Family, Culture and Community in Child Development (Paula Ramirez)

 The Role of Family, Culture, and Community in Child Development

                                    

Children develop with the support of those who influence them and the surrounding environment. Family, culture and the community play important roles in how a child develops. They are important for a child’s emotions, thinking and social life and affect their overall development as individuals.

The most important learning environment for a child is family. Starting at birth, caregivers help children understand how to speak, relate to others and manage life. When parents are supportive and respond well, kids develop secure attachments that help them trust and feel confident. At the beginning, sharing experiences such as talking, reading, playing and showing love are all very important for a child’s development. Families help children learn important values, expectations and beliefs long before they start going to school.

The influence is further reached through culture. It decides the language a child speaks, the holidays they are taught to observe and the common behaviors in their families. For example, in different cultures, young people might be supported to act independently or they may instead be taught to emphasize social connection and respect for the elderly. Understanding these cultural differences is very important for both educators and caregivers when communities are diverse. When cultural practices are honored, kids know they are valued and accepted which lifts their self-esteem and sense of who they are.

In the early years, children grow a lot and learn new things mainly influenced by their social and physical surroundings. People generally talk about child development by focusing on school and physical achievements, but there’s much more to it. Children need to develop emotionally and socially just like academically and these developments are strongly affected by their family, culture and community. Because of these three things, people can succeed in education, build their self-image and live well.

Most importantly, the family gives a baby the first and closest place to grow and develop. As soon as they are born, children start learning from those who take care of them, like when to communicate, what emotions mean, how to get along with others, and how to solve problems. The bond between a child and their parent or guardian strongly supports the child’s emotional growth. Children usually feel secure and brave enough to learn new things if caregivers are caring, responsive, and predictable. Because of this security, children grow stronger in both their social and thinking skills.

The way parents are involved often has a big impact on their child’s attitude toward education, rules and social relationships. Children who receive a lot of parental attention, read-alouds and things to explore often build better language and problem-solving abilities. Just eating together, listening to each other or sharing family time can contribute to positive development and better relationships within the family (Swick & Freeman, 2004).

The way families are formed and operate can be quite different among cultures and every approach has its plus points. Independence and showing personal feelings are important in some families, but for others, being respectful and unified matters the most. These differences do not mean anything is wrong—they just show how differently people care for their children. People’s feelings, the way they punish misbehavior and their understanding of achievement reflect their culture.

Culture also helps form a child’s sense of what they stand for. How children view themselves and where they belong is greatly affected by language, traditions, foods, clothes and celebrations. If culture is reflected in a positive way by schools, media and social spaces, kids are more likely to feel good about their identity. At the same time, when their cultural backgrounds are ignored or not understood, children may become confused, feel ashamed or become socially separated from others.

People need to remember that development is also about what we do in our social lives. Family and culture both influence growth in children and theories explain how this happens. Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, pointed out that children progress most when parents, teachers and peers serve as guides in their learning. Just like how language, stories and customs are handed down in families and communities, religion is also shared in this way (Britto et al., 2017).

From birth until children are about five, they reach important developmental milestones and these are often influenced by their family and culture. Some examples are learning to talk and understand words, developing hands and feet coordination, managing emotions and making relationships. Children whose environment includes multiple languages may hit certain language stages at different times, but it will help them think flexibly. Likewise, kids who live with several family members learn social skills by being around various relatives and caregivers all the time.

Community involvement is important for child development in addition to what happens at home. Safety, enrichment and mentorship can be found for a child in their neighborhood, school, religious center or after-school program. They create settings for meeting new people, learning and developing social and emotional skills. Having teachers, coaches and neighbors around as role models can help children have lasting good experiences and support systems. Places like community programs, libraries, parks and health services can provide what families might not have.

The period between birth and age five is affected by all of these components when children develop. At this point, children practice important abilities in speaking, moving, managing their feelings and interacting with others. Most children age three and above start forming simple sentences and showing consideration for others. Following instructions and having fun playing in a group are skills many have developed by age five. Similar achievements may happen at different times because of differences in cultures and parenting methods.

Two important theorists give us guidelines about how children’s growth is affected by their family and community. According to Urie Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, child development is greatly influenced by the levels of environment found inside their own home, in their community and in wider society. Lev Vygotsky, in addition, emphasized that children learn from each other and from adults by participating in social groups (Hidayati, L. (2016).

Ensuring that development is healthy in this area requires families and educators to make environments where everyone feels included and cared for. Children feel better supported at home when parents discuss cultural heritage, go to community events and stick to the same routines each day. Institutions can strengthen their partnerships with families to make sure schools are understanding of and respect students’ cultures.

When children feel part of their family, their background and their local community, they grow and prosper. When we acknowledge and respect these main tenets of development, we support our students in becoming resilient, considerate and inquisitive.

References

Swick, K. J., & Freeman, N. K. (2004). Nurturing peaceful children to create a caring world the role of families and communities. Childhood Education, 81(1), 2-8.

Britto, P. R., Lye, S. J., Proulx, K., Yousafzai, A. K., Matthews, S. G., Vaivada, T., … & Bhutta, Z. A. (2017). Nurturing care: promoting early childhood development. The lancet, 389(10064), 91-102.

Hidayati, L. (2016). Nurturing and parenting: Dual role of parent on the child development and socialization. In Annual Conference on Islamic Early Childhood Education (ACIECE) (Vol. 1, pp. 19-30).