23 May 2019

An official from Tshidilo Stimulation Centre in Maun says children need effective parenting to guide and monitor their activities at all times.

Ms Tagwa Chauke was speaking at a workshop on caregivers and disability organised by Maun Administration Authority (MAA) recently.

Parents, she said, ought to exercise patience and support to build their children, adding that children with disabilities required extra care and support from parents and caregivers to complement teachers.

Ms Chauke also said it was crucial for children to be informed about major challenges and changes in their parents’ lives such as job losses or divorce, noting that such changes may lead to poor performance at school, low self-esteem and poor social skills if not properly addressed.

She said child negligence was also rife in the era with some parents resorting to taking their children to nursery schools and boarding schools in pursuit of carousing.

She said parents should practice authoritative parenting through which they guided children in a rational manner, adding that it was imperative for parents to consider the best interests of children when laying down guiding principles.

“Sometimes children may feel overwhelmed by some parental rules and regulations, and may learn to be resistant as they become teenagers,” Ms Chauke said.

She, therefore, said parents should explain why they instilled such principles for children.

She noted that some parents relied on literature for guidance while some used their parental instincts, saying the latter may lead to waywardness in children.

Commenting, Maun East Umbrella Village Development Committee (VDC) chairperson, Mr Romeo Segwai said absent fathers were failing their crucial role in child upbringing.

Mr Segwai also said too much exposure to television played a negative role in children. ENDS