Inquiry-mindedness - The Critical Thinking Consortium

ACTIVITY SHEET #6CPoverty: key points1. Poverty is relative.If everyone around you lives the same way you do, it is hard to understand the notion ofpoverty and wealth.2. Poverty occurs in all races and in all countries.There has not always been a middle class. Poverty can be defined in relation to the standardof living in a specific society. Poverty looks different in different environments.3. Generational poverty and situational poverty are different.Generational poverty is defined as being in poverty for two generations or longer. Ageneration is the age difference between parents and children, about 30 years. Situationalpoverty is defined as being in poverty for a shorter time and is caused because somethinghappened like an illness, divorce, or death.4. Everyone has certain rules, beliefs, or attitudesthat come from how/where they grew up.Even when people make more money, they may not change their social behaviour, theirvalues, or the way they think, solve problems, and make decisions.5. Schools and businesses operate from middle-class beliefs, values, and rules.The commonly held beliefs of schools and businesses are never directly taught in school. Tochange their way of life, people must understand these rules.6. There may be a cost to moving from poverty.Sometimes people must give up relationships or friends when they move out of povertyTools for Thought 2008-09:3 57 © The Critical Thinking Consortium