Observing Communication
This week my town hosts a famous festival called The Feast
of San Jeniro. This event attracts families and different age groups. There was one account that stood out to me
specifically. There was a mother who was scolding her child loudly in public.
Her son accidentally dropped his popcorn, and she said, “I can’t believe you
did that, you are so annoying!” As she looked at her friends, she said, “Can
you believe he just did that? He is so embarrassing.” In noticing this, I felt
uncomfortable because the mother was obnoxious and was putting the child down
publically for something that was beyond his control. In connection to this
week’s resources, instead of the mother talking directly to the child about her
feelings and why she was upset, she was talking to her friends about the child
and the situation that took place. The article “Communicating with Babies,”
Kovack (2011), discusses how one should not talk to others about the child in
front of the child, regardless of whether or not they understand the situation.
When children are spoken to, verbal or nonverbal, this helps them to understand
situations better and feel included in the scenario. In my opinion, I think
this child felt humiliated as he was being publically scolded. The mother did
not take into account his feelings and perhaps understand that festivals like
these can be chaotic, busy and crowded, and that accidents do happen. As the
situation was a bit extreme, I find that I am more patient and take the time to
speak directly to a child quietly, rather than to humiliate a child in front of
others. As I observe others, I find this to be a learning experience as well
and this helps me to be an early childhood educator.
Kovach, B., & Da Ros-Voseles, D. (2011). Communicating
with babies. YC: Young Children, 66(2), 48-50.
Hello Angela,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your experience with us that involved a setting with diverse settings. I think the observation that you shared was a prime of how an adult can negatively impact the emotional development of their child. Scolding her child in public followed by calling that child own annoying in public was not affirm communication at all. I do not know if the adult in this situation understood her style of communication hurt the child’s self-esteem. It would have been appropriate if the adult in this situation communicated to the child that sometimes accidents happen. Derman- Sparks & Edwards (2010) noted “children learn about their own social identities through both overt and convert messages” (p.13). It is critical for children to embrace their social identities and have positive self-image about themselves.
Reference
Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).