Thinking about Child Development puts in me a sense of responsibility, to touch each one child at a time in spite of their varying needs

“While the challenges ahead

are steep, the imperative for

universal early childhood

development is clear: Every child

has the right to develop to her

or his fullest potential and to

contribute fully to society.

Our responsibility to pursue this

goal is just as clear.”

Anthony Lake, UNICEF Executive Director

© United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

February 2012

Inequities in Early
Childhood Development

http://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Inequities_in_Early_Childhood_Development_LoRes_PDF_EN_02082012.pdf

 

 

" It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men." 

~Frederick Douglass

MEASURING INTELLIGENCE

Commitment to anything in life will always show continual unrelenting input. This is why the issue of 'how we should assess children's intellligence keeps going through reformations and transformations. Scholarly institutions cannot but use standardized measures to measure academic achievements. One must ask however, 'what is the objective of the standardized test in comparison with our intention'. Standardized tests has several things that make it either advantageous or disadvantageous. 

According to PRO CON .org, standardized testing gives an overall better performance to national achievement. Since the introduction of  'No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) mandated annual testing in all 50 states. US students slipped from 18th in the world in math in 2000 to 31st place in 2009, with a similar decline in science and no change in reading.' 

It also says ' standardized tests are a fair and objective measure of student achievement, that they ensure teachers and schools are accountable to taxpayers, and that the most relevant constituents – parents and students – approve of testing'

The opponents of this stand say ' the tests are neither fair nor objective, that their use promotes a narrow curriculum and drill-like "teaching to the test," and that excessive testing undermines America's ability to produce innovators and critical thinkers'

Looking at the true development of a child. Each child learns uniquely and there is the need give each child the opportunity to learn which was not a point in consideration at the introduction of standardized testing. 

History revealed that Standardized Testing was introduced to as an easy way to test large number of students quickly. this was an outcome of an educational historical revolution which removed children from the farm to the classrooms.

 The brief history puts it this way " as the Industrial Revolution (and the progressive movement of the early 1800s that followed) took school-age kids out of the farms and factories and put them behind desks, standardized examinations emerged as an easy way to test large numbers of students quickly (time,US ).

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1947019,00.html#ixzz22XTQA1U8

Over time this testing has tried, in the bid to manage time and large number of people, have streamlined testing to what it called Basic Maths and Vocabulary skills. This in my own opinion does not focus on making a whole child emerge.

Researches and studies have helped humans to live better life in all areas of life. Recent studies has revealed that some people who do drop out from school, which implies that they did not conform to the tests, yet they thrive well and even excel in life have some forms of intelligence that we are ignoring. The computer giant, Bill Gates is one of such several icons.

Thus to view the development of a holistic child, the introduction of multiple intelligence, is a most welcome idea. according to teachervision website," no single approach to teaching and assessment can possibly work best for every student, teachers face a challenge. What's the best way to match assessments to students' learning styles?

Read more on TeacherVision: http://www.teachervision.fen.com/intelligence/resource/4933.html#ixzz22XXXfILf

Howard Gardner groups student capabilities into eight broad categories (each student's unique learning style is a combination of these intelligences):

• Logical/mathematical (uses numbers effectively)
  
• Visual/spatial (is artistically or spatially perceptive)
  
• Bodily/kinesthetic (excels at tasks that require physical movement)
  
• Musical (perceives and/or expresses musical forms and patterns)
  
• Linguistic (uses words effectively)
  
• Interpersonal (responds well to others)
  
• Intrapersonal (is reflective and inner-directed)
  
• Naturalist (makes distinctions in the natural world)

Read more on TeacherVision: http://www.teachervision.fen.com/intelligence/resource/4933.html#ixzz22XYF9LDh

This give a fair access to every child for learning and evaluation.

ASSESSMENT OF PRIMARY PUPILS IN NIGERIA.

Nigeria introduced Continuous Assessment in order to attend to a holistic Child Development.                       
 What is Continuous Assessment?
Continuous assessment was formally introduced into the Nigerian educational system in 1982. it is often regarded as “Assessment for learning” because the purpose of assessing the child is to help him learn and not to find out if he has satisfied the objectives of learning. In continuous assessment, the pupils are assessed in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains, a number of times and at certain intervals using a variety of assessment techniques such as tests, projects, assignments, observations, questionnaires, interviews, portfolios, checklist, sociometry etc. The results of these assessments are recorded and kept on a continuous basis for future use in decision making on the pupils and for guidance purposes. Continuous Assessments is therefore different from former system of assessing pupils at the end of teaching. It is therefore a formative mode of assessment (iaea.info).

This good intention is not however achieving its purpose as you know of every concept introduced. It is a far cry from it. The reason for this failure is actually the interpretation of the policy to both the teachers and pupils. We abuse anything not properly defined.

'The current assessment practices in most Nigerian primary schools is a far cry from what continuous assessment is meant to achieve, hence
its impact is yet to be felt' (iaea paper).

  

One major reform introduced is to make assessment formative, spanning all through the learning process so as to provide pupils and teachers access to feedback which will help improve learning. It is however regrettable that most schools still practice the traditional method of assessing pupils in the summative mode.
Many teachers misconceive continuous assessment to imply continuous or repeated testing of learners.

The disadvantages also abound. "In the Nigerian society, this social importance attached to test results, and
certificates has motivated unhealthy ambition aimed at not only to pass by all means, but also to score high marks, hence pupils cheat during tests and examinations using numerous methods such as copying from textbooks, copying from a brighter child by “giraffing” or through planned collaboration of copying verbatim what he/she has written as answers by a weaker child. A child can also write answers to the questions and pass it to another child to copy or a brighter learner will finish writing his answers and take over the scripts of the weaker learner to write for him/her (aiei, paper).

Given the two different counties scenario mentioned above, my recommendation for evaluating children's intelligence is that we give every child the opportunity to develop maximally by building on their area of intelligence. This would strengthen  children's moral in learning and also build their confidence.

Most importantly, it will help them develop into healthy adults who understands by mastery of his strength that he is uniquely himself and that, that 'self' has been nurtured to grow and face the real world where application would be demanded. He meets the real world with a smile of  I HAVE BEEN GROOMED TO FACE YOU.

That is when we have developed the individual child.

Rererences:

http://standardizedtests.procon.org/

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1947019,00.html

http://www.iaea.info/documents/paper_1162d2034d.pdf

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/intelligence/resource/4933.html
 

 

      POVERTY

Children living in poverty [are those who] experience deprivation of the material, spiritual and emotional resources needed to survive, develop and thrive, leaving them unable to enjoy their rights, achieve their full

potential or participate as full and equal members of society (UNICEF, child poverty p.12)

Growing up in a developing country as ours was not so dramatic but the oneness and contentment of my family made us feel like there was no lack.

The importance of early exposure to programs that will enhance learning between the age of 2 and 6 is so enormous that a child (children) who is deprived of any kind of program has really lost a lifetime opportunity of guided development. 

I did not have the opportunity of a Head-start, a Preschool or a Nursery school. Only the very well to do could afford that frivolous waste as at then, to enroll a child that is less than 6years of age in a school. 

Our public schools only began from 1st grade, so until then, we only have to stay at home and play while mum and dad were off to earn a living. While at home, we faced lack, hunger and danger of maltreatment by those who looked after us. There was no real good school start because in the real sense of it we were left by ourselves, the supposed caregiver, who were usually deprived young adult who had found an opportunity to come into the city had her eppetite for expolration to accomplish and so we were left by ourselves (after all, they were not paid). the greatest terror was that we were warned by this caregiver never to disclose her antecedent. What did you expect, we were compliant. Dad and mum would be gone in the morning so if you do not want to make your next day(s) miserable then you would not report the issue.

My sibblings and I kept quiet and endured all the childhood maltreatment. We were happy and proud that our parents were working and enrolled us in primary public schools when it was time.

Looking back now, I see lots of lost opportunities and rights of  childhood that was necessitated due to lack (poverty). I was not alone, this was the case of several children as at when I experienced this and even now that knowledge has spread wider, some children yet experience this.

Poverty is defined as the lack of resources and capabilities that prevent people from living a

decent and independent life. Poverty distresses all groups – age, ethnic, and religious - and these groups share many of causes and effects of poverty. But “for children, there may be additional important consequences, such as having to drop out of school, missing out on critical health care, or being stigmatized by their peers for wearing old or torn clothing” (CHIP, 2004: pg. 1).

Furthermore, children are likely to suffer permanent consequences from not having access to basic social services and family resources. Adults, on the other hand, indeed suffer from the ills of poverty, but the

impact may not be as permanent as with children. “Children cannot reverse stunting. They cannot recover from preventable disabilities. Nor can they reclaim those 15 valuable years of growth and development

later in life” (UNDP, 2004: pg. 3).

The for me now is how can poverty be eradicated. how can children have access to all that they require to give them access to all the rights of a child to basic needs that encourage healthy start?

Similarly, UNICEF’s State of the Children 2005 points out that child poverty is lowest in countries where women make up a high percentage of the labor force. “Higher employment rates among women (including

those who are single parents) have contributed to reducing child poverty in the 1990s in a number of OECD countries” (UNICEF, 2005b: pg. 31). Pursuing anti-poverty strategies that provide economic empowerment to women may be a policy to help reduce child poverty.

Child poverty: hardly an issue in France

In France, child poverty is an issue that is rarely addressed by social policies or academic research,

and does not even figure very highly on the agendas of charities or other such associations. Although

it was an extremely topical subject in the 19th century, the development of family-targeted policies

between the two World Wars and their implementation post 1945 meant that the issue was largely

dropped. It was not lack of political will that caused the issue of child poverty to be put to one side; on

the contrary, it was because the considerable state intervention in relation to children was aimed at

protecting vulnerable children who were victims of their parents, neighbors, friends of the family,

prowlers and so. The child targeted by social policy was abandoned, or mistreated, subject to violence

or even, particularly in recent years, when this has become a recurring theme, subject to sexual

abuse (Tarki Hu).

Some factors are responsible to ensuring that child poverty is hardly an issue in France.

 The factors includes and exceeds:

1.  Policy on family size and structure.

2.  Parental employment.

3.  Decent and proper Housing

4.  Accessibility to Health care.  ( Tarki Hu)

RESOURCES:

Child poverty and child-well being in the European Union

http://www.tarki.hu/en/research/childpoverty/case_studies/childpoverty_france.pdf

Child poverty and child-well being in the European Union

http://www.tarki.hu/en/research/childpoverty/case_studies/childpoverty_italy.pdf

Child poverty and child-well being in the European Union

http://www.unicef.org/policyanalysis/files/child_poverty_final_draft_4_05.pdf

IMMUNIZE THEM, FORTIFY THEM

Children are a gift. Wlthout them, our future does not exist.

"Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see."

John W. Whitehead, founder, Rutherford Institute  

 Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa said:
"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."

Every people, every culture claims that they cherish children however, the true test is in their collective, visible, and assessable conduct and active commitment and disposition it has towards children.


IMMUNIZATION: Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines stimulate the body’s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease(WHO/Immunization).

Vaccination is one of the most important public health interventions. Vaccines are biological products with effects that can exceed the induction of immunological protection against specific diseases.(WHO, ) According to Berger, Immunization protects children not only from disease but also from complications.

Immunization is a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and is estimated to avert between 2 and 3 million deaths each year. It is one of the most cost-effective health investments, with proven strategies that make it accessible to even the most hard-to-reach and vulnerable populations. It has clearly defined target groups; it can be delivered effectively through outreach activities; and vaccination does not require any major lifestyle change. WHO/Immunization

Through the 1980s, UNICEF worked with WHO to achieve Universal Childhood Immunization of the six EPI vaccines (BCG, OPV, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and measles), with the aim of immunizing 80% of all children by 1990. Progress has continued since then: by 2010, a record 109 million children were vaccinated and global immunization rates were at 85%, their highest level ever. Of the world’s 19.3 million children not immunized with DPT3, 13.2 million (or 68%) live in 10 countries. Source: WHO/UNICEF.

I do not have access to accurate data, but people around me take their immunization schedule quite seriously.Parents in our care center, my cohort of mothers while I was making children and now hold immunization schedules in very high esteem. I am very  aware though that I mat be representing a very small segment of african women. Lack of participation is largely due to two major factors, politics( which has embeded in it a strong influence of religion) and poverty. Prevalent amongst these vaccine is the OPV, which is often rejected by some certain region.

ORAL POLIO VACCINE DISSEMINATION IN NIGERIA AND IN AFGHANISTAN
Unicef recently released a Statement report on the statistic of children who have never been immunized:

NEW YORK, 20 June 2012 – “The Independent Monitoring Board on progress with global polio eradication reports the significant finding that 2.7 million children in six countries have never been reached with a single polio vaccine. This is a clarion call to accelerate all efforts to reach these unreached children,” said Anthony Lake, Executive Director of UNICEF (Unicef Press Release).
It was quick to add  " many of these ‘never’ children live in volatile areas of conflict such as eastern DR Congo, northern Nigeria, the Northwest region of Pakistan" For Nigeria I can say boldly that resistance from rhe north is majorly resistance at western culture and religion

The method of disemmination is hospitals, health center, churches/mosques, door to door.
   

Success is recorded in Afghanistan of the same vaccine because Innovative methods were employed.  “We cannot rely only on the traditional approach of fixed vaccination stations in hospitals and mobile teams going from door to door,” said UNICEF Afghanistan Health Officer Dr. Farzana Maruf Sadat. “To reach all our children under five years of age with the polio vaccine, innovative paths must be deployed.

Vaccinators. waited in bus stations and along road checkpoints to catch traveling families. They attended wedding parties. They visited prisons, knowing that female prisoners usually bring their children along. And they were stationed in front of the Blue Mosque, a popular destination for tourists and the faithful
I recommend the same innovation for everywhere, especially, Northern Nigeria, where it is in record that some doubt exist, posing resistance for the vaccine.

RESOURCES

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/media_59662.html

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/afghanistan_53956.html

http://www.who.int/topics/immunization/en/

http://www.unicef.org/nigeria/