Child Protection

It is well known that children are abused by some one they know and trust.

These offenders are often manipulative and abuse can go undetected for a large amount of time.

Teachers, police officers, doctors, welfare workers, anyone who works directly with children, are mandatory reporters of abuse.

Due to an unmanageable overload of reports DoCS has changed their mandatory reporting from 'risk of harm' to 'serious risk of harm'.

While this means serious cases have priority and are more likely to be attended to with more haste, the professionals reporting possible abuse usually only have a few indicators to go by.

My concern is many abused children will be overlooked until their circumstances escalate.

Rarely do children verbally disclose abuse.

Children rely on adults to notice physical trauma, emotional and mental disturbances and changes or perhaps developmental delays and abnormal behaviours.

So if one of our only methods of reporting abuse is failing us, what can we do?

If a child is being abused at home are they being informed about their right to live free from abuse?

I would love to see programs in early childhood centres and schools that inform children of their rights.

It would be ideal to give children a voice.

For them to be able to stand up and say 'this is happening to me and it's wrong' rather than hoping that someone will notice, furthermore, actually do something about it.

Do these children all know that what is happening to them is abuse?

Depending on the age and cognitive ability of the child, and the nature of the abuse, this can often be unlikely.

A child that is being abused emotionally may only see physical or sexual abuse as 'abuse' and their parents constant verbal abuse that diminishes their self worth may be explained away as 'i am bad' for example.

Let's not just give children rights.

Let us equip them with the power to ensure they have their rights met.

What strategies do you think could be implemented?

Media Violence

After reviewing more than 1000 studies based on over 30 years of research, 6 major public health organisations, including the American Medical Association, found that 'viewing entertainment violence can lead to increases in aggressive attitudes, values and behaviour, particularly in children.'

Research and developmental theorists have proven that children who view a lot of media violence are more likely to view violence as an effective way of settling conflicts. Viewing media violence can lead to emotional desensitisation towards violence in real life.

According to Huston 'Big world, Small screen. University of Nebraska Press (1992) Children, on average, will witness on television 200,000 acts of violence, including 40,000 murders, by the time they are eighteen. As found by Haninger and Thompson Violence in teen-related games (2008) www.kidsrisk.harvard.edu/images/MGMvideogames.pdf a study of teen-related games found that 98% involved intentional violence and 69% rewarded killing or required the player to kill in order to advance in the game.

It is a common belief held by many childhood developmental theorists and professionals that operant conditioning - the reinforcement of ideas and behaviours is likely to produce such ideas and behaviours. Behavioural science research demonstrates that playing violent video games can increase the likelihood of aggressive behaviour in children and youth.

What are your thoughts and experiences in relation to video game violence?
We would love your feedback and suggestions for further topic discussion/information.

Thank you for ensuring tomorrows children's dreams are unlimited.
Kids Unlimited Australia

Marketing without Borders

Marketing without Borders

Please click on the following link to be redirected to the original fact sheet from Commercial Free Childhood:
http://www.commercialfreechildhood.org/factsheets/withoutborders.pdf


Co-Branding: Toy companies join food and media companies to create advertoys such as McDonald’s Play Doh,25


25 Hasboro.com (2008). PLAY-DOH – Mini tools McDonal’s French Fries. Retrieved August 12, 2008, from http://www.hasbro.com/default.cfm?page=browse&product_id=15785

If you were to visit your local Toys'r'us outlet today you would find McDonald playset kitchens, fast food windows and play food kits. Whilst all of these toys provide for dramatic play experiences which is positive for children's cognitive and social/emotional development were are exposing our children to another form of marketing, a companies ploy of creating brand recognition, familiarity and loyalty.

Toys that are beneficial for children in terms of dramatic play include equipment and resources that are open-ended and allow children to use their imagination. As children form an understanding of their world it is important they are given opportunities to freely explore it in a support environment. Keep in mind that children learn through play - what is your child learning right now? While it is unlikely that you will avoid your child seeing inappropriate products and product advertising it is beneficial to minimise their exposure and to educate children in an open and honest way. Remember until the age of about 8 children do not understand advertising's persuasive intent (Kunkel (2001) Children and television advertising)

Kids Unlimited Australia welcomes your feedback, questions and topic suggestions.
Thank you for ensuring tomorrow's children's dreams are unlimited.
Kids Unlimited Australia.

Sexualised Slogans on Childrens Clothing

I would appreciate thoughts and comments as a response to this news article (Click on post title - Sexualised Slogans on Children's Clothing to access news article at http://www.news.com.au/story/0,,25818079-2,00.html)
What do followers of our blog think of sexualised messages on children's clothing?

Thank you for your time and thoughts,
Kids Unlimited Australia

The Sexualisation of Children

Research links sexualisation with some of the most pressing and common mental health problems for girls including eating disorders, low self-esteem, depression and poor sexual health. 1

Throughout the mainstream media we subject children to many sexualised messages. These messages are in the form of television, internet, games, movies, music and magazines. Sexual connotations and innuendos aimed at adults are common even throughout children's programs.
Marketers use 'Aspirational Advertising'. They exploit a child's natural tendency to idolise and mimic adults and older children.

Adolescent sexual activity and beliefs about sex are linked to sexualised media content as researched by Lichter, S.R (2000) Sexual Imagery in popular culture, Sutton, M.J. (2002) Sexual Teens, Sexual Media, Collins, R.L. (2004) Pediatrics Journal 114 and Martino, S.C. (2006) Pediatrics Journal 118.
Research shows more than half of teens report getting most of their information about sex from television. It has also been found that teens exposed to more sexual content on television, or in sexual explicit music and music videos are; more likely to engage in sex sooner, have more sexual partners and to be diagnosed with an STD. Boys exposed to violent sex on television have been found less likely to be sympathetic to female victims of sexual violence.

Early exposure to sexual themes and messages desensitised children to sex.

1 American Psychological Association (2007) Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualisation of Girls. www.apa.org/pi/wpo/sexualisation.html

Kids Unlimited Australia welcomes your feedback, questions and topic suggestions.
Thank you for ensuring tomorrow's children's dreams are unlimited.
Kids Unlimited Australia.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Here are some exerts from the UN Convention on the Right of the Child which entered in to force on the 2nd of September 1990. The exerts relate to freedom of expression and the responsibilities of the mass media to children. (Italics have been added by Kids Unlimited Australia to add emphasis)

Article 17
States Parties recognize the important function performed by the mass media and shall ensure that the child has access to information and material from a diversity of national and international sources, especially those aimed at the promotion of his or her social, spiritual and moral well-being and physical and mental health.
To this end, States Parties shall:
(a) Encourage the mass media to disseminate information and material of social and cultural benefit to the child and in accordance with the spirit of article 29;
(b) Encourage international co-operation in the production, exchange and dissemination of such information and material from a diversity of cultural, national and international sources;
(c) Encourage the production and dissemination of children's books;
(d) Encourage the mass media to have particular regard to the linguistic needs of the child who belongs to a minority group or who is indigenous;
(e) Encourage the development of appropriate guidelines for the protection of the child from information and material injurious to his or her well-being, bearing in mind the provisions of articles 13 and 18.

For Reference I have included Articles 13, 18 and 29
Article 13
1. The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child's choice.
2. The exercise of this right may be subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided by law and are necessary:
(a) For respect of the rights or reputations of others; or
(b) For the protection of national security or of public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals.

Article 18
1. States Parties shall use their best efforts to ensure recognition of the principle that both parents have common responsibilities for the upbringing and development of the child. Parents or, as the case may be, legal guardians, have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of the child. The best interests of the child will be their basic concern.
2. For the purpose of guaranteeing and promoting the rights set forth in the present Convention, States Parties shall render appropriate assistance to parents and legal guardians in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities and shall ensure the development of institutions, facilities and services for the care of children.
3. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that children of working parents have the right to benefit from child-care services and facilities for which they are eligible.

Article 29
1. States Parties agree that the education of the child shall be directed to:
(a) The development of the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential;
(b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations;
(c) The development of respect for the child's parents, his or her own cultural identity, language and values, for the national values of the country in which the child is living, the country from which he or she may originate, and for civilizations different from his or her own;
(d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and persons of indigenous origin;
(e) The development of respect for the natural environment.

In reading this articles, take a moment to reflect. What impact is the mass media having on our children? Are the media providing children with information and material that is developing the whole child or destroying childhoods?

Kids Unlimited Australia appreciates any feedback, comments and questions regarding the above information. Further discussion topics will be considered.
Further information regarding the effects of the media and targeted advertising is due to be published soon.

Thank you for ensuring tomorrows children's dreams are unlimited.
Kids Unlimited Australia

Kids Unlimited Australia

www.commercialfreechildhood.org

Above is a link to the site; The Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood, which contains a wide array of informative fact sheets addressing issues such as the effects of the media on childhood obesity, image disorders and media violence.

Kids Unlimited Australia will be posting information soon.

Please comment with topic suggestions and/or questions you would like to see covered.
Thank You