Did "The Beaver" Question My Authority? Helping Children Learn about Respect

Autor/inn/en	Meidl, Christopher; Meidl, Tynisha
Titel	Did "The Beaver" Question My Authority? Helping Children Learn about Respect
Quelle	In: Childhood Education, 85 (2009) 4, S.242- (2 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0009-4056
Schlagwörter	Parent Role; Parent Child Relationship; Family Structure; Social Environment; Teaching Methods; Teacher Student Relationship; Family School Relationship; Interpersonal Relationship; Social Attitudes; Prosocial Behavior; Parenting Styles; Social Values; Television; Role Models + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Parental role; Elternrolle; Parents-child relationship; Parent-child-relation; Parent-child relationship; Eltern-Kind-Beziehung; Familienkonstellation; Familiensystem; Soziales Umfeld; Teaching method; Lehrmethode; Unterrichtsmethode; Teacher student relationships; Lehrer-Schüler-Beziehung; Interpersonal relation; Interpersonal relations; Interpersonelle Beziehung; Zwischenmenschliche Beziehung; Social attidude; Soziale Einstellung; Sozialer Wert; Fernsehen; Fernsehtechnik; Identifikationsfigur
Abstract	In trying to make sense of how to navigate the duality of approaches to how children learn respect toward others--the "takes a village" community-oriented approach (that includes teachers) or the "I know my child best/go it alone" family autonomy approach--teachers need to understand that families are trying to navigate "parenting" their children the best they can. Families need to understand how teachers' and children's interactions occur in a social environment in the classroom. Teachers bridge the divide by communicating with families about the focus on all children's well-being, with the classroom as "the village," emphasizing collaboration and thoughtfulness by all children. The 1950s sitcom Leave It to Beaver depicted an idealized "traditional" norm of the American style of family interaction with a rigid approach to child-rearing. Ward and June Cleaver, the parents in Leave It to Beaver, didn't want to "hang out" and be friends with sons Wally and Beaver. Fast forward to contemporary television shows like Nanny 911 or My Super Sweet Sixteen, which depict families making children happy through material goods and child empowerment. Families appear as "pals" with their children rather than as authority figures. These shows highlight a trend toward family autonomy at play: "I know my child/children best and am best equipped to parent him or her." Family values are focused on fulfilling the wants of the child with the child as decision-maker in often inappropriate activities and interactions. This conceptualization of childrearing challenges the traditional family structure's emphasis on adult guidance and mutual respect. In contemporary times many parents do raise their children consistently in line with family interactions from the 1950s, yet there are many struggling with the blurred role of parent versus friend. This leads to some guiding questions: What does respect look like in contemporary homes? Are the expectations the same for the classroom? Most families would say that they teach their children respect at home. But there is dissonance between what teachers expect compared to what children are perceived to show in regards to respect toward others. If some families' interactions look different today than what they did 50 years ago and some don't, how should teachers respond? The authors contend that there are no simple answers, but teachers can listen to families, model respect to children and adults, and provide families with resources that may counterbalance the fictional images of families that are presented on TV. (Contains 4 online resources.) (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	Association for Childhood Education International. 17904 Georgia Avenue Suite 215, Olney, MD 20832. Tel: 800-423-3563; Tel: 301-570-2111; Fax: 301-570-2212; e-mail: headquarters@acei.org; Web site: http://www.acei.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10