I thought this article was interesting...
Excerpt:
Media coverage of accidents and crimes, says Stearns, amplifies our fears and distorts our perception of risk — and too, he says, more and more parents consider even the remotest possibility of harm to be unacceptable. "We've developed this phobia about taking any risk at all," says Stearns. "Kids used to break their arms and we'd say, 'Oh well' and sign the cast. But now when they do, we assume as a society that if things had just been properly organized this bad thing wouldn't have happened." As a parent of two young children, I know the worry. A car could hop the curb. A stranger might assault my child! But I also dislike assuming the worst in each person and every circumstance. And I regret that my kids have so little space in which to grow independent, to learn how to assess a stranger at a glance, to navigate the streets of our neighborhood and to learn to trust their own judgments and perceptions. They will need these skills to thrive as adults. "The funny thing is that there are areas we as society tolerate a great deal of risk," says Stearns, citing the minimal instruction new drivers receive and the relatively young age at which kids in the United States get driver's licenses. Traffic accidents are by far the biggest risk to children of all ages yet we speed merrily along at 70 or 75 on multi-lane freeways. [More]
Media coverage of accidents and crimes, says Stearns, amplifies our fears and distorts our perception of risk — and too, he says, more and more parents consider even the remotest possibility of harm to be unacceptable.
"We've developed this phobia about taking any risk at all," says Stearns. "Kids used to break their arms and we'd say, 'Oh well' and sign the cast. But now when they do, we assume as a society that if things had just been properly organized this bad thing wouldn't have happened."
As a parent of two young children, I know the worry. A car could hop the curb. A stranger might assault my child! But I also dislike assuming the worst in each person and every circumstance. And I regret that my kids have so little space in which to grow independent, to learn how to assess a stranger at a glance, to navigate the streets of our neighborhood and to learn to trust their own judgments and perceptions. They will need these skills to thrive as adults.
"The funny thing is that there are areas we as society tolerate a great deal of risk," says Stearns, citing the minimal instruction new drivers receive and the relatively young age at which kids in the United States get driver's licenses. Traffic accidents are by far the biggest risk to children of all ages yet we speed merrily along at 70 or 75 on multi-lane freeways. [More]
What do you think?
This topic is so interesting to me. I grew up in a small neighborhood in TN and when I would go outside to play I would be gone completely out of my mom or dad's watch for hours on end. I would return in the evening when my mom would stick her head out the door and yell for me. I know that this is not possible in every neighborhood but I feel like even 15 years ago things were so much more laid back and we all made it through childhood just great! I feel like today kids have to be watched every second of the day because anything negative that could possibly happen to them is considered the parent or the guardian's fault. When planning for playground builds I often have administrators refuse to put swings on the playground because kids MIGHT get hit by another child while they are swinging. I always resepct their wishes but I think we need to give the kids a little more credit and understand that things sometimes happen and and kids will fall down but it is not always such a bad thing. And to the administrator's thoughts, I completely understand because when a child gets hurt it becomes their fault and often parents don't understand how their child could get hurt under the school's supervision.
I dont know if things are going to change much in the future with people being more laid back with raising their children but I do know that I would probably be a very different person today if I had had parents who constantly were by my side watching my ever move and making sure I didnt fall down.
I thought this article was fascinating and relates to this subject...
Play time is over for children, with up to half of youngsters banned from climbing trees, playing conkers or riding their bikes by over-protective parents who are terrified that they might get hurt. ICM research for Play England shows that half of seven to 12-year-olds are banned from climbing trees. Four in 10 were banned from playing in their local park or recreational area without an adult present and one in three cannot ride a bike without parental supervision. ... The research also found that children were less likely to play outdoors than their parents had been when they were growing up. Of the adults surveyed, 70 per cent said they had experienced most of their play outdoors. In comparison, just 29 per cent of children broke beyond the four walls of home, or a designated playground, to experience creative "adventure" play. Only one in four children experienced most of their adventurous play in natural wild spaces or their local streets. More than three-quarters of children said that they wanted more chances to experience adventurous play arguing that it made them feel "happy", "free" and "confident". And 80 per cent of adults agreed that children should be free to experience adventurous play even if it puts them at risk of minor injury.
Play time is over for children, with up to half of youngsters banned from climbing trees, playing conkers or riding their bikes by over-protective parents who are terrified that they might get hurt.
ICM research for Play England shows that half of seven to 12-year-olds are banned from climbing trees. Four in 10 were banned from playing in their local park or recreational area without an adult present and one in three cannot ride a bike without parental supervision.
...
The research also found that children were less likely to play outdoors than their parents had been when they were growing up. Of the adults surveyed, 70 per cent said they had experienced most of their play outdoors. In comparison, just 29 per cent of children broke beyond the four walls of home, or a designated playground, to experience creative "adventure" play. Only one in four children experienced most of their adventurous play in natural wild spaces or their local streets.
More than three-quarters of children said that they wanted more chances to experience adventurous play arguing that it made them feel "happy", "free" and "confident". And 80 per cent of adults agreed that children should be free to experience adventurous play even if it puts them at risk of minor injury.
And an op/ed in the Aug. 13 Wall Street Journal also spotlights this topic.
Why Safe Kids Are Becoming Fat Kids By PHILIP K. HOWARDWall Street JournalAug. 13, 2008
The harmful effects of our national safety obsession ripple outward into society. One in six children in America is obese, and many of them will face a lifetime of chronic illness. According to the Center for Disease Control, this problem would basically cure itself if children engaged in the informal outdoor activities that used to be normal. But how do we lure children off the sofa? One key attraction is risk. Risk is fun, at least the moderate risks that were common in prior generations. An informal survey of children by the University of Toronto's Institute of Child Studies found that "merry-go-rounds . . . anecdotally the most hated piece of playground equipment in hospital emergency rooms -- topped the list of most desired bits of playground equipment." Those of us of a certain age can remember sprinting to get the contraption really moving. That was fun. And a lot of exercise. America unfortunately is going in the opposite direction. There is nothing left in playgrounds that would attract the interest of a child over the age of four. Exercise in schools is carefully programmed, when it exists at all. Some schools have banned tag. Broward County, Fla., banned running at recess. (How else can we guard against a child falling down?) Little Leagues forbid sliding into base. Some towns ban sledding. High diving boards are history, and it's only a matter of time before all diving boards disappear. [More]
The harmful effects of our national safety obsession ripple outward into society. One in six children in America is obese, and many of them will face a lifetime of chronic illness. According to the Center for Disease Control, this problem would basically cure itself if children engaged in the informal outdoor activities that used to be normal. But how do we lure children off the sofa? One key attraction is risk.
Risk is fun, at least the moderate risks that were common in prior generations. An informal survey of children by the University of Toronto's Institute of Child Studies found that "merry-go-rounds . . . anecdotally the most hated piece of playground equipment in hospital emergency rooms -- topped the list of most desired bits of playground equipment." Those of us of a certain age can remember sprinting to get the contraption really moving. That was fun. And a lot of exercise.
America unfortunately is going in the opposite direction. There is nothing left in playgrounds that would attract the interest of a child over the age of four. Exercise in schools is carefully programmed, when it exists at all. Some schools have banned tag. Broward County, Fla., banned running at recess. (How else can we guard against a child falling down?) Little Leagues forbid sliding into base. Some towns ban sledding. High diving boards are history, and it's only a matter of time before all diving boards disappear. [More]