There is evidence that all too many people are approaching parenthood with a dangerous lack of knowledge and skill. The result is ...that many children are losing out on what ought to be an undeniable right--the right to have parents who know how to be good parents, parents skilled in the art of "parenting."LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The fear of failure is so great, it is no wonder that the desire to do right by one's children has led to a whole library of books... offering advice on how to raise them.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Someday soon, we hope that all middle and high school will have required courses in child rearing for girls and boys to help prepa...re them for one of the most important and rewarding tasks of their adulthood: being a parent. Most of us become parents in our lifetime and it is not acceptable for young people to be steeped in ignorance or questionable folklore when they begin their critical journey as mothers and fathers.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Every society consists of men in the process of developing from children into parents. To assure continuity of tradition, society ...must early prepare for parenthood in its children; and it must take care of the unavoidable remnants of infantility in its adults. This is a large order, especially since a society needs many beings who can follow, a few who can lead, and some who can do both, alternately or in different areas of life.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Many people operate under the assumption that since parenting is a natural adult function, we should instinctively know how to do ...it--and do it well. The truth is, effective parenting requires study and practice like any other skilled profession. Who would even consider turning an untrained surgeon loose in an operating room? Yet we "operate" on our children every day.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Recognizing that family self-sufficiency is a false myth, we also need to acknowledge that all today's families need help in raisi...ng children. The problem is not so much to reeducate parents but to make available the help they need and to give them enough power so that they can be effective advocates with and coordinators of the other forces that are bringing up their children.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Everything from airplanes to kitchen blenders--and even chopsticks--comes with an instruction manual. Children, despite all their ...complexity, do not.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »