poverty is defined as not having enough money to cover basic needs including food, clothing and
shelter. According to Mann,2011 unemployment is a major contributor to this lack of income. In
a nutshell, students from working class households who attend public schools are likewise
impacted by poverty since education costs money, regardless of the type of school.

According to Danielson (1999) students who live in poverty typically start school with less
developed literacy and language skills than their more affluent cournterparts. When a student is
poor, paeents and the schools are frequently unable to offer resources they require for them to
study. The learner may struggle to learn fully if the school lacks resources such as computer labs
and laboratories for practical tasks, and if their parents are unable to financially support them, they
may miss out on educational school trips and struggle to study for exams or finish off their
homework because elwtricity is off and there is no back up plan.

It is without a doubt important for instructors to be awre of how poverty affect students conduct
and ability to study in the classroom as the number of high school students reared in poverty rises.
It is the teachers’ responsibility to make sure that these students receive assistance. For instance,
if a particular organization visit the school in search of the less fortunate students, the teacher is
supposed to menton their names so they can also benefit from what the organization is offering.
Additionally, the teacher should try to show these students more compassion rather than making
fun of them in front of other learners. Briefly, if learners are required to pay for a class party or
any sort of activity and the learner does not have money the teacher shouldn’t shout at the learner
mainly in front of their peers/classmates.
The impact of poverty on students

Being in need of basic necessities while being impoverished is referred to as poverty. Being a poor
student has a detrimental effect on the educational system since the students are dependent on their
family and are unable to meet their basic needs because they cannot afford to pay for
transportation, food, textbooks, and tuition. Additionally, students eventually stop being motivated
to study.

Most researchers that studied how poverty affects teaching and learning process in high school
found out that rural and township schools are the ones which are most impacted by poverty as a
result of the department of education not providing them with enough support. (Pears, 2019)
The South Africa’s education system.
The education system in south Africa has got four phases which are; foundation phase which
consists of these grades(R-3) followed by intermediate phase which has grade (4-6) then there is
senior phase that has grade (7-9) lastly there is Further education and training(FET) which consists
of these grades (10-12). The DBE and IEB also have these phases.

Through its divisional structure, the current educational system encourages poverty and current
inequality. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the Independent Examination Board
(IEB) are the two systems. The two educational systems work in complete opposition to one
another. The DBE makes every effort to assist the underprivileged through food programmes and
by seeking out sponsors who will support low-income students, even though this is often done in
public schools.

Additionally, the IEB charges a fee for its services, which means that only those from the upper
class can afford to pay. Additionally, both of these systems strive to acquire uMalusi, which only
provides NQF 4 certificates. The DBE offers education which has a lot of learning resources
shortages, lack of textbooks, inadequate property and semi-trained educators while in the IEB it is
the opposite.
The outcomes of poverty when it comes to the achievement of learners
Due to elements like stress, social and economic well-being, and other considerations, poverty has
a negative impact on the performance and accomplishment of high school students. Many students
tend to drop out of school as a result of the pressure they experience at home and from parents
who don’t provide the resources thy require for school, such as uniforms, fees for school trips and
other items that are expected of parents but aren’t provided.

Only 41% of students who began school in 2007 were able to graduate from matric 2018,
(Adamson,2019), he also points out that the 41% also includes students who failed along the way.
In a nutshell, this demonstrates how the majority of students were impacted by social concerns
including poverty and other detrimental elements. Briefly, because of things like poverty, students
in rural schools frequently perform below average.

Teachers need to build strong relationships with their students, model respect in their interactions
with them, incorporate social skills into lessons, promote inclusive classrooms, and change the
environment of the classroom in order to overcome the academic challenges faced by students
raised in poverty. Moreover, develop positive relationships with pupils, as this is the first and most
effective way to boost their enthusiasm and effort (Greenblatt, 2010). The majority of students
who have been reared in poverty lack the social-environmental coping mechanisms that are
necessary for effective relationship development. It is crucial that these students establish positive
relationships with their teachers and peers.
Research methodology
A method used to carry out a study and collect other external information. it bis whereby I
collect information that proves what I have already said and addressed in the problem statement.
Fitzgenald(2000), defines the term research methodology as a study whereby you collect
information that will assist you to conduct a research. There are two type of methods of
methodology which is the qualitative research and the quantitative research. In brief, in this
research I have used the qualitative method.

Qualitative research methodology

Refers to the process of collecting data regarding the thoughts of people and how they understand
that particular topic, in short terms in this case it is how people view or think about poverty. The
qualitative method assists me to briefly look at previous writings, attitudes and experiences when
it comes to poverty(Fitzgenald,2000).

Poverty is determined by the level of income a learner’s family receive for example, if the only
income they receive is social grant it simply means that they will fail to support a learner when it
comes to their education since they receive money that barely covers their basic needs.
Discussion of my findings
Learners who are raised in poverty are faced by many challenges and some of these problems are
long term obstacles like not performing very well in school and they cause emotional and social
struggle. In most cases the high school learners who are reared in poverty are known for sometimes
acting out of character in school (Coetzee,2000).
They find it hard to control their emotions and lack patience. Having caregivers who lack to meet
their needs when it comes to school tends to reduce their performance in class or it may be even
poor. Parents struggling with meeting the basic needs needed in school have little to no support
towards their children because they are trying by all means to make the ends meet.

Socially, they are aggressive because they were not taught to be polite and have empathy towards
other learners thus making it hard for other learners to work politely with them or effectively
(Sarmago, 2003). Furthermore, poverty is one of the major predictors of academic achievement in
high schools, it is crucial for teachers to understand how it affects students’ behaviour and their
ability to learn in the classroom. Teachers also have a responsibility to implement tried-and true
methods to help students who have grown up in poverty catch up academically to those who did
not.

Students who are reared in poverty are forced to deal with a variety of chronic stressors such as
unsafe neighbourhoods with high crime rates, parents who make the minimum wage or salary
which puts a strain in a family’s finances. As a result, they bring this stress to school and end up
failing or underperform. All the stressors mentioned above, lead to learners having a void in their
lives and result in academic and behavioural issues in school. Furthermore, these learners have a
high level of absenteeism, they struggle with focus and concentration. Living in homes where there
is little or no parental interaction, fewer books to read and fewer chances of cognitive stimulation
will decrease the learner’s confidence which in results to future academic
failure(Maceachen,1999).

The chronic stressors results, to learners losing interest in school which is led by underperforming
in class and they may end up giving up on school. Learners born and bred in poverty are more
likely to have cognitive delays because their brains have seen major altercations in the structure of
memory and emotional processing areas. Poverty may make it difficult for the parents to purchase
necessary things that will help and promote cognitive stimulation for their children, so that may
cause the learner to have lesser vocabulary and more directed speeches(Conrath,2001).

Findings show that, children who live under poverty often come to school behind their more
affluent peers in terms of literacy and language development. Danielson (1999), states that more
than 50years of research indicates that learners who are poor hear a smaller number of words with
more limited syntactic complexity and fewer conversation- eliciting questions making it difficult
for them to quickly acquire new words and to discriminate among words. Enclosure, poverty leads
to girls (learners) skipping school when they are on their periods which may be mostly a week due
to not having required menstrual pads and hygiene management thus leading to them missing loads
of work that was done in their absentia.
Concluding statement.
The reality of poverty will continue to have a big impact on our educational system. Poor
background students will continue to struggle in school since their parents are unable to support
them because the money they earn only covers the most basic requirements of their households.
The divide between those who have education and those who don’t will always exist. Students
who have grown up in poverty are in fact more likely to encounter stressful situations, social
difficulties, mental health problems and ongoing pressure in their academic lives

“Incorporating social skills into the topics that students are taught is another strategy to boost
student engagement in the classroom and reduce disruptive elements. Teaching learners raised in
poverty to take turns when saying things like "thank you" and to understand the proper social
etiquette when meeting someone new can be a simple way to implant social skills. Promoting
inclusive classrooms where students feel included is another effective strategy for increasing
engagement and effort among students who have grown up in poverty. A safe environment where
they feel supported and safe will ensure that their needs are met, which will raise student
achievement.”

Additionally, due to substantial modifications in the structure of the memory and emotional
processing sections of their brains, kids will nevertheless have cognitive delays. If we really want
to close the achievement gap between students from low-income families and those more affluent
backgrounds, we as teachers need to use the most recent research, change the way we teach,
empower our students and mostly teach social skills and recognize when a student is struggling
with poverty. Moreover, developing good relationships with students and instructors is the best
method to ensure that the accomplishment gap that is brought by poverty is decreased. Learning
how to manage stress physically and mentally will help stressors that are present at school among
poor learners and give them.

Conclusively, all students will have a chance to learn in a community where all students are treated
equally and where we value diversity thank so inclusion in our classrooms. In other words, if such
learning is encouraged in schools despite poverty, it will give students the impression that they are
included and welcomed despite coming from disadvantaged circumstances. It is crucial for us as
instructors to be able to communicate with parents in a way that makes it apparent that education
should be a top priority in every household, regardless of financial background.
Personal Reflections.
From my own personal view, I feel that learners should ensure that they learn and obtain the
necessary documents to make their lives different. A lot of negative facts have been mentioned
above through literature and all the other findings. The teachers should also play a role in ensuring
that the children they teach get help if they are living under poverty, they can get help for them
from sponsors who aim to help children with school uniform, help with application fees and food
parcels. Without a doubt, as teachers we will be unable to support all our learners with their needs
but I think if a teacher sees a learner with old uniform and at that time they do have extra cash they
can buy the uniform for the learner. I also realized that most learners tend to drop out of school
because of lack of support, since there is a huge number of poverty the schools along with the
department of education should ensure that learners at least get access to food cooked at school
during break time so that as learners who come from poor backgrounds where they sometimes go
days without eating go to school because they do get something to eat there.

The three years I have been going to my teaching practise I realized how poverty affected students
from grade 08 to grade 12 and below it is how I saw and reflected my views.

Grade 8- what I observed from grade 8 is that most of them were fresh from primary and few were
repeating a class. Majority was wearing new uniform and the minority was wearing torn uniform
and just from looking at them you could tell that they are coming from a poverty stricken
background. Other newcomers still wore uniform they wore in primary because parents barely
afforded new uniform since it was still January and when teachers asked the reason for wearing
their primary uniform for a month was that their parents said they will buy new uniform for them
next month.

Grade 9- well what I discovered in this grade is that more learners are repeating the grade. Boys
have started smoking and neglecting their school work and it was uncomfortable witnessing that
because most of the boys who were smoking are coming from struggling backgrounds. When you
do a follow up on girls you find out that most have started to menstruate and when they are on
their periods they don’t come to school because they don’t have sanitary pads, that leading them
to miss school and fail because they do every month.
Grade 10- adoscelence is at its peak here especially for girls, about five girls dropped out of school.
One of them was married to an older man because of poverty.

Grade 11- Some learners drop out of school due to lack of basic needs at school When you ask
other students where a particular learner is, they usually respond that they have either become
pregnant or that they are now working at a particular factory because they are old enough to
understand what is really going on in their homes.

Grade 12- The majority of the students in this grade were unable to pay the necessary fees, the
educational trips that they often take caused constant stress among the students from low
socioeconomic backgrounds. Due to the pressure they were under, having extra lessons where they
had to bring extra money for lunch, and realising they had to attend matric dances even though
they knew they would not be able to afford it, let alone pay for money for university applications,
the majority of them ended up dropping out. In short, some students drop out owing to poverty
even before taking their final exams.
References

Adamson,P.(2019).The education [Link] and teaching :SA schools,31(2) pp20-22.

Conrath,J. (2001). Poverty in [Link]:Sage publications.
Coetzee,T.(2000).Poverty. London:Vintage.
Danielson,D.(1999).Learning at [Link]:Cambridge university press.
Fitzegenald,F.(2008).The term [Link]: Oxford university press.
Greenblatt,S.(2010). Socio-economic [Link]:Cambridge university press.
Maceachen,D.(1999).Parents support in children’s education5(2) pp.220-222.
Mann,T.(2011). Causes of poverty. London:Vintage.
Pears,R.( 2019).Poverty in South [Link]: Macmillan.
Sarmago,J.(2003). Learning in the [Link] Africa:University of South Africa.