"This website is from National Public Radio (NPR). It chronicles a report by Noah Adams who spent a day with Laressa Matthew who operates a day care center out of her home's basement in Baltimore. She works 13 hours a day and cares for eight children ages 1-12. She is a low wage worker with no health insurance, no savings, and no safety net." (https://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=402435) The report highlights issues facing the working poor.
Type of Material:
Presentation/podcast of radio program (NPR).
Recommended Uses:
As either an in-class experience (ten minute audio) or as an external assignment. An instructor could use this material to introduce the idea of the working poor to make it more personal for the students.
Technical Requirements:
html/text; audio
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Understanding poverty and the condition of the working poor. Personalizes what is usually presented as a statistic.
Target Student Population:
high school, college.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
None.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
Good audio quality in traditional NPR style.
Concerns:
None
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
Compelling story about one woman's struggle. Puts a human face on poverty and calls into question the basic idea that if you work hard you'll be successful.
Concerns:
It is only a single piece and because of this gives a limited view that can be dismissed as "an outlier" by those who hold the view that poverty is the fault of the impoverished. Also a bit out of date as it is a 2003 piece.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
Easily downloaded and good quality audio.
Concerns:
Classroom use with only audio could be problematic.
Other Issues and Comments:
This single piece is limited because it stands alone.
Creative Commons:
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