Parental Pressure: Don’t Push It!

Kids of today

Children of this day and age are the recipients of information overload, but are being pushed to their limits by loving, if not misguided parents. There is increasing pressure on an individual’s status, pressure to prove their place in society. Adults are tested on a daily basis, as pertaining to their job resources. And children seem to be going the same way. Children enjoy learning, but there must be set guidelines as to how they are taught and the wealth of knowledge they acquire.

Establish rapport

Too little, and it is useless. Too much, and it causes stress and mental breakdowns. The writer of this article is acquainted with a school teacher, who has reported that during the time of parent-teacher meetings, parents are often complaining of their child’s performance. However, said children are high scorers, who have unfortunately lost a few marks in their examination. But their parents want full grades. That isn’t always possible, and the child is utilising his/her resources to the best of their knowledge. And it is worrying to note that the parents have full time jobs, that don’t allow them to tutor their ward (s) as often as should be done. There is an obvious difference between a paid tutor and a parent; children are naturally closer to their parents, whereas a tutor is just an outsider. Children need a level of rapport to incorporate new knowledge into their heads, and repeatedly. Homework does the trick, if only the adult in charge and the child in question are in tune with each other.

Each child is unique

But do remember, each child is unique and unwraps their packages at different times. And pressurising a little one may stunt their mental and emotional growth, so accept them and guide them patiently and lovingly. Never withdraw affection if the child has performed badly, as this may result in him/her repeating the results, due to lack of confidence. And we don’t want that to happen now, do we?

Peer pressure

Should I or shouldn’t I

Every one of us has our own cliques, people we go out and spend our time with. Peer groups in school can direct the way your child behaves in school and outside. Peer pressure is a very real thing that plagues your children, no matter what age group they belong to. When your child’s  alone they might not do certain things but when there’s a crowd it’s a whole different story.

Padma’s story

Padma was a young girl who behaved well and listened to everything her parents or teachers told her. When she got to high school though things started to change. The famous saying ‘rules are meant to be broken’ became her motto. What was the root cause? The peer group she chose to spend her time with the school’s naughty ones. They skipped classes and went out and did things they shouldn’t be. Even though she hung out with them, she didn’t do many things that they did. She wouldn’t miss classes but outside class hours she would spend all her time with them and do things her folks wouldn't be too proud about . This over a period earned her a reputation that wasn’t very pleasing. Many people thought that just because she was with them, she acted and did the same things.

The reality of peer pressure

Peer groups can alter many things and change the course of your life. Padma had planned many things but ended up doing it differently only because she was pressured into it. Peer pressure is a very real thing. Here’s an interesting article about how you can help your child deal with this pressing issue faced by all our children today http://bit.ly/1JNFZ8o