THE INFLUENCE OF POVERTY ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC SUCCESS

A Research Paper
Presented to the faculty of
Virgen Delas Flores High School
Virgen Delas Flores, Baliwag City, Bulacan

In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for English 10
SY 2023-2024

EILAIJAH O. LOPEZ
ADRIAN E. NEGRO
JOEL O. VITO
HANNAH MARIE T. BALUYOT
RYONA CARALIPIO
May 9, 2024

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 ABSTRACT

The main objective of this research is to evaluate the influence of poverty on students’
academic success. This study investigates the cause and effects of poverty on academic
achievement of the students, leading them to have poor performance worsen may lead to drop
out of school.

The research of this study is to create awareness to everyone that one of the properties of
achieving academic success is having enough ability to support itself and to be able to provide its
resources for studying. Facing poverty in their academic journey has a lot of effects that can
either have a positive or a negative response.

In conclusion, we recommend that school’s payment and other related to fees, must
lessen to accommodate the less privileged students.

Access to education is one of the important basic human rights in all societies. Poverty
has remained a stumbling block for most people to attain this basic right. Also, affects a big part
on students’ academic success.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE i
ABSTRACT ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS iii
CHAPTER I. THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND
Introduction 1
Statement of the Problem 3
Hypotheses 4
Conceptual Framework 4
Significance of the Study 5
Scope and Limitation of the Study 6
Location of the study 6
Definition of Terms 7

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 CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

INTRODUCTION

In the past years, poverty remains a social issue with significant impact on people's lives.
The poverty rate continues to increase while the income of Filipino families remains the same.
Poverty is a big challenge for everyone. It presents a number of challenges such as access to
education, nutrition, employment, and realization of personal aspiration. As a result, most people
cannot be able to achieve their dreams because of poverty that puts an end to their dreams.

According to Richards (2023), “Poverty is a hindrance in studies.” It shows that poverty

has a big effect in our lives, that it also affects our education. Poverty presents numerous
challenges particularly on the students. It has a big impact on their education pertaining to
payment of fees, foods, attitudes of teachers and students which may result in increasing the
dropout rate due to lack of the things needed in school.

The lack of financial support is the main reason why some students, especially those
students who belong to poor families decided to stop pursuing their education. Some of them are
forced to become a working student so they can support their education, because their parents
cannot be able to support them due to the financial crisis. As a result, they cannot perform well in
school because of tiredness that can lead to the students having a poor performance which may
result in having low grades and getting a chance to fail on their exam. Experiencing poverty can
also result in having low motivation and limited access to educational resources. We all know
that going to school can be hard on our pocket especially to those who are less unfortunate. In
creating a project to pass to our teachers, making a splendid output so we can have enough grade
for us to pass seeing that we didn’t make an effort they might fail us.

Poverty can also increase the chance of students experiencing bullying. Because of the
difference in social status, it can result in inequality. Students may experience anxiety because

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they feel that they do not belong to their classmates and friends that can lead them to be ashamed
to perform well.

According to the UN (2013), education is a right to which all human beings are entitled.
But, for some students who belong to a lower class, education can be considered a privilege
because not everyone has the capacity to pay for their tuition.

Despite dealing with poverty, many students are looking forward to getting a scholarship
as their last card to finish their education. Scholarship can reduce the financial problems that they
are dealing with. Yet, it is still not enough so that’s why some of them are forced to get a job at
an early age. Due to financial problems, our government is having projects like Pantawid,
Pamilyang, Pilipino Program (4Ps) to help those people who need financial assistance.

Poverty significantly affects the insufficient resources of the learners. It has been
researched that children from low-income families often start school already behind their peers
who came from more affluent families. Children find it difficult to keep up with students from a
well-off family that can lead to jealousy and hatred to its parents on why they have to be in that
kind of situation. Which can lead to a more rebellious stage of the student that can usher the
learner into not going to school anymore because of the influences it encounters thus earning
negative impact from its peers seeing that the student is not going to school anymore and learn
proper manners.

This research aims to determine the effects of poverty on students. As poverty is a big
part of a student’s performance in school or in everyday life. In some situations, students prefer
to earn money than going to school because they don’t have enough spending to go to school or
to expenditure its efforts in trying to finish school. Adding to that some students live far from
school. And they need to travel back and forth just to go to school every day as they know that
school is important to their future. That what has been recorded as the inflation rate is about
6.0% this 2023 and it has affected the daily transportation of students. That the pocket money
that the students have is mostly used to pay for transportation that at some point it's not enough
to fully compensate for its needs.

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 As students face a lot of challenges aside from studying are their daily expenses. This
analysis is our method to make everyone all aware that a student’s responsibility is not solely just
for studying but also the means to study comfortably without thinking of any trouble or face any
complications related to any finance. Owing to the fact that all children deserve to study
comfortably so that they can say for themselves that they have a better future ahead of
themselves.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to assess the effects of poverty on students’ academic success. Students
living in poverty often struggle academically, get low score and graduation rate, and may have
poor attendance, because of poverty they have low motivation and limited access education. It
shows that poverty has a big effect on our lives and education. Some of the students are forced to
become working students to support their education and to support their loved ones to pay bills,
food, and fees in everyday living. Poverty rate continues to increase, because of bad governance
and corruption. As a result, most people cannot be able to achieve their dreams because of
poverty that puts an end to their dreams.

1. Is poverty really a hindrance in studies?

2. Does poverty really affect the students’ academic success?

3. How can poverty affect the students' academic success?

4. What are the effects of poverty on students?

5. How poverty affect the mental health of students?

6. Why do most of the students choose to work rather than to pursue their dream?

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 HYPOTHESIS

In the context of this study, the researchers used the hypothesis as its main
instruments which pertains:

1. Being a student below the poverty line has no significant influences on the academic
success of the learner.

2. The minimum wage of the student’s parents has no phenomenological effect on their
academic performance.

3. The styles and experiences of life in poverty of a learner does not apply to their
academic household.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

INDEPENDENT VARIABLE (IV) DEPENDENT VARIABLE (DV)

POVERTY ACADEMIC SUCCESS

Figure 1. Conceptual Method of the study

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 Figure 1 states that there is a general correlation between Poverty and the Academic
Success of the students, thus finding results for the research topic can drastically affect the
outcome of the research.

In figure 1, Poverty as independent variable certain to be much more than just not having
enough money. It also concerns the lack of shelter, being sick, and not having access to school.
Poverty is known for creating fear for the future than what is the difficulty of the present hold. It
shows the relevance of not disregarding poverty issues to a lot of aspects related to it as school is
one of its main significances.

As for the dependent variable, the academic success is the most expected achievement for
all the students. It’s the best award a learner can get for surpassing all the hardships they
encountered while studying.

SIGNIFANCE OF THE STUDY

The study was conducted to know how the Poverty and its effects towards the behavior of
the students. Through this research the respondent will find out the affects of how the Poverty
and its influence towards the behavior may affect their personal thinking and future.

Teachers. This study will help the teachers to provide their students with the knowledge
about how to critically cite the effects. This will also help their students and themselves to
understand the harms to the children and the future holds.

Students. The importance of this study to the students is to help them obtain knowledge
about the short- and long-term struggles that would be faced. This will also help the students to
empower their faith and commitment in a field.

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 Researchers. The importance of this study for the future researchers to help them serve
this study as a guide of their own research that has connection to hand-to-mouth existence and
outcome. It would provide results on issues that might had on impact the students.

Writers. The significance of this study is to serve as basis or guide for writers in their
future article that has relevance in the topic.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The research focused on how poverty affects the academic success of students. The study
encompasses various problems of the people who are experiencing poverty, including the lack of
money and other resources they need in their daily lives. The study aims to determine the reason
why some students are choosing to work at an early age rather than go to school. It shows how
students react to the problem caused by poverty.

The study focused on poverty, which is one of the biggest problems in the world. Poverty
increases year by year. It causes students to work and support their education by themselves in
their early years, and due to that, they cannot focus on their education, which leads them to get
low grades. When their situation gets worse, it might get them to think of dropping out.

The study was conducted during the school year 2023 – 2024. The target respondents of
this study are the Grade 10 students of Virgen Delas Flores High School.

LOCATION OF THE STUDY

The study was conducted at Virgen Delas Flores High School (VDFHS). The school is
located in the city of Baliwag in the province of Bulacan. It is a public secondary school which
accommodates grade 7 through grade 10 students. This study aims to determine the influence of
poverty to grade 10 students of Virgen Delas Flores High School for S.Y 2023 – 2024.

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 Virgen Delas Flores High School is an open house that is available for students who are
not able to pursue formal secondary education due to a non-flexible schedule of the students
who're willing to continue to learn despite its troubles.

Figure 2. Location of the study

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Academic. school of highly learning

Achieve. to succeed at reaching or accomplishment.
Affluent. having a lot of wealth, property, or other material goods.
Analysis. a detailed examination.
Anxiety. a feeling of worry, nervousness, and unease.

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Aspiration. a hope or ambition to achieve something.
Capacity. ability to hold or certain.
Complications. a difficulty situation.
Determine. a particular goal.
Education. the transmission of knowledge. The process of giving learning at school.
Employment. work that you are paid to do for a particular company or organization.
Family. having someone to love you unconditionally despite your lowest.
Financial support. money provided for those who need it.
Financial crisis. things like losing your job and major dept.
Future. an expectation of advancement.
Hindrance. a thing that provides delay.
Insufficient. not enough
Impact. the word impact is used in the sense of “influence.”
Inequality. people who aren’t given equal opportunities and rights.
Income. money received.
Inflation. the rate of increase price over a given period.
Method. a particular form of procedure.
Minimum wage. lowest wage paid or permitted to be paid.
Poverty. hunger and lack of shelter.
Privilege. a special advantage.
Rebellious. showing a desire to resist authority, control, or covnetion.
Significant. sufficiently great or important to be worthy.
Scholarship. a grant or payment to support a student’s education.
Social issue. topic or subjects that impact many people.
Solely. not involving anyone or anything else.
Usher. show or guide someone somewhere.
Tuition. charge or fee of private schools.
Tiredness. drained of strength and energy.