MPs scandal – lasting impact on children and young people…or not?
When the news about the MPs expense scandal broke months ago, the public uproar demonstrated I wasn’t the only one disappointment that the MPs we had voted in, had let us down in the way they had abused the system. Yes, the system was to blame for letting them get away with it for so long! But what about having the integrity to do what is right and not take advantage of the system? Surely the MPs must have known that much?
But as time went on and things started to subside; the whole thing got me thinking about the wider implications it would have on society, and more importantly the lasting impact on children and young people. Children learn from various sources – parents, friends, teachers, communities and technology (the Internet!) consciously or subconsciously; so assuming this was talked about in homes and various other places, what filtered down them? I wonder if parents, teachers or anyone else actually talked about it with them and used it as a form of learning?
This leads to another question – who should teach children about integrity and accountability – teachers or parents? Those who say parents, are justified in saying so – it is their sole responsibility to provide the foundation of values etc, before they get to school so they are not easily swayed or influenced…..right? But what about children whose parents have no idea what the words integrity and accountability are, let alone what they mean? (No disrespect to them!) So what happens to these children? Who will provide any form of guidance, in terms of the values they have? Also what about ‘children of the state’ – the looked-after children? Is the ‘state’ responsible? How will they accomplish this? Will these children be left to pick whatever values along their way in life? Or will the responsibility fall to teachers? Should it fall to teachers?
Well in my humble opinion, I think there should be a balance between both – parents and teachers. Parents are and should be the primary source of guiding a child; while teachers are the secondary source (yes there are some cases where the roles are reverse!). This however doesn’t apply to ‘looked-after’ children, because there is no one to teach them. So I guess it is no surprise the shocking statistics that 23 per cent of the adult prison population has previously been in care1; a debate for another day.
In today’s society, there needs to be some type of positive reinforcement on the values children and young people are expected to have. But how can this be achieved? One way I can think of is by creating opportunities for discussions and debates about everyday challenges on issues like integrity and accountability so they can talk and learn from each other.
But what do you think – has the scandal left a lasting impact on children and young people? And also who should be teaching our children and young people about integrity and accountability – parents or teachers? I would like to hear what your thoughts.
1 Source – Department for Children, Schools and Families (2007) Impact Assessment for White Paper on Children in Care. Page 35.
Published by DCT, creator of the Bina programme, an education resource that focuses on improving key skills – critical thinking, literacy and communication, while learning how to make logical decisions.
Please visit www.divinecommunicationstrust.org.uk/aboutthebinaprogramme
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