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Parenting
101 by Michael Vaughn A recent Gallup Poll found the major concern of parents is the growing rise of aggressive behavior in youth, and such worries are warranted. Youth gang activity in the schools and community is up 50 percent from 1989 to 1995, the rate among small town and rural homicides by youth has increased by 38 percent, and juvenile arrests for weapon possession, assault, robbery and murder rose more than 50 percent from 1987 to 1996. Statistics also reveal a troubling decline in our students’ emotional health: teenage depression has risen 1000 percent in 30 years, and youth suicides have tripled since 1950.
Dr. Michele Borba, an educational consultant, author of Parents Do Make A Difference, and recipient of the National Educator Award, believes that aggression is learned, and can be unlearned by teaching new skills. “One of the biggest reasons aggression is increasing” says Borba, “is that today’s children haven’t learned many of the critical skills that help them cope successfully with life. Instead, they are saturated with violent and anti-social messages, and at the same time are robbed of quality time spent with nurturing adults who could be teaching and modeling these critical skills.” According to Borba, there are eight indispensable skills every child should be given: positive self-esteem, cultivating strengths, communicating, problem-solving, getting along, goal-setting, not giving up, and caring. How did she come by these eight essential skills? "I read thousands of research articles, interviewed dozens of experts, observed hundreds of students in both the United States and abroad and surveyed over 10,000 teachers," explained Borba. "Then I spent hundreds of hours tallying the findings and found there was a trend: eight skills were consistently named as critical to success by researchers, parents, experts, and educators." She then developed activities to teach these essential skills. The activities were tested at various schools throughout the country. Ninety-eight percent of the teachers at the schools tested noticed positive student changes: they were more confident, courteous, respectful and there were far fewer incidents of physical aggression and verbal put downs. "No child is born successful: they’ve learned how to be successful," explained Borba. "And we can make an enormous difference because we can teach them the skills research says matter most in helping kids become their best." Borba, who is a recognized expert in parenting, has field-tested her theories on 1.5 million students worldwide. As a result of her success in developing self-esteem in the classroom, she has been a frequent guest on many television and radio talk show programs, including National Public Radio, ABC's The View and has been interviewed in Newsweek, Better Homes & Garden, Child Magazine, Parents Magazine, Working Mother, Family Life, Personal Excellence, First for Women, Redbook, Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. But how can Borba's eight essential skills curb the escalating violence and gang activity among our youth?
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