16/11/2023
THE NEED FOR PARENTAL ADJUSTMENT IN A CRISIS DRIVEN GENERATION
Parenting is multidimensional, and to respond to the varied needs of their children, parents (Mothers and Fathers) must develop both depth and breadth of knowledge, ranging from being aware of the developmental milestones and norms that help in keeping children safe and healthy to understanding what life is in reality as it concerns children and youths in this new time.
I call the time new because everything about it is new. It is new in the sense that it is a time when children no longer go hunting rodents in the forests and bushes in the evening and on weekends for domestic meats. It is a new time that the girl child no longer stay with the mother in the kitchen at evening times while dinner is propared in order to learn and master the rules of engagement in home making. It is a time when parents are no longer bothered about their child’s or teenager’s way about at (nights) odd hours.
This is a time when, instead of going hunting rodents in forests and bushes for meats, young male children and teenagers go hunting for money by all means even when when they have had no definable needs. It is a time when anyone, old and young, can do anything in order to belong to the social order. A time when children no longer make friends for the fun and joy of moonlight plays and age/school mates.
What a doomed generation!
Parents have a lot to do. Instead of resorting to sending under-aged children to school and shifting parental responsibilities to teachers who, mainly, are single young men and ladies, who in truth have little or no parental experience in guiding the under-aged children placed under their care aright; parents should accept the obvious reality that there is danger ahead of the child and do well to partner with educators, child care workers, health care providers, social workers, and even the entire social systems in child development towards ensuring a generational safety.
A mother’s understanding of the daughters’ biological changes, social, emotional, and psychological needs as they grow from infancy through teenage to adulthood; and being able to guide them aright is the surest way of ensuring the safety of the girl child.
A father’s understanding of the necessity of his presence in the home towards exercising manly parental authority needed to discipline the boys in the house, and making sure that the children are at home timely and out of the house only when they have good reason to do so under the supervision of an older guardian.
Children's behavioural development and attitudinal changes, positive or negative, is deeply associated with the ways they are brought up by their parents, adding other social and environmental factors to it.
Provision of support by parents helps minimize the risk of internalizing behaviours, such as those associated with anxiety and depression, which can impair children's adjustment and ability to function well at home, at school, and in the society at large.
Such social and emotional challenges as extreme fearfulness, helplessness, hopelessness, apathy, depression, peer pressure influence, timidity, child abuse and molestation, drug abuse, failure at school, and withdrawal are indicators of emotional and psychological difficulty that have been observed among very young children who experience inadequate parental care and discipline.
Children need to be cared for in a way that promotes their ability to thrive and ensures their survival and protection from psychological injuries, and mental or physical sexual maltreatments.
Parents should know that young children rely on them and other primary caregivers, inside and outside the home, to act on their behalf to protect their all-round wellbeing, safety and healthy development.
At the most basic level, children must receive the care, as reflected in a number of emotional and physiological protections, necessary to meet normative standards for growth and physical development.
While such safety needs are important for all children, they are especially critical for younger ones, who typically lack the individual resources required to avoid dangers.
In all, the child’s safety at home, school, and in the society is fundamental for achieving their future goals in life.
GOOD EVENING!
I am
