Divorce Articles

Summary

            Studies indicate that children whose parents are separated are more likely to fail in school if they have less involvement with their nonresident father. However, students who have no contact with their fathers are less likely to fail or drop out of school than are students who only have minimal involvement with their nonresident fathers. One advantage students of households with two parents have is the benefit of having two incomes. Studies show that children with nonresident fathers who pay child support are less likely to drop out of school or fail than students whose nonresident fathers are not paying child support. The different types of parental involvement and their effect on a student’s likelihood for school failure of dropping out, however, remains underresearched.

Reaction

            This article provides valuable insight into reasons why a student may be failing in school. It assists teachers to determine reasons for poor performance that may not be directly related to the school environment. One a teacher realizes that the problem may lie in the student’s family situation, the teacher is better equipped to discuss possible ways that the parents, student, and school may work together to bring about improvement and increase the student’s likelihood of achieving academic success.

Summary

            Article 2 explains through example some of the changes that small children who experience divorce and the re-marriage of a parent. Often, the teacher will see signs such as less involvement in play, clinginess, possessiveness, and aggression toward classmates. The article also shows steps that parents can take at home to ease the transition, such as keeping everything else in the child’s life exactly as it was before, allowing the child to spend time alone with both parents, and reassuring the child that she can talk about her fears with both parents.

Parents and teachers can also work together to assist children who are having trouble at home and at school due to divorce and/or remarriage. Teachers and parents should have discussions to figure out what steps they each can take. In the classroom, teachers can introduce books and other activities that familiarize students with different types of families and emphasize that the children in each family situation are loved abundantly. Finally, the article emphasizes that parents and teachers must have patience, as adapting to familial changes may take quite a bit of time.

Reaction

            This article is a useful tool as it uses a realistic example to describe some of the problems that arise with small children whose parents are divorced. The article can be very helpful in assisting teachers in learning what behaviors are cause for concern and also in giving teachers ideas on the dialogue they should have with parents. The suggestions that are made for classroom activities that could help the child adapt are also useful.

References

Brodkin, A. (2005). I Don’t Want a New Family! Early Childhood Today, 19(7), 12-13.

Menning, C. (2006). Nonresident Fathering and School Failure. Journal of Family Issues,

            27, 1356-1382.