Social Justice and Mathematics Framework  

1 - Choose A Social Justice Topic 

What is the social justice topic your activity will explore? 

The Effects of Poverty on Education/Student Mindsets 

2 - Understand Your Topic & Multiple Perspectives 

Concerning your social justice topic, what are the multiple perspectives represented in your research? What are the mindsets individuals with each perspective have? 

 
1. Perspective #1: Students in Poverty 

● Mindset - Fixed Mindset: I can’t break the cycle of poverty 

● Mindset - School is a secondary priority to earning money, finding food, supporting 

family, etc. 

● Mindset - Teachers and officials do not care as much about my education or my 
well-being as much as they care about the future of someone with money. 

2. Perspective #2 - Parent/Guardian of a Child in Poverty 

● Mindset - Educators and administrators do not understand the sacrifices I make (the 
numerous jobs I work) to support my family; they judge me. 

● Mindset - It is too difficult to break the cycle. I want my child to get an excellent 
education, but I don’t know how. 

● Mindset - I need my child to help take care of our family - putting food on the table is 
more important than homework. 

3. Perspective #3 - Policymakers 

● Mindset - People in poverty do not contribute positively to society - keep them in housing 
facilities and re-zone particular areas 

● Mindset - Money is better spent on students with the means to succeed/more potential 

● Mindset - Provide more financial incentives to schools that serve students in poverty 
(Title I) so they can provide better services and improve education 

4. Perspective #4 - Educators and Administrators 

● Mindset - Students aren’t capable of completing homework or able to stay after school for 
tutoring because they have too many other distractions at home - job, taking care of 
siblings, minimal resources, etc. 
 ● Mindset - Lower expectations for students in poverty because they consider the obstacles 
they face. 

● Mindset - Teacher retention/ burn out. The difficulties of teaching in a high poverty 
school without support 

5. Perspective #5 - Community members  

● Mindset - Those in poverty: Look at the education system as a system of oppression and 
have little trust because they were a product of this same environment. 

● Mindset - Those not in poverty: Have the means to move their children to better schools 
or maybe even private schools, so they do not see the need to increase taxes or improve 
impoverished schools 

● Mindset - Those not in poverty: Fearful to lose power, ending poverty is not a top priority 
 

3 - Modeling With Data & Mathematics 

Using the perspectives and mindsets in part 2, identify data that helps explain each mindset numerically. Copy and paste the perspectives and mindsets list from above, 
and then list/link the data sets used to support them on the right. You may not identify data for each perspective/mindset. 

 
1. Perspective #1: Students  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9 
in Poverty  e/analysis/2010-section1c.asp 

● Fixed Mindset  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9 

e/analysis/2010-section3a.asp 

● Other Priorities  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/201 CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9 

2026/chapter3_25.asp 

● Not as important  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9 

as someone with $  e/indicator_cod.asp 

2. Perspective #2 - Parent or  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.B 

Guardian  e/indicator_cce.asp 

● Teachers/ Admin  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2008/na CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.B 

do not understand  tivetrends/ind_1_6.asp 
the sacrifices 
made 

● Difficult to break  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.B 

the cycle  e/indicator_sga.asp 

● Child needed to  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2008/na CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.B 

help provide for  tivetrends/ind_1_6.asp 
family 

3. Perspective #3 -  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs/eiip/eii CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.5 

 Policymakers  pid35.asp 

● Not as much $ or  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/201 CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.2 

contributions  2026/chapter3_27.asp 
from high poverty 

● Money is better  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs/eiip/eii CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.2 

spent on students  pid35.asp 
with means 

● Funding  https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/p CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.2 

ubsinfo.asp?pubid=NCEE2015401
8 

4. Perspective #4 -  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.1 

Educators and Admin  e/analysis/2010-section2a.asp   

● Homework/  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.1 

Capability of  e/indicator_cch.asp 
students 

● Lower  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.3 

Expectations  e/indicator_slc.asp 

● Teacher retention/  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/co CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.1 

difficulty in areas  e/analysis/2010-section2b.asp 
of high poverty 

5. Perspective #5 -    CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.3 
Community Members 

● Look at the  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/201 CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.3 

education system  0015/ 
as a system of 
oppression 

● Desire to move  https://nces.ed.gov/pubs/97910.p CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.4 

children to private  df 
schools 

● Fearful of losing  https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/p CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.4 

power/ not  ubsinfo.asp?pubid=NCSER20103
wanting to  006 
support reform 
 
 
 
 
 

4 - Writing the Activity Outline 

 
 
Students in Poverty  Data & Mathematics Used 
Holiday Charity   ● The holiday season often marks the launch of toy and 
canned food drives in schools. We will use this 
activity to deepen students understanding of those 
being served and the dynamics of poverty in the 
United States. Students will compare data sets for 
prices of holiday expenses (food, toys, clothes, etc.). 
They will then compare them to incomes. Students 
will discuss the effects of this on their attitudes 
during the holidays and all times. 
http://www.tolerance.org/activity/holiday-charity-m
ath-activity-about-poverty  

Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 

● Fixed Mindset; Some might be unaware of different 
  income levels and distributions; students might look 
towards making money instead of earning a strong 
education as a way to get them out of poverty; 
students might not see the connection between 
education and poverty 
 
Parents in Poverty  Data & Mathematics Used 
How do I best support my child’s education?  ● Students will analyze statistics around single 
mothers. The majority of my students come from 
single-family homes, and other students are single 
parents themselves. Students will use the data to 
help create their hypothesis of change. Students will 
draw connections and find a line of best fit. 
https://singlemotherguide.com/single-mother-statist
ics/ 
● Students will be given a space to consider the male 
perspective - single father household or a two-parent 
household in poverty 

Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 

● Parents are too busy to be invested in my education; 
  parents work too hard and have more important 
issues to worry about; parents did not receive a high 
level of education so why should I?; my parents are 
doing the best they can; my parents need my help to 
provide for the family 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Communities in Poverty  Data & Mathematics Used 
What can we do?   ● Food Deserts: How does access to food affect school 
performance? What does the community think about 
education? Jobs? 
http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/
desert%20stats.pdf​ (Students will analyze the stats 
provided here, there will be a series of calculations 
 for students to compute that will demonstrate their 
mastery of probability and stats skills learned in this 
unit - ​CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.​1-4) 
● Jobs: Poverty and Unemployment, exploring the 
connections 
http://www.tolerance.org/lesson/poverty-and-unem
ployment-exploring-connections  
● Students will explore and discuss how community 
poverty affects involvement in education and 
mindsets. 

Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 

● People in my community don’t understand poverty; 
people in my community don’t have anything to do 
with me; people in my community have more/less 
  than I do - they don’t affect me; my community 
doesn’t help me; my community is the only group 
that cares about me; we’re all just trying to make 
money and do the best we can; my community is my 
family/they are all I have 
 
Teachers/Administrators in Poverty  Data & Mathematics Used 
Who’s there and who cares?  ● Teacher numbers/retention statistics 
https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/analysis/2010-secti
on2b.asp  
● Students will analyze statistics and discuss the 
struggles teachers in poverty might face - they will 
draw connections with their own experiences with 
teachers. Students will make conclusions based on 
data and offer solutions (in the final step of their 
project)  

Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 

● Teachers do not care about me; Teachers only care 
about their paycheck; teachers never stay at this 
school; teachers don’t really know the subject their 
teaching; all teachers want to do is suspend me; 
teachers don’t have enough resources - they’re doing 
the best they can; teachers and admin are burned out 
  because they do not have support 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Politics of Poverty  Data & Mathematics Used 
Who holds the power? And what can we do?  ● In this activity, students will look at graphic 
representations of data related to savings, assets and 
debt, as well as income. And, like those who 
organized the "Washington Monument" display, 
reinterpret data in public (or classroom) art. 
http://www.tolerance.org/lesson/interpreting-wealth
-disparities  
 Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 
● Politicians are out of touch; Politicians don’t care 
about me or my family; politicians want to make 
money off me; why should I care about what 
politicians think?; the system is set up for me to fail - 
politicians want me to fail; I want to make the system 
better, but I don’t know how 

 
 
What are YOU going to do about it?  Data & Mathematics Used 
Your Theory of Change  ● Students will choose a perspective they think has the 
most opportunity to change the system. They will 
use the data from that perspective to create a normal 
distribution curve. Students will discuss which data 
will need to change in order for the data to become 
“normally distributed” instead of skewed right or left. 
Students will discuss the mean and standard 
deviation. {Directions will change slightly depending 
on which activity/ mindset students choose because 
the data and assignments within those mindsets 
varies} 
● Students may also discuss correlation and causation 

Likely Student Mindsets & Beliefs 

● I want to make the system better, but I don’t know 
how; I feel hopeless when I think about solutions; 
what good are my ideas going to do?; no one cares 
  what I think; I feel overwhelmed when I think about 
possible solutions; I think I can make a difference, 
but I don’t know how to convince others