Poverty Affects Child Development

As a child my sisters and I suffered from poverty. We were raised on government funding. My mother received a welfare check once a month and she could barely afford to pay all of her bills. She also received food stamps so that she could purchase food for my sisters and me.  We hardly ever went shopping. The only time we got new things was at the beginning of the school year. It was kind of embarrassing when you hung around children who always looked and dressed nice. We never got the opportunity to do extracurricular activities because my mother did not have the money. My mother was a homemaker while being married to my dad, but after their divorce she never went to work. My household was very stressful. At times I hated being there because it was not much to do. I didn’t excel in school because I was too stressed out about things that were going on in my household. I went to school and built a relationship with my teachers. One of my teachers took me under her wings and treated me as if I was her own child. She would pick me up every weekend and take me to kid friendly places. Going to school and hanging out with her was like a safe haven for me. Even though my grades were poor my teacher still promoted me to the second grade. At that point my mother noticed that I was not so bright. She felt that I couldn’t comprehend and didn’t see how I made it through the first grade. She felt as if my teacher was hindering me so she held me back in the first grade. I went to after school tutorials so that I can get additional help with my lessons. As an educator I want to be very involved with the children and their families. I feel that it is very important to go to the home environments so that educators can get a better understanding and be aware of issues going on in the household that can hinder a child’s learning ability.

The article that I chose will look at whether being poor necessarily results in low self esteem or feelings of shame and whether welfare policies are counterproductive when claimants are stigmatized (University of Oxford, 2010). “Researchers  interviewed with children and their parents  from UK, Norway, China, India, Pakistan, Uganda, South Korea and Germany and discussed  how being poor affects the way they feel about themselves and the way they are regarded by their own community” (University of Oxford, 2010).  In the UK some parents went with out to provide for their children to ensure that their child does not feel shame at school. “In China, for example, it might be more important for adults, even in poor families, to maintain "face" and to uphold their own sense of dignity. In parts of India and Pakistan it is possible that loss of "family honour" adds to any sense of personal shame” (University of Oxford, 2010).  The researchers plan to work together with policymakers and agencies to deliver policies that tackle poverty effectively while simultaneously recognizing the importance of promoting dignity and a sense of self-respect. This article was very inspirational because the mothers unselfishly gave to provide for their children. In today’s society some parents do not acknowledge their children needs because they are more focused on themselves. It is important for a parent to provide for their children and effectively communicate with their children to address any issues or concerns that they may have to ensure that it is nothing hindering their child academics.

Source: University of Oxford (2010, September 5). Are shame and poverty closely linked?. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 27, 2010, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2010/09/100905164823.htm

Immunization

Immunization is “A process that stimulates the body’s immune system to defend against attack by a particular contagious disease” (Berger, K.S. 2009).

Immunizations can protect children from vulnerable diseases.  Immunization is important to me because as a premature baby I have a very low immune system. Due to low iron and calcium, my mother would always take me to my routine checkups so that I could receive my vaccination shots. I think that it is very important for parents to keep their children vaccinations up to date because it’s a defense mechanism against all types of airborne diseases.

I chose to talk about the vaccinations in Africa. Researchers suggested that “the end of smallpox vaccination in the mid-20th century may have caused a loss of protection that contributed to the rapid contemporary spread of HIV” (BioMed Central, 2010, May 18). The study indicated that “smallpox immunization was gradually withdrawn from the 1950s to the 1970s following the worldwide eradication of the disease, and HIV has been spreading exponentially since approximately the same time period” (BioMed Central, 2010, May 18). I found this article to be very interesting because prior immunization with vaccine virus may provide an individual with some degree of protection to subsequent HIV infection or any other airborne diseases.

The information that I have learned about immunization will impact my future work because I will work with children and their families to ensure that parents keep their children vaccinations current. There will be some children in the classroom with low immune systems that would be vulnerable to any sickness that may spread throughout the classroom from other students. I will make sure that all children utilize hand sanitizer to fight off bacteria and germs. Those who are sick will be sent home until their parents provide a doctor’s release. I will make my classroom a very germ-free environment so that children can comfortably learn.

Resources:

BioMed Central (2010, May 18). Did the end of smallpox vaccination cause the explosive spread of HIV?. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 13, 2010, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2010/05/100517204405.htm

Berger, K.S. (2009). The developing person through childhood
(5th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

Child Birth Experiences

I don’t have any children so I will discuss my own child birth experience. I was born at six months. I recall my mother telling me the events that took place that lead up to my premature birth. My mother had a lot of complications in her pregnancy due to stress. My mother was in her third month of pregnancy when my dad decided that he no longer wanted to be with her. At the time my mother was more concerned about financial issues that will occur because of my dad leaving rather than her health and well being. My dad no longer being apart of the household created a stressful environment. My mother told me that she would cry daily and just ask God to get her through this pregnancy. On some occasions she did not eat. One morning she woke up due to chronic pain so my grandmother rushed her to the hospital. By the time mother got to the hospital the doctors advised her that the bay was ready to come.  Several hours later I was brought into this world weighing only one pound. I was hospitalized for six months. I eventually gained two ponds and was released from the hospital weighing three pounds. I chose my own birth experience because it made me realize that a mother’s health during her pregnancy can have a tremendous impact on her child’s development. Because I was a premature baby I ‘m anemic, have very low iron, and have asthma. After hearing what my mom experienced during child birth, It made me realize how important it is for a mother to get adequate nutrition, prenatal care, and not stress. I will not let things that are out of my control consume me. I want to provide a safe, healthy, and caring environment for me and my unborn so that their development is not effected by my negligence.

The country that I chose to research was the United Kingdom.  A lot of mothers in the United Kingdom experienced premature birth. “One in 14 babies in the UK which averages about 49,000 a year, are born underweight or premature” (Medical News Today, 2003). It was said that “social class differences were a factor, with the most low-weight babies born to single mothers and manual worker families” (Medical News Today, 2003). I can relate to this because my mother grew up poor. There were always a lot of stressful circumstances leading up to her unhealthily delivery. During my mother pregnancy she was diagnosed with diabetes and the trait was passed to my sister and me. Some facts that I discovered from this article were:

·         Low birthweightscan lead to health problems either immediately, in childhood or later in life.

·         Low-weight infants are also more likely to be shorter, have increased blood pressure, suffer diabetes, and have higher rates of heart disease, stroke and lung disorders.

 I found this article to be very interesting because it saddens me to know that the United Kingdom don’t have enough staff to handle the increasing premature birth rate. Some mothers are sent all over the country so that they can receive adequate care. This can results in a lot of untimely deaths. I believe that a country with some many premature births should have a plan in action so that doctors in the United Kingdom could better assist mothers. Some mothers can even suffer from depression.

MediLexicon International Ltd  (2003, September. 14). UK - Premature births reach record levels. Medical News Today. Retrieved November 5, 2010 from

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/4301.php