10 Markers: Childhood Flashcards
Item X
Some sociologists suggest that contemporary families have become more child-centred than in the past. Parents today spend much more time with their children, and spend a great deal of money to ensure they give their children the most fulfilling upbringing possible. Many parents want their children to have opportunities that they never had themselves as children. Critics of this point to
children’s lack of control over their lives, child abuse and other problems that children today may face. Applying material from Item X, analyse two reasons why contemporary families have become more child-centred [10 marks]
‘Some sociologists suggest that contemporary families have
become much more child-centred than in the past’ (Item X).
This viewpoint is known as the March of Progress view, they
believe that the position of the child in Western Society has
been gradually improving over time. As stated by Mause
1974: “the further back in history one goes, the lower the level
of childcare and the more likely that children are to be killed,
abandoned, beaten, terrorised and sexually abused’. This
implies that children are: more valued, cared for, protected,
educated, enjoying better health and given more rights than
children of previous generations. This is demonstrated through
particular laws such as laws against child abuse and child
labour which protect children from harm and exploitation, in
an attempt to preserve their childhood. Additionally, the
introduction of medical professionals for children places an
importance on children’s health and wellbeing. This shows that
society has become more child-centred. Therefore, a child-
centred society produced a child-centred family. But, the
March of Progress view ignores important inequalities
between children and adults and Conflict view sociologists
believe that childhood is based on a false, idealised image.
As we change from a modern to a post-modern society,
childhood begins to change. A postmodern society is
characterised by science and rational thought, society now
experiences a ‘pick and mix’ culture when deciding what suits
their lifestyle and choices. This is supported by Jenks (2005), he
believes that childhood is changing as we change to a
postmodern era and this is due to the pace of change
speeding up which destabilises relationships. This leads to
feelings of insecurity among adults. ‘Parents today spend much
more time with their children (Item X) to regain their source of
identity and stability. As a result, adults become more fearful
of their children’s security because children are vulnerable and
in need of protection from dangers such as child abuse.
Therefore, the family becomes more child-centred by
emphasising that children need protecting from harm.
However, Jenks is guilty of over-generalising. Despite the
greater diversity of family and childhood patterns evident
today such as lone-parent families or step-families, he makes
sweeping statements that imply that all children are in the
same position.
Outline and explain two
ways in which childhood
will change as society
changes (10 marks]
One viewpoint believes that childhood is disappearing as
society changes. This viewpoint of childhood looks at how
childhood is getting lost in technological changes within
society. Postman (1994) believes that childhood is
disappearing at a dazzling speed due to the emergence of
global media. The emergence of global media has led to the
destruction of the information hierarchy. The information
hierarchy refers to the differences in adults in children in terms
of literacy, adults can read, and children cannot. This means
that the two life stages are separate, thus “adult’ themes are
kept away from children to maintain their innocence. Due to
the rise of TV and the internet, children are exposed to these
adult themes and no longer maintain this innocence. As a
result, the lines between adults and children become blurred
because children can know as much as adults can and
therefore destroys the information hierarchy. This implies the
boundary is destroyed, adult power also fades along with the
innocence that children possess.
As we enter a postmodern society, the notion of childhood is
changing not disappearing.
A postmodern society is characterised by science and rational
thought. Society now experiences a ‘pick and mix’ culture
when deciding what suits their lifestyle and choices. Jenks
(2005) believes that childhood is changing as we transfer to a
postmodern era, the pace of change speeds up, and
relationships become more unstable. As a result, parents place
more importance on the relationships with their children as
opposed to their own personal relationships. Due to placing
an increased level of care on their children’s relationships,
parents tend to protect their children more. This shows that
children are vulnerable and are in need of protection, which
results in greater surveillance and regulation of their lives. This
means that childhood is still a separate status and certain legal
restrictions that are placed on children allow them to be
separate from adults.
Item D A popular view is that childhood is a fixed, universal, biological stage of physical and psychological immaturity that is common to all human beings. Everyone will pass through it on the way to biological maturity and adulthood. However, evidence shows that what counts as childhood, what experiences children undergo and what roles they play are far from universal. According to Item D, analyse two arguments against the view that childhood is a fixed universal stage [10 marks]
- Point: Cross-cultural differences in childhood demonstrate
how children differ in what ‘roles they play’ (Item D).
Explain: The Cross-cultural differences view looks at how
children are seen and treated in other places and other
cultures compared to the modern western view of childhood,
and this suggests that childhood is not fixed or universal.
Evidence: Punch (2001) - From the age of 5, children in Bolivia
begin to take on responsibilities at work and in the home.
Analysis: As a result of working from an early age, children in
non-industrial societies become economic assets, but in
comparison to modern western children, they have laws that
restrict them from working and they become an economic
liability that are dependent on adults.
Evaluate: However, welfare agencies are attempting to
globalise western norms of childhood and this suggests
childhood could become a fixed universal stage. - Point: The “experiences children undergo’ (Item D) differs
between different time periods and this is known as Historical
differences.
Explain: This viewpoint believes that childhood is a new
concept that has developed over time and is therefore not
fixed.
Evidence: Aries (1960) - In the Middle Ages, childhood didn’t
exist, once children passed the stage of physical dependency
during infancy - they were treated like adults.
Analysis - During the Middle Ages, children entered society on
the same terms as adults, for example by taking on work at an
early age. Aries used works of art to demonstrate children as
‘mini adults’ by giving children the same clothing as adults.
Children were given the same rights and duties as adults.
Evaluate: But, Pollock (1983) believes society simply had a
different notion of childhood from today’s society.
Outline and explain two changes in society which may be reducing the distinction between childhood and adulthood M0 marks]
- One way childhood is changing is by disappearing and this is
due to certain social changes such as rapid technological
advancement. The disappearance of childhood believes that
children are becoming more like adults through notions such
as: the growing similarity of adults’ and children’s clothing and
the disappearance of children’s traditional unsupervised
games. Postman (1994) believes childhood is disappearing at a
dazzling speed due to social changes such as the emergence
of global media. As a result of global media, such as the rise
of TV and the internet has destroyed the concept of the
‘information hierarchv’. This means that children can easilv
access “adult’ themes and are becoming less innocent and the
dividing line between children and adults is fading and
childhood is fading along with it, as well as adult authority. As
a consequence, children gain knowledge and cynicism (which
are usually traits that are associated with adults).
Societal changes in both culture and technology have led to
changes in the position of children. It is believed that many
children face a damaging childhood, This is supported by
Palmer, this notion is known as ‘toxic childhood’. Some
changes include: junk food, computer games, intensive
marketing to children and testing in education. This leads to
children being exposed to the adult world by having access to
adult concepts without having much protection from adults. As
a consequence, children’s intellectual, physical and emotional
development is damaged. Similarly, children are more
involved with traditionally ‘adult’ activities such as: self-harm,
drug & alcohol abuse, violence, early sexual experiences and
teenage pregnancies. This means that children are no longer
seen as innocent and embeds the idea that childhood and
adulthood are blurring together and becoming a similar life-
stage.
Item C There have been a number of demographic changes since 1900. Life expectancy has increased and therefore several generations of a family may be alive at the same time. Also, people now have fewer children. Applying material from Item C, analyse two ways in which demographic trends since 1900 may have affected the nature of childhood in the United Kingdom today [10 marks]
One demographic change is that ‘people now have fewer
children’ (Item C). Sociologists have identified that there is a
long-term decline the birth rate since 1900. Brass and Kabir
identify that the trend to smaller families began in urban areas.
This means that having fewer children leads to child-
centredness. This shows that families have moved from a
‘quantity’ to ‘quality’ approach, when it comes to childbearing.
Thereby indicating that children should now experience more
attention and should be able to gain access to more
resources. As a result, children are able to gain pester power’
over parents. Additionally, better off couples may be able to
send their children to childcare, which enables to couples to
work full time. However, better material conditions can also
have negative effects on children, for example computer
games can actually damage children’s development and can
create a “toxic childhood’.
Another demographic change is that ‘life expectancy has
increased and therefore several generations of a family mav
be alive at the same time’ (Item C). Life expectancy refers to
how long on average a person born within a given year can be
expected to live. Spiker and Maclnnes point out that there are
now more people over 65 in the UK than children under 15.
This means that due to people living longer, children now have
grandparents for longer. This could suggest that there is a shift
to the beanpole family, where the family is extended vertically
but not horizontally. Thus, grandparents are a main part of
children’s lives as they now live with them. In addition,
grandparents may be a main source of childcare in instances
where both parents are working. As a result, children may
build a stronger relationships with grandparents. Although,
children may also be subject to becoming young carers, which
could actually damage children’s experience of childhood.
Outline and explain two ways in which changing gender roles within the family may have affected children's experience of childhood f10 marks]
One way lies within the changes of women’s position in society.
Women have particularly experienced improvements in their
positions within employment. According to Harper, women’s
educational achievement is the most important reason for the
long-term fall in birth and fertility rates. This means that
women are opting for smaller family sizes, as they choose to
purse their careers. This suggests that there is now a ‘quality’
rather and ‘quantity’ approach when it comes to childbearing.
As a result, children are now able to gain more attention as
parents can split their times between fewer children. Similarly,
as women are beginning to earn as much as their partners,
they are able to raise the family’s standard of living, meaning
children have access to much more resources, for example
parents may be able to purchase educationally stimulating
toys that can help children succeed in education.
Another way lies within the increased symmetry of parents.
This notion is known as the Symmetrical Family. As proposed
by Young and Willmott, the Symmetrical Family is seen as a
more democratic and equal family structure. This suggests that
the ‘New Man’ takes his fair share of domestic labour and
childcare. This means that children will experience more equal
socialisation patterns, and this reduces canalisation into
traditional gender roles. Furthermore, parents may also have
more equal aspirations for both genders rather than
traditional, gendered aspirations. Moreover, working mothers
and devoted fathers may act as role models, which encourage
their children to aspire towards such roles. For instance, girls
that see their mother engaged in paid work may encourage
them to follow suit, and boys may see their father engaged in
childcare and this could encourage them to follow suit.
Outline and explain two social policies or laws that have affected the position of children in the family I10 marks]
One social policy that affects the position of children is
compulsory schooling. Compulsory education refers to a
period of education that is imposed by the government and
could involve consequences if not followed. In 1880, school
was made compulsory for all children and this raised the
school-leaving age. Most sociologists believe this resulted
from industrialisation. Industrialisation refers to the shift from
agriculture to a production-based economy. This implies that a
move to an industrialised society, needed an educated
workforce and this meant children had to partake in school. As
a result, children are financially dependent on their families for
longer and any opportunities for paid work are replaced with
compulsory schooling. It also suggests that children have to
be protected from the wider adult world by going through a
process of compulsory schooling. Furthermore, adults are also
indirectly controlling children’s space and time for example,
by certain school start times and end times.
Child welfare and protection legislation is another social
policy that impacts the position of children within the family.
These laws aim to prevent behaviour that can harm children
and provide a requirement to protect children. For example,
the 1989 Children Act made the welfare of the child a
fundamental principle underpinning the work of agencies such
as social services. This suggests that the position of children
has gradually improved over time, because the further an
individual travels back in time, the more likely a child is to be
killed, abandoned, beaten or terrorised (Mause, 1974). This
may demonstrate that society and the family have become
child-centred. As a result, children are positioned as innocent
and vulnerable. This implies that children must be protected
from ‘adult’ issues such as abuse at all costs. As a
consequence, many institutions including the family place their
priorities among protecting their children’s ‘golden age’ of
childhood as well as maintaining their happiness and
innocence, this is further emphasised through social policies
such as the Children Act.
Item A Parents today spend a great deal of time and money trying to make sure that their children enjoy a comfortable upbringing. They want their children to have opportunities that thev themselves never had 'March of progress' sociologists argue that these changes in family life have led to an improvement in the position of children in society. Applying material from Item A, analvse two changes in the position of children in society over the last 100 years [10 marks]
One change in the position of children in society is that
‘parents today spend a great deal of time and money’ (Item A)
on their children. Both higher living standards and smaller
family sizes mean that parents can afford to provide for their
children’s needs properly. Margo suggests that children are
now taking greater control over family spending decisions.
This has stemmed from economic growth over the past
century, which has resulted in higher employment levels and
higher living standards and increasing affluence. This suggests
that parents now earn more money and are able to spend
more on their children and their development, for example by
having access to healthier food. Similarly, parents are also
more involved with the socialisation of their children,
particularly middle-class parents. Additionally, laws that
prevent children from working has emphasised that children
are no longer positioned as economic assets, they are
positioned as economic liabilities. This implies there has been a
cultural shift in the view of children and as a result their
position has changed. Despite a change in economic
conditions, not all parents are able to afford such products for
their children, this is particularly seen in lone-parent family
structures, which creates inequality amongst children.
Another change in the position of children in society lies within
the expansion of children’s ‘opportunities’ (Item A). One of
these opportunities includes educational opportunities. Functionalist Sociologist Parsons believes that schools are a
focal socialising agency, where children learn a new way of
living and how to cope with the wider world. This means that
education provides children with secondary socialisation which
many uneducated parents may not be able to carry out
effectively. This suggests that children have to go through a
stage of nurturing before entering the adult world due to
lacking skills and knowledge. Furthermore, education is seen
to provide a sense of child welfare, meaning children are seen
as in need of protection. Similarly, due to the meritocratic
nature of education, children are able to achieve and gain
qualifications to fulfil appropriate jobs and the introduction of
the National Curriculum ensures children have knowledge in a
broad range of subjects. This implies that children may be
positioned as in need of educating and protecting. Equally, not
all schools are able to provide pupils with the same
opportunities because many educational institutions reproduce
class inequalities.
