Child-Rearing Approach Of Natural Growth

The approach used by the family in this research was Natural growth. Tyrec Taylor is a 9-year-old who lives with his single mother in a working-class Black neighborhood. “ Daily life of Tyrec was spent playing with his neighborhood friends or watching T. V with his sister until Ms. Taylor came home. The use of language is directive; “ Ms. Taylor has an assortment of rules to guide her children's behavior in and out of the home. Many of her expectations she articulates explicitly. She places a premium on respect for adults. All adults whether related to Tyrec or not, receive autonomic respect and deference from children…. She expects Tyrec to come home when she sends for him. ”( Lareau, pg 71). Parenting was passive and directed by the child, for instance, Tyrec and his neighborhood friends played outside, unsupervised by any adult except his sister. There was no advanced planning or consultations between parents. Conflicts between his mother and dad were openly discussed in front of them. There was no age restriction; Tyrec played with kids of all ages. Gender roles were very vivid, “compared to his sister Tyrec was given more latitude in the distance he could travel from home as well as how late he could be out with his friends. ”( Lareau, Pg 74). He learned skills including how to be members of informal peer groups and how to plan and negotiate open conflict.

How is the daily life of this family organized? What examples can you offer to support your answer? “The daily life was slower paced fewer pressures and less structured. Adults spend less time monitoring children’s activities, there is less emphasis on performance, and more latitude for children to pursue their own choices”( Laureau, Pg. 76) Tyrec and his sister spent most of their time watching television unsupervised by an adult. “TV and video games were major sources of entertainment, but outdoor play can trump either of these. No advance planning…no particular effort at all is required to launch an activity. ”( Laureau, pg 75) Gender roles were vivid in a sense that boys were given more autonomy than girls- who play closer to home. Outdoor activities usually involved fighting with peers. Tyrec’s contact “with kin- from large extended family events on weekends to informal drop-in on weekdays-are part of the fabric of daily life…. he often helps his grandmother with household chores on the weekend; when she needs him, he is required o assist his great-grandmother before he begins playing with his friends. ”(Laureau, Pg 76)4) What is the role of language in the household? The role of the language was limited and directive. When Tyrec wanted to play football, Ms. Talor said:” No, I don’t think so”( Laureau, pg77). “There was a frequent conversation about money the children life is constrained by the shortage of funds. ” ( laureau, Pg. 70). Mr. Taylor and Ms. Taylor would openly fight in front of children. She has an assortment of rules to guide her children's behavior in and out of the home. Many of her expectations articulate explicitly. She places a premium on respect for adults. Kids accepted the directives given by parents without questioning or challenging them.

How do parents interact with social institutions? Did they have any problems? Miss Taylor was a full-time single working mother. In this chapter, the author did not describe the involvement of Ms. Taylor with the social institution, but she did mention that "Tyrec was a solid student at Lower Richmond Elementary school. He mostly got B's and C's completing his homework regularly; he's complaint at school but on his own turf. He can be very assertive with peers. ” (laureau, Pg. 71) Which shows that there was very little involvement of Ms. Taylor with his child's academics although Ms. Taylor did agree to the Tyrec's wish to play on a football team but did not see this extracurricular activity as crucial to his overall development. When football season ended “Ms. Taylor seemed genuinely pleased that her son had enjoyed being on the football team however she saw no reason for him to repeat the experience. ” (Lareau, pg. 79) There were very few activities for Tyrec, and the only events he attended were Sunday school and Vacation Bible school in the summer. One important thing was that Ms. Taylor had rules set for Tarik for instance: "he had to do his homework before he can go out and play. " Most of her discipline consists of withdrawing privileges and restricting the children (Tyrec especially) to the house. "(Lareau, Pg. 71). In a nutshell, Tyrec was getting average grades on his own without any help from his mother which tells her negligence towards the social institution.

What are some of the immediate consequences of the parent's childrearing approach? Long-term consequences Some of the immediate results of child-rearing approach in Tyrec Taylor's case were: parents passive involvement in children’s activities. Kids were trained to listen to parents without questioning their authority. Another consequence was less involvement with social institution due to the busy schedule. The actions of children were unattended by any adults due to which they were more involved in fighting on the playground. The long-term consequences of this childrearing approach will lead to a sense of constraint, meaning that in future these children will feel restrained like they do not or cannot have access to certain opportunities. Children like Tyrec Taylor are the production of natural growth, they show signs of constraint, when they are afraid to ask for things that they want or when they take orders without being able to voice their opinions on the matter. This will affect their professional life in the future.

How would you rate the successfulness of the parents in using their "capital" in the "field" to get the desired outcome for their child/ren? In this case, there was no capital invested in Tyrec which would make him successful in the field (institutional arrangements. In my perspective, after reading Tyrec’s story, I conclude that he would not prefer going to college because of the lack of resources with regards to his academics. He does not have any extrinsic motivation in his environment. His father is a high school dropout and mother has an HS diploma, his stepbrother also just has a high school diploma. This will make him incompetent in professional life. The only skills he acquired were through school or T. V. The behavior in his house taught him to accept what higher authority says.

All these aspects make him incompetent to confront various institutional arrangements. The competition rises with every upcoming generation, many workforce areas demand a higher college degree, professionalism in behavior and language. They require critical thinking and a person who can challenge himself instead of surrendering to the rule book. Tyrec did learned skills which were unavailable to other middle-class kids: independence, creativity, but not in the enactment of organizational rules. He feels less entitled to adult attention and can manage leisure time to his own satisfaction. The skills other kids in middle-class homes learn may not give them skills what Tyrec had, but their skills pay off in institutional involvement in later life. In conclusion, I would rate Tyrec’s parent as unsuccessful in using their capital in the field to get the desired outcome for their child.