Dickson Tumuramye
Until the recent past, children were raised by both their parents and the community. Parents would sit with their children around a table or fi re and share stories, riddles and songs.
This ensured bonding, discussing of family issues and parents would pass on crucial information to their children. This is no longer the case. Nowadays, there is no longer community collective responsibility in child upbringing as the spirit of individualism is on the rise.
Child abuse and exploitation are also increasing; there is no more trust in people, everyone is a stranger and there is no more spirit of togetherness as it used to be in the past.
Parents are occupied with many things, as some say they are struggling hard to invest for children.
Some parents are busy pursuing education, others are into businesses, working so hard to make sure children are able to attain good education and a better life than they had, among others.
A parent leaves home early in the morning for work and comes back late, very tired or with office-related assignments or business work to accomplish from home.
In doing so, there is little time to invest in children and build a relationship with them.
Parents hardly have time to share stories, have fun, eat and pray as a family.
House helps have replaced parents in raising children. TV sets, computers/laptops, and smartphones are also used in some families to keep the children busy.
Children understand the language of cartoons and not their mother tongues.
SOCIAL MEDIA…
Social media is also eating into the family fabric.
Children are now more engaged in social media than their parents. Parents, too, find more time to be on social media than with their children.
Cyberbullying and sexual harassment are also increasing in our societies. With the advent of COVID-19, children had a lot of time at home with their parents but surprisingly, the rate of teenage pregnancies was high. What went wrong? Who impregnated these girls who were at home with relatives?
However, not all hope is lost. There are many opportunities that parents can harness to raise their children well.
It starts with being well-informed and one source is the Internet. For example, when children are doing homework and you do not know an answer, a quick Internet search will save you from embarrassment.
This generation is tech-savvy, so as parent, it helps to keep up. There is no way you can separate yourself from learning gadgets and technology and you think you are wise. Please be up to the game!
As a parent, you can expose your children to activities that build their self-confidence and self-esteem.
The writer is a child advocate and a parenting counsellor
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