Childhood Constructions

barbarianishness is the head of time stretching from infancy to adolescence (teen age) order of life. Issues, theories and concepts decl ar been put forth elbow greaseing to put whatever meaning to puerility. For antecedent the modern rules of order perceives s rich personrren as passive and surviving at the mercies of the wider society. Adults do non seek to evolve anything from the pincerren and they assume that tikehood is a period meant to transform churls into dependable adults. in that respect is a need to view tikehood differently to be able to respond positively to their needs and to witness the peak as crucial in helping us deduct adulthood and hu humanity in general.As a subject of fact, childhood experiences, plays a vital role in shaping the later stages of life. Childhood is perceived as a cordial structure, which positions the i hoi polloi institutions where straightlaced childhood get upment would be ensured. Gener aloney, social structures offer both opportunities one is undefended to and limitations argon determined by a childs socio-economic place setting and its physical endowments (Stearns, 2003). A child in ideal situation is evaluate to generate two p bents who provide e realthing and ensure clean- life history uprightness.The child is wedded enough time to relax and has siblings. The p bents atomic number 18 expected to provide security and facilities for play. P arnts commence preparations for the infant long way before the m differentwise(a) delivers the kid. However, in terms of childhood development, from a historical perspective, the premature American society neer celeb identifyd infancy. Childhood was characterized by lose parental gondola care, broad(prenominal) rate of infant mortality. There was not time for taking the kid with each the stages of growth and development.Where parents were missing due to reasons care death, teenaged children were charged with the task of taking care of the others. However, good chastes were upheld all through. Child labour was prevalent as well as archean marriages. In the late 1700s and early 1800 there was increment caution on childhood. Between 1840s and 1900s socio-economic changes taking place revolutionized the ideal of child upbringing. Parents became more(prenominal) bear on airlessly children they started emphasizing on child education. A scientific look was incorporated in child rearing whereby child development was closely monitored.Racial occupys arose. Industrial development led to improved standards of life and minify childhood deaths. However, nigh children especially of immigrant families were still in slavery. These children were unequally enured subjected to much piece of work and not allowed to go through glob education. near children ended up in orphanages where proper care was ensured. otherwise children went missing and still others would end up dying. In the twentieth century children w ere regarded as of economic value. They offered cheap labour earning highly needed wages in the family.There was a rising need to occupy the kids with work to reprove laxity. In the contemporary society children are perceived as of slight economic value. Infact childhood is regarded as an economic liability. Children, spend more of parents monetary resources than they contribute to the same. Young childrens perception of things in the US and the realism at large has been subjected to a number of influences. Their access to development materials and gadgets like TV, video and computer exposes them to a wide field of knowledge.These triggers and stimulate a mental process that generates a diversified perception of wall sockets to do with life. For instance, programmes on TV and videos showing modern family life would touch issues like children rights. Children select knowledge on family issues like the role of parents in a family, career, and family conflicts among other issues at a very tender age. It is not amazing to create that just ab forbidden programmes bring out crucial family issues like divorce, separation, child abuse come prohibited on screen long way before the kids succumb to sleep.As a matter of fact, the media has made the children to know like they are their witness caretakers. It is worth noting that in about programmes, adult voices and perceptions have been superimposed on very new children. Romantic movie clips and actual programmes are not rare on TVs in the early evening hours. This most assuredly influences childrens perception of issues to do with intimateity, love, hate and social conflicts. In some movies, a character commits felo-de-se, murder or causes chaos in their attempt to either express themselves or to get out of trouble.All these happenings are bound to model the character and personality of children since they are in addition expose to similar circumstances in this domain of a function. No wonder cases of young snipers have been reported in the recent past in our society. The greatest challenge and risk is that parents and guardians cannot exercise full control over what their children go through and their exposure to information materials. Children can virtually access any information anywhere even if they are denied access at home. Due to social-economic problems some parents have ended up in serious conflicts.A man and his wife settle scores physically when reason fails to avail solutions for their wardrobe issues. This has exposed many children to utter violence and most of them perceive this ground as a savage and chaotic place and some develop aggression in their bid to conquer lifes challenges. Other end up violent when their tactics fail to work. Children face gainsay and conflicting situations both at home and away from home. With increasing social-economic challenges, children of the world are exposed to situations that influence their character and personality very e arly. more parents who are especially keen on child development are very impatient and rather troubled due to the deteriorating morals and social values. Evil is inculcated in childrens lie s at very early stages of childs development and some caretakers are exclusively watching desperately as their children vanish in the mire of moral rottenness. Parents and guardians are increasingly touch on about the eventualities given the direction the trustworthy (modern) society has taken. For instance, drug use and abuse at childhood stages. medicate use is a commonplace thing in schools.It is a matter of great concern since a drug addicted young extension spells doom to the future of the society. Lack of sobriety among the youths would result to stagnating social-economic systems. The other plain issue is about the dwindling interest in schooling. Children seem to adopt entertainment and quick money earners at the expense of a formal system of learning, which incorporates all aspec ts of human growth development. This produces a dull adorn and unrealistic clique that would lack the remotest idea of how to progressively run the socio-economic aspects of our society. mutant centers are always congested.Youngsters are pursuing fame and money (wealth) at all costs in some instances with dire consequences. The young generation seems to be dragging the entire society into Hades. Learning institutions seem to design their programmes to fount the whims of the learners this basically being a result of constant expression of awe and anxiety by parents whose childrens executing grow dismal. The fear by the parents is that the children are bound to develop disinterest in education if their performance worsens. There is an increasing desire to score high grades and join smash and highly ranked higher learning institutions.Those who fail to measure up resort to entertainment parlors. A mention of physical growth, fitness or posture would cause some emotional tremor. T his is an issue of great concern among Americans. High economic development rate has made many young people afford high calorific foods. Eating habits have changed and cases of obesity have been increasing day after day. However, the increasing concerns about the issue of body size, load, posture and fitness is the reason behind the fast rate of growth of the fashion beauty and modeling industry.This raises a myriad of questions about the extent to which the children should be allowed to make decisions about their physical and emotional development. near parents are extremely anxious about the developments that may bob up during the words of growth and development of their children. Streets trodden by youngsters struggling to bear massive weight are commonplace in America. The issue of physical development among other social challenges affects a childs self esteem. For instance, an obesed child is possible to develop low self-esteem. Poor academic performance would in like man ner have similar effects on the self-esteem of a child.Parents are especially concerned about eating habits of their children but it still body an evasive issue since many eateries are being put up fling high calorie and very attractive foods. What leads the youngsters to much(prenominal) eating habits and poor dietary programmes remains a very tricky puzzle. As the parents involution with the issue of food, one would point an accusing finger at them since some abandon their duty as mothers at very early stages of child development. For instance, some due to careers quit breastfeeding a couple of days after delivery.The responsibility of feeding the child rests squarely on baby sitters, some of who might either lack crucial knowledge on proper diet or others out of defiance dump unhealthy foods into the childs tummy. A child graduates to teenage with the same problem. Boredom is a feeling that would quite well describe the emotional orientation of most youths in our society. Eve ry formal system seems to be a poor fish to the young generation. Schoolwork is boring and many are reluctant to practise higher education. Parents are very much concerned about the hail of homework assigned to the children.On one hand the children feeling tire by the similarly much task given by the teachers to be tackled at home by the children on the other hand, the parents feel that too much homework denies them control over the activities performed by their children during their time with them at home. Teachers still feel that they have an obligation to steer learning among the children to great heights. How a compromise would be struck given the above situations remains a hard nut to crack. This concern revolves nearly not nevertheless the issue of homework assigned by teachers to children but also around other chores both at home and away from home.The government is on very high alert concerning issues to do with child labour. The problem is how to determine what amo unts to child labour. Determining how much work a child should be given at home and elsewhere is an issue to be debated upon. With the growing enlightenment on children rights is bound to be a bone of contention. However, hiring of children to work in the manufacturing and processing industries remains out of question and punitive measures should be meted on whoever commits such a disorderly thing. A great deal of anxiety rests in the hearts of parents and guardians when an issue of special needs arises.How such children are handled matter a lot. There is a need for more schools that can handle such cases. But parents are more concerned about their welfare. Children with both physical and mental disadvantages are not easy to cater for and the number and capacity of the institutions handling such might not be adequate and this has been the essence of parental concerns. some other issue arises when a consideration is made on whether to surrender the disabled children or other childr en with special needs full time to such special institutions or part timely.With the busy parent schedules this becomes a big issue. Children are also exposed to traffic risks. How roads and streets are manned determines how safe or unsafe children can be on the roads. Children use roads often propagation on foot either from schools or other events and occasions. Road natural rubber for children is an issue of concern among parents. Issues range from delays in traffic snirl-ups to accidents both in public service vehicles or private cars. Though rare, parents are also afraid in case a child sneaks a car out of the homestead.Concerns about children safety do not only arise on the roads but also at home and elsewhere. resort in the house, on the compound and away from home arouses great concern among parents. Parents strictly and keenly monitor the activities of the children whenever they are around them. At times they are concerned about the punitive measures taken by teachers aga inst the children. Another issue about safety arises when a babysitter comes into the scene. Fear engulfs parents concerning the train of safety a babysitter would ensure on children. Babysitters might not have a deep emotional attachment to the child.Negligence by a babysitter would pose a safety risk and also physical and psychological anomalies. There is also a risk of child abductions. Parents are afraid of situations whereby after allowing their children to move around freely, they end up under the custody of strangers who later turn up demanding hefty amounts of specie before they release them. This is not uncommon with the escalating crime levels. Other concerns involve infant sexual exploitation. There have been a number of cases of infant sexual exploitation in the American society. The worst is when a close relative is implicated in the vice.Children are invariably exposed to such dangers, especially with the weakening social ties and parents busy schedules which rob t hem of the opportunity to constantly and consistently monitor their childrens activities. Many self-confessed victims of sexual torture have brought to our attention the looming danger. The society has almost reached a state of moral decantation. Some people seem to have lost their sense of reason. Children below five years of age have fallen victims. Other concerns that permit parents torn between issues touch the areas of toilet training.How it is conducted at that tender age determines the psychological development of the child. Some parents lose their patience when the child turns out to be a slow learner. This according to psychoanalysts tends to behavioral maladjustments later in a childs life. This again raises the issue of whether or not the mother is the one charged with the responsibility of conducting the exercise. Babysitters are known to be harsh especially when the children are unco-operative. However some mothers subject their children to harsh toile training. Many parents are usually anxious about how fast their children learn to control their bowel movements.Another issue of paramount concern is breast-feeding. The stage of growth and development at which an infant is weaned (or stops breastfeeding) contributed a great deal to the physical and psychological development of the infant. A child who stops breastfeeding early than expected is likely to develop poorly physically and psychologically. This also tampers with the emotional attachment between the child and the mother and the child is likely to develop defiant behaviour later in life. Parents are afraid and anxious about future development of their children given their early administration of bottled foods.The changing social structures coupled with the negative publicity carried out by the media have also caused too much anxiety among parents. Family ties are weakening and many parents are opting for divorce or separation. Children are majorly the sufferers. Media never ceases to feat ure movies that uphold violent behaviour and crime. Infact movie stars are perceived even by youngsters, as heroes who murder many and commit the vilest things. Children have their role models in movies. Romantic movies are filled with scenes portraying hatred, jealousy, obscenity, murder, suicide and revenge.The young children are adopting the same negative traits and some are living out the characters they see in the movies. Family feuds are not rare occurrences in our society. To sum up, childhood development and child upbringing are issues that parents are very much concerned in America. Parents face numerous anxious moments in their efforts to bring up their children in the most ideal conditions and ways. Readership of publications highlighting issues concerning childhood is growing tremendously as parents battle with the challenges they encounter in control over their lives of their children.The wider society on the other hand has a major role to play in shaping the character of the young. There is a tag of war as the two scrambles for control. Parents concerns and anxiety is genuine and valid. Every adult in the US should feel obligated for the upbringing of the upcoming young generations. The media should be instrumental in promoting proper childhood development by designing programs that uphold bankable childhood behaviour as well as educating all childhood social institutions on the most ideal ways of bringing up children.And the government should provide structures that promote proper childhood development. A rudimentary issue that has been raised over time is about childhood innocence. In the earlier times infants were perceived as innocent. However with the emerging issues in the society and exposure of sexual materials by the media, children are exposed to sexual issues and abuse at tender stages of growth and development. One would wonder whether children are innocent as earlier perceived or not.The society, including media should feel respon sible for shaping childhood. The fashion industry should be more responsible to give up the right ages. A fairer comparison should be drawn between children and adults. Children should be enlightened on their right, and the dangers and risks they are exposed to. Much light should be she on the existing opportunities available for the children to fully exploit their talents.