I have been blessed to have not experienced the
stressors listed in this week's blog assignment. However, someone close to me
has. When my friend was a child her family was extremely poor. When she began
school she was able to have access to free lunch (which was often her only hot
meal of the day). She can remember receiving donations of clothing from the
local church, as well as presents at Christmas time. She shared with me that
her family also received food stamps which were used for the purchase of the
groceries needed for the week. She did not always have clothes or shoes that
fit her and she was always self-conscious about the way she looked when she
went to school. Despite the challenges she faces in the beginning of her life,
she pursued an education and is now a happily married specialized preschool
teacher with two children of her own that she is able to provide for.
Mexico
In Mexico there are currently 53.3 million Mexicans
living in poverty, this equates to 45% of the population (U.S. Embassy, n.d). "In all countries, poverty presents a
chronic stress for children and families that may interfere with successful
adjustment to developmental tasks, including school achievement. Children
raised in low-income families are at risk for academic and social problems as
well as poor health and well-being, which can in turn undermine educational
achievement (Engle & Black, 2008, p. 243).
One major initiative in place to reduce poverty is
called, The Hunger Project. This project empowers and educates families and
communities to learn how to plan and implement small projects in their
communities that will decrease hunger (The Hunger Project, n.d). The education
families receive helps to empower them to understand the control and capacity
they have within themselves to help solve problems instead of continuing to
live as victims to the problems that surround them. This ultimately helps to
improve risk factors which go along with poverty including violence, abuse, and continued poverty.
Engle, P. L., & Black, M. M. (2008). The effect
of poverty on child development and educational outcomes. Annals of the New
York Academy of Sciences, 1136(1), 243-256.
The Hunger Project. (n.d) Mexico. Retrieved from: http://www.thp.org/our-work/where-we-work/mexico/
U.S. Embassy- Mexico City. (n.d). Standard of
Living. Retrieved from: http://photos.state.gov/libraries/mexico/310329/april2014/2014_01_Standard-of-Living.pdf
Megan,
ReplyDeleteAs a child I was always upset and wondered why I could not get free lunch. Now that I am an adult I am thankful that my mother did have enough money to afford food for me, which is why I never received free lunch. Malnutrition is a crisis in preschool age children in the United States.
Poverty is such a strong indicator that hunger will be another stressor. I found information that tied a lot of the stressors together. It was difficult to research the statistics and facts because I felt as though I take for granted what I have. On a brighter note, it is also great to hear success stories like that of your friend. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog and I didn't have no stressors as child either but I did have this friend who was poor and I use to share my things with her. When I get something you get something to now my friend is living an happy life now
ReplyDeleteI am glad that your friend did not let her childhood influence the choices she made as an adult. When people experience stressors as a childhood, they usually change the choices that their parent or caregivers made so they will not have to experience the same stressors.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to your information about Mexico, I would have never thought that Mexico experienced that amount of poverty. I have always thought that they had enough jobs and sources to eat healthy live in good conditions.
As a child, I did not have much but I am glad that I was able to have the necessities that I needed such as food, housing, and clothing. I would never take those things for granted.
Thanks for sharing your post!