Youngest children posing problems
FORT WORTH, Texas – A first-grader in Arlington, Texas, tried to moon his teacher. Another threw chairs and destroyed the classroom.
A kindergartner in Fort Worth, Texas, tried to poison the classroom ferrets by feeding them crayons and glue. The child also bit other students.
As students begin returning to classes in coming weeks, teachers expect to see a continuation of a disturbing trend: It is the tiniest students who are hitting, spitting, kicking, biting and cursing like sailors.
“We fight before we learn to negotiate,” said Michael Parker, who oversees psychological services for Fort Worth schools. “Kids who haven’t learned that self-control or self-discipline are going to act out.”
Counselors in Fort Worth and Arlington schools say today’s kindergartners are experiencing more emotional and behavioral problems than their counterparts five years ago, according to a survey released in February. Several area educators contacted for this report expressed the same sentiment.
More students are violent, lack discipline and show no respect for authority, according to the survey by the Partnership for Children and the Mental Health Connection of Tarrant County, Texas.
The survey blamed the problems on issues including fractured families, a lack of structure for children and a growing incivility in public discourse.
The problem is widespread. National studies show that about 10 percent of preschool and young school-age children behave aggressively and that 25 percent of young, economically disadvantaged children do so.
The impact on schools is substantial. Learning is disrupted, teachers are burning out and administrators have less time to spend on education.
Elementary school teachers are accustomed to unruly children. Most kindergartners commit innocent wrongs, such as picking their noses in class. But more and more 5-year-olds are lashing out, sometimes violently.
Poor parenting, especially a lack of appropriate discipline, and unstable families are the root of the problem, area educators and health care workers say.
Studies show that children from poor economic environments are more likely to struggle with controlling their emotions. Some students enter school hungry or without a sense of trust in the world.
To prepare preschool-age children for school, the National PTA recommends that parents encourage them to share, play, converse and socialize.