Impacts on Early Emotional Development
For
this assignment, the area of the world I chose to investigate was West and
Central Africa. I chose this region because it is a place near and dear to my
heart. In 2007, I spent two months living and teaching in Ghana, and it was an
experience I will never forget. It taught me a lot about the kind of teacher I
would like to become, how to think quick on my feet, and most importantly to
see the whole child, not just the “student.”
Children
in West and Central Africa face many challenges on a day to day basis. Some of
these challenges include; malnutrition, disease (malaria, HIV and AIDS), high
infant mortality rate, poverty, lack of immunization or proper health care,
finding clean drinking water, etc. (UNICEF, 2011).
These
experiences can have a negative effect on children’s well-being and development.
The early years of a child’s life are critical in laying the foundation for
healthy development. Negative experiences during this time can impair
children’s mental health and effect cognitive, behavioral, and social-emotional
development (Trustees of Columbia University, 2010). If children in West and
Central Africa are not receiving proper health care and nutrition, they will
not develop at a normal rate which will affect proper development down the
road, and possibly even cause death.
It
hurts me to see the struggles children face daily in this region of the world.
During my time there, I saw so many beautiful and happy faces. To these
children, living this way is normal, they have no idea otherwise. It is a
struggle to have full bellies, clean clothes, and proper healthcare. Before I
left to return to the United States, I left my bug net and some clothes for my
students, in the hopes that I could help even just one. I think of these
children often, and hope to do more in the coming years.
Trustees of Columbia University,
The. (2010). National Center Center for Children Children in
PovertyPoverty
(NCCP). Retrieved from:http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_882.html
UNICEF (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/
Hello Melanie,
ReplyDeleteFrom our learning assignment this week particularly the blog postings one thing became obvious: children all over the world are facing challenges and situations that are impacting negatively on their development. In some parts of the world the issue is child labor, some it is inability to go to school due to a number of reasons, in other parts of the world it is war; lack of basic amenities; violence, abuse, discrimination, and racism, the list goes on. I read it from amnesty international that there are about 150 million street children all over the world! I think the time for action is now. For the sake of the future of the world, our children should be helped. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Melanie,
ReplyDeleteIt must have been an eye-opening experience when you spent so much time with the children from Ghana. It is fascinating to me to read about how different people live in other parts of the world, and that it is considered to be normal for them. In reality, we feel obligated, as a country with so many technological advances, to help the children of these countries who are struggling with so many challenges. Thanks for sharing!
-Krissy