Impacts on Emotional Development

The Area that I chose to investigate was West and Central Africa.  I chose this region because I wanted to learn about this region in regard to the conditions that children and families face and think of ways to promote healthy development.  Some of the challenges that I read about were a little disturbing.  I was disturbed to read that children in this area normally get their rights violated daily than any other region in the world (UNICEF, 2011).  The website also states that it is common for children to die from malaria, diarrheal diseases and diseases such as measles every 2 out of 10 children.  I was saddened to read about the malnutrition rates in this region as malnutrition is the cause of high mortality rates.  It was stated that a percentage of children do not reach their fifth birthday.  This region has high poverty levels and 40% of the children do not attend school.  This is definitely a challenge that can affect the social skills, intellect, and mental capacity of these children.  The children who do attend school, particularly girls, face sexual and other forms of violence in school.  Children are involved in trafficking, child labor, children in armed conflicts, and children even being victims of harmful traditional practices (UNICEF, 2011).  This is a huge factor in the children not being able to excel in education, or any other milestones in life because the resources are not available and no one to show the children the way or road to success.  Water and sanitation are issues faced in the region as well.  This affects the health of individuals who live in the area.  From the educational aspect, high drop- out rates and low transition rates are challenges faced as well.  The government is hit so hard by poverty that is almost impossible to keep sufficient and highly qualified teachers and learning materials to help pave the way for our children.  Quality education is not available to the children due to these challenges.  Children who want to go to school may live far and have to walk and their parents do not want to take that risk.  The shortage of teachers, low teacher salaries, and limited training and development opportunities adds to the struggle.  These challenges definitely affect the emotional aspect of children because the early years lay the foundation for healthy development for children.  This is the time for great growth and vulnerability.  These years are more important for the social and emotional development.  The challenges that I have presented can definitely impair the child’s mental health, and also affect their cognitive, behavioral, and social-emotional development.  From a personal standpoint, I realize how grateful I am to have windows of opportunities available for me to better myself in many ways.   Reading about West and Central Africa helped me to focus on why I chose to study early childhood.  I feel more sensitive to the fact that innocent children who have the desire to better themselves do not have the resources to do so.  From a professional standpoint, I am more eager to advocate for children’s rights and help make resources as available as possible so that children have equal opportunity for the road to success.  Children deserve the best, no matter what culture they are a part of, financial status, gender, or race and/or physical ability.  Windows of opportunity should await every child’s future. 

References

UNICEF (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/index.html

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