Potential Dilemma Of Child Development
Potential dilemma 1 – If a child in the setting is using their own language, religion and customs due to wishes of parents/family. Why is this a dilemma? This is a dilemma as the practitioners at the setting my not be able to understand the child, this means they will struggle to teach the child and help them develop. If the parent does not want the child to learn English it may be a problem, most of the school/setting will be speaking English.
The parent may feel they are not focussing enough on this certain child’s religion and also, since the child is using their own customs they may find some of ours offensive. The difficulty between my duty of care and the rights of the child – A practitioner would have a duty of care to educate the child and help them develop. The child has a right to use their own language, religion and customs of family or group, this means the practitioner could not stop the child from getting an education because of their language, religion and customs, they have a right to this.
Also, linking to this, the child has a right to an education, meaning you would have to provide this to the child under any circumstances. How would I deal with this situation? First of all, I would try to compromise with the parent, that the child could possibly speak English in the setting and speak their own language at home. Explain to the parent this may affect their holistic development and exactly what it will affect and how. This may be too big of a compromise, so if not I would look into getting a translator into the setting to help the child develop and learn.
What could be the risks for the child? The risk here for the child is that they may not develop fully. This would be their holistic development as they will not be able to understand the practitioner when they are explaining activities and work. They will not be socialising and they may get frustrated and feel alone in the setting. Potential Dilemma 2 – If a member of the family turns up to pick a child up, one that is not supposed to due to wishes of parents/family. I will use mother as an example in this dilemma, if a mother is not allowed contact with the child. Why is this a dilemma?
There is a risk of upsetting the child if they see the mother which really shouldn’t happen as they should not be let in, although sometimes there could be a situation where the mother is forceful. The family member who has asked for the mother not to see the child could be upset by this, as it was against their wishes for the mother to try to contact them. The difficulty between my duty of care and the rights of the child – A practitioner would have a duty of care to protect the child, keep them safe and there had to be a reason for them not being allowed contact, they should also respect the parents/family’s wishes.
According to the UNCRC the child has a right for their family to be together, this means the child would normally have a right to see a member of their family, but in this situation it is best not to go against the familys wishes despite that right. How would I deal with this situation? I would deal with this situation by letting the mother know that she is not permitted to enter the setting. I would explain there was no possible way she could take the child as there are certain people who are allowed to pick every child up and she is not down as one.
I would ask the mother to leave the setting and if it did turn into a forceful situation I would call another member of staff to help escort this person out. If we could not get the parent to leave we would have to involve the authorities. What could be the risks for the child? The risks for this child could be a variety of different things. Without knowing the mothers background we couldn’t say any specific risk as the mother could be dangerous or it could be other reasons.
If the child see’s this person they may get confused, they may not even recognise them but if they do it may confuse them as they are not permanent in their life. Potential dilemma 3 – If you think a child in the setting may have a special educational need but the parent does not want them referred to find out as they do not believe the child has a special educational need. Why is this a dilemma? This is a dilemma as the child may not be able to develop properly if it is not clear if they do need extra support.
They will also be sure how much support and what kind of support they need by finding out what special educational need they have. The difficulty between my duty of care and the rights of the child – As a practitioner I have a duty of care to make sure the child is developing as they should, I should be making sure the child is reaching their full potential. I would also have to respect the parents wishes. Every child with special needs should have special care and support, if the parent rejects this idea it will be very difficult to get support. How would I deal with this situation?
I would try to explain to the parent how it would benefit the child to even talk to someone about their special educational need. I would explain as best I could that this was important for the child but I could also arrange something with the SENCO so they had all the information they needed to make the desicion. What could be the risks for the child? The risks in this dilemma for the child would be that they may not be developing hollistically, they would need extra support that they are not getting. This could affect the child later in life too as they may struggle in their education as they get older.
It is always best to identify a special educational need at the earliest possible point as this benefits the child, they may start lacking in all area’s of development the later it is left. Where to get support and advice – For certain situations it means different people to contact for support. SENCO, your manager, child protection officer, social services etc. These are a few people you could go to when conflicts or dilemma’s arise as they may be able to support or advise you. They may be able to work beside you to get the best outome for the child and support/advise you throughout it.
