Non-Cognitive Skills
Based on the information in the chapter 4 from the text (Burris, 2015; Harper, 2015; Barlowe & Cook,
2015), Overcoming the Silence of Generational Poverty (Beegle, 2003), and 474: Back to School (This
American Life, 2012), compare and contrast the contribution of these resources to your understanding of
poverty by answering the following:
In what ways do the opinions in these resources match your views and experiences?
Are there areas in which you disagree based on your experiences?
Does the discussion of non-cognitive skills change your perception of children who come from
backgrounds of poverty?
How could you include non-cognitive skills in your daily classroom teaching and lessons?
NON-COGNITIVE SKILLS 2
Non-Cognitive Skills
Opinions in these resources match my experiences and views about poverty in two ways. First,
all the three resources have a general standing that poverty has a negative impact on the social
and academic lives of children (Beegle, 2003; Harper, 2015; & The American Life, 2012).
Similarly, I also have a belief that poor children are highly likely to have low self-esteem,
perform poorly at school, and are unable to create and accomplish personal goals. Second,
similar to my views and experiences, these resources support that poverty affects the ability of
the teacher to assist students to achieve the desired learning outcomes, especially if a large
percentage of learners is stricken by poverty. However, I tend to disagree with Beegle’s opinion
that education is used as a route of escape from poverty (2003). This is not true based on my
personal experiences because I know quite some graduates who performed extraordinarily well
at school yet they are living in abject poverty.
Discussion of non-cognitive skills has greatly changed my perception of children who
come from backgrounds of poverty. Harper (2015) recalls how her grandmother was raped
before being killed by an illiterate man. She feels that poverty and lack of education are the main
reasons why the man raped and killed her grandmother. From this discussion, I now understand
that with a mix of poverty, a depressed person can lack self-control, perseverance, and the
motivation to do the right thing. To help learners to understand the importance of possessing
non-cognitive skills, I will include non-cognitive skills in my daily classroom teaching and
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lessons. The non-cognitive skills will be achieved by mostly; building close relationships with
students, creating room for every learner to air their views and rewarding the best performers to
motivate all students to work hard. Also important will be, utilizing teaching activities that help
students to understand issues related to self-control, self-esteem, and perseverance, as well as
how to implement them (Harper, 2015).
NON-COGNITIVE SKILLS 4
References
Beegle, D. M. (2003). Overcoming the silence of generational poverty. Talking Points, 15 (1),
Harper, L. (2015). The Voices and Hearts of Youth: Transformative Power of Equity in Action.
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.
This American Life. (2012, September 14). 474: Back to school [Audio podcast].
