Anniversary of the pill
Last month was the 50th anniversary of the oral contraceptive pill. In the 1960s the pill was heralded as a development that would liberate women from male dominance and lead to fewer divorces, fewer unwanted pregnancies and fewer abortions. Clearly, things did not turn out that way.
As the pill became more common, the number of divorces and abortions soared. We saw a lowering of moral standards and a rise in infidelity and promiscuity. In addition, the well-being of children declined by a variety of measures, from rates of depression to diet, to poverty and incidences of child abuse and neglect.
Although women now have access to places and positions that once belonged to men, they have never been seen more as sex objects than they are today.
The major disconnect caused by the arrival of the pill has been a loss of the idea that men and women make babies. As technological advances in artificial reproduction are made, the idea that God plays a role in procreation has increasingly been lost.
Sadly, the future does not look promising for the family. With the rapid increase of activist judges with a proclivity to social engineering, we will soon be seeing countless forms of sexually bonded groups that are not only unstable but seriously harmful to children.
FRANK HENDERSON
London
Children and bullying
A study presented by the Child Welfare League Foundation has found that bullying has existed on campuses for a long time. It is a sad fact of life in Taiwan’s education system.
Recently, six cases of sexual harassment in a high school were reported. As was reported in the Liberty Times on May 21, the victims included both boys and girls. There is even a video depicting how high school students bully their classmates that has been spread via Facebook. There have been furious discussions about the incidents on Facebook ever since news of the bullying broke.
The foundation also found that family, school and personal factors are three key factors explaining why children bully others. First, the foundation found that these children fail to demonstrate sympathy because they are occasionally abused by their parents. Second, relationships with teachers and classmates influence students’ performance at school. This is particularly true at an age when teenagers are forming their identity by making friends. Third, personal characteristics determine a person’s behavior. Students construct their behavior under the influence of their parents and mass media.
This study finds that the mass media has a pervasive impact on children. Children watch too much TV because their parents have no time to spend time with them. Thus, some children copy improper behavior they see on the news, as well as violent movies and TV shows.
While we are exploring why violence exists at school, we should pay more attention to the behavior of our children. Parents should take an active role in their children’s education.
“Parents will always be a child’s first and most important teacher,” US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said last month. “Parenting is the most important job that every parent takes on.”
Also, research by the National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE) has found that when schools and families work together to support learning, everyone benefits. From 40 years of research, the NCPIE has found that children whose parents engage in their education are better behaved and have higher achievement levels.
While we discuss what causes children to behave badly and bully others, we should ponder the need for family involvement in education.
I believe the only way to cope with the problem of school violence is parental involvement in children’s education. With a parent’s love and care and cooperation with the school, students can drastically improve their learning and develop positive character.
IRENE WANG
Taipei
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