Child

Biologically, a child (plural: children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty.[1][2] The legal definition of child generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger than the age of majority.[1]

Child may also describe a relationship with a parent (such as sons and daughters of any age)[3] or, metaphorically, an authority figure, or signify group membership in a clan, tribe, or religion; it can also signify being strongly affected by a specific time, place, or circumstance, as in "a child of nature" or "a child of the Sixties".[4]

There are many social issues that affect children, such as childhood education, bullying, child poverty, dysfunctional families, child labor, hunger, and child homelessness. Children can be raised by parents, by fosterers, guardians or partially raised in a day care center.

Legal, biological, social definitions

Children playing ball games, Roman artwork, 2nd century AD

Legally, the term "child" may refer to anyone below the age of majority or some other age limit. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child defines child as "a human being below the age of 18 years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier".[5] This is ratified by 192 of 194 member countries. The term "child" may also refer to someone below another legally defined age limit unconnected to the age of majority. In Singapore, for example, a "child" is legally defined as someone under the age of 14 under the "Children and Young Persons Act" whereas the age of majority is 21.[6][7] In U.S. Immigration Law, a child refers to anyone who is under the age of 21.[8]

Biologically, a child is generally anyone between birth and puberty.[1][2] Some English definitions of the word child include the fetus (sometimes termed the unborn).[9] In many cultures, a child is considered an adult after undergoing a rite of passage, which may or may not correspond to the time of puberty.

Children generally have fewer rights than adults and are classed as unable to make serious decisions, and legally must always be under the care of a responsible adult or child custody, whether their parents divorce or not. Recognition of childhood as a state different from adulthood began to emerge in the 16th and 17th centuries. Society began to relate to the child not as a miniature adult but as a person of a lower level of maturity needing adult protection, love and nurturing. This change can be traced in paintings: In the Middle Ages, children were portrayed in art as miniature adults with no childlike characteristics. In the 16th century, images of children began to acquire a distinct childlike appearance. From the late 17th century onwards, children were shown playing with toys and later literature for children also began to develop at this time.[10]

Development

Every child goes through many stages of social development. An infant or very young child will play alone happily. If another child wanders onto the scene, he or she may be physically attacked or pushed out of the way by the other. Next, the child can play with another child, gradually learning to share and take turns. Eventually, the group grows larger, to three or four children. By the time a child enters kindergarten, he or she can usually join in and enjoy group experiences.[11]

As a child is growing they are learning how to do some tasks in chronological order. They learn how to prioritize their goals and actions. Their behavior is transcending as they learn new perspectives from other people. They learn how to represent certain things symbolically and learn new behavior.[12]

Health

Children with ADHD and learning disabilities may need extra help to develop social skills. The impulsive characteristics of an ADHD child may lead to poor peer relationships. Children with poor attention spans may not tune into social cues in their environment, making it difficult for them to learn social skills through experience.[13] Health issues affecting children is sometimes dependent on gender; for example boys are more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls.[14]

Age of responsibility

The age at which children are considered responsible for their society-bound actions (e. g. marriage, voting, etc.) has also changed over time, and this is reflected in the way they are treated in courts of law. In Roman times, children were regarded as not culpable for crimes, a position later adopted by the Church. In the 19th century, children younger than seven years old were believed incapable of crime. Children from the age of seven forward were considered responsible for their actions. Therefore, they could face criminal charges, be sent to adult prison, and be punished like adults by whipping, branding or hanging.[15] Today, in many countries like Canada and the United States, children twelve and older are held responsible for their actions. They may be sent to special correctional institutions, such as juvenile hall.

Surveys have found that at least 25 countries around the world have no specified age for compulsory education. Minimum employment age and marriage age also vary. In at least 125 countries, children aged 7–15 may be taken to court and risk imprisonment for criminal acts. The age limit of voluntary/involuntary military service is also disputed at the international level.[16] In some countries, children are legally obliged to go to school until they are 14 or 15 years old, but may also work before that age. A child's right to education is threatened by early marriage, child labor and imprisonment.[17]

Child mortality

World infant mortality rates in 2012.[18]

During the early 17th century in England, average life expectancy was only about 35 years, largely because two-thirds of all children died before the age of four.[19] During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically.[20]

According to population health experts, child mortality rates have fallen sharply since the 1990s. About 12.6 million under-five infants died annually worldwide in 1990, which has declined to 6.6 million infant deaths in 2012. The infant mortality rate has dropped from 90 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1990, to 48 in 2012. The highest average infant mortality rates are in Sub-Saharan Africa, at 98 deaths per 1,000 live births - over double the world's average of 48.[18]

Education

Children in an outdoor classroom in Bié, Angola

Education, in the general sense, refers to the act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and preparing intellectually for mature life.[21] Formal education most often takes place through schooling. A right to education has been recognized by some governments. At the global level, Article 13 of the United Nations' 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the right of everyone to an education.[22] Education is compulsory in most places up to a certain age, but attendance at school may not be, with alternative options such as home-schooling or e-learning being recognized as valid forms of education in certain jurisdictions.

Children in some countries (especially in parts of Africa and Asia) are often kept out of school, or attend only for short periods. Data from UNICEF indicate that in 2011, 57 million children were out of school; and more than 20% of African children have never attended primary school or have left without completing primary education.[23] According to a UN report, warfare is preventing 28 million children worldwide from receiving an education, due to the risk of sexual violence and attacks in schools.[24] Other factors that keep children out of school include poverty, child labor, social attitudes, and long distances to school.[25][26]

In 2017, Prof Andrei Cimpian's study indicated that girls as young as six years of age can have the idea that being "a genius" is more likely found in males. The study also indicated that this leads more to the uprising of gender stereotypes.[27]

Attitudes toward children

Group of breaker boys in Pittston, Pennsylvania, 1911. Child labor was very common in U.S. and Europe in late 19th and early 20th century. Currently, child labor rates are highest in Africa.

Social attitudes toward children differ around the world in various cultures. These attitudes have changed over time. A 1988 study on European attitudes toward the centrality of children found that Italy was more child-centric and the Netherlands less child-centric, with other countries, such as Austria, Great Britain, Ireland and West Germany falling in between.[28]

In 2013, child marriage rates reached 75% in Niger, 68% in Central African Republic and Chad, 66% in Bangladesh, and 47% in India.[29]

Protection of children from abuse is considered an important contemporary goal. This includes protecting children from exploitation such as child labor, child trafficking and selling, child sexual abuse, including child prostitution and child pornography, military use of children, and child laundering in illegal adoptions. There exist several international instruments for these purposes, such as:

Emergencies and conflicts

Emergencies and conflicts pose detrimental risks to the health, safety, and well-being of children. There are many different kinds of conflicts and emergencies, for example, violence, armed conflicts, war, natural disasters, etc. As of 2010 approximately 13 million children are displaced by armed conflicts and violence around the world.[31] Where violent conflicts are the norm, the lives of young children are significantly disrupted and their families have great difficulty in offering the sensitive and consistent care that young children need for their healthy development.[31] Studies on the effect of emergencies and conflict on the physical and mental health of children between birth and 8 years old show that where the disaster is natural, the rate of PTSD occurs in anywhere from 3 to 87 percent of affected children.[32] However, rates of PTSD for children living in chronic conflict conditions varies from 15 to 50 percent.[33][34]

See also

Listen to this article (info/dl)
noicon


Spoken Wikipedia
This audio file was created from a revision of the article "Child" dated 2008-06-24, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. (Audio help)
More spoken articles

Sources

 This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0 License statement: Investing against Evidence: The Global State of Early Childhood Care and Education, 118-125, Marope, P.T.M., Kaga, Y., UNESCO. UNESCO. To learn how to add open license text to Wikipedia articles, please see Wikipedia:Adding open license text to Wikipedia. For information on reusing text from Wikipedia, please see the terms of use.  This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0 License statement: Creating sustainable futures for all; Global education monitoring report, 2016; Gender review, 20, UNESCO, UNESCO. UNESCO. To learn how to add open license text to Wikipedia articles, please see Wikipedia:Adding open license text to Wikipedia. For information on reusing text from Wikipedia, please see the terms of use.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Child". TheFreeDictionary.com. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Child". Oxford University Press. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  3. ↑ "For example, the US Social Security department specifically defines an adult child as being over 18". Ssa.gov. Archived from the original on 1 October 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "American Heritage Dictionary". 7 December 2007. Archived from the original on 29 December 2007.
  5. ↑ "Convention on the Rights of the Child" Archived 31 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine. The Policy Press, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
  6. ↑ "CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS ACT". Singapore Statutes Online. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  7. ↑ "Proposal to lower the Age of Contractual Capacity from 21 years to 18 years, and the Civil Law (Amendment) Bill". Singapore: Ministry of Law. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  8. ↑ 8 U.S.C. § 1101(b)(1)
  9. ↑ See Shorter Oxford English Dictionary 397 (6th ed. 2007), which's first definition is "A fetus; an infant;...". See also ‘The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary: Complete Text Reproduced Micrographically’, Vol. I (Oxford University Press, Oxford 1971): 396, which defines it as: ‘The unborn or newly born human being; foetus, infant’.
  10. ↑ . "Essays on childhood". Elizabethi.org. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  11. ↑ "Socialization stages". Childdevelopmentinfo.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  12. ↑ "Why Children Need Play | Scholastic". www.scholastic.com. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  13. ↑ "Socialization stages". Childdevelopmentinfo.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  14. ↑ Dworzynski, Katharina, et al. "How different are girls and boys above and below the diagnostic threshold for autism spectrum disorders?." Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 51.8 (2012): 788-797
  15. ↑ Fikadu Satena. "Juvenile courts". Law.jrank.org. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  16. ↑ Yun, Seira (2014). "Breaking Imaginary Barriers: Obligations of Armed Non-State Actors Under General Human Rights Law – The Case of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child". Journal of International Humanitarian Legal Studies. 5 (1–2): 213–257. SSRN 2556825.
  17. ↑ Melchiorre, A. (2004) At What Age?...are school-children employed, married and taken to court?
  18. 1 2 Infant Mortality Rates in 2012 Archived 14 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine., UNICEF, 2013.
  19. ↑ W. J. Rorabaugh, Donald T. Critchlow, Paula C. Baker (2004). "America's promise: a concise history of the United States". Rowman & Littlefield. p.47. ISBN 0-7425-1189-8
  20. ↑ "Modernization - Population Change". Encyclopædia Britannica.
  21. ↑ "Education | Define Education at Dictionary.com". Dictionary.reference.com. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  22. ↑ ICESCR, Article 13.1
  23. ↑ "Out-of-School Children Initiative | Basic education and gender equality". UNICEF. Archived from the original on 6 August 2014. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  24. ↑ "BBC News - Unesco: Conflict robs 28 million children of education". Bbc.co.uk. 1 March 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  25. ↑ "UK | Education | Barriers to getting an education". BBC News. 10 April 2006. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  26. ↑ Melik, James (11 October 2012). "BBC News - Africa gold rush lures children out of school". Bbc.com. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  27. ↑ Gallagher, James (2017-01-27). "Girls feel 'less talented' by age six". BBC News. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  28. ↑ "Rachel K. Jones and April Brayfield, Life's greatest joy?: European attitudes toward the centrality of children. Social Forces, Vol. 75, No. 4, Jun 1997. 1,239-69 pp. Chapel Hill, North Carolina". Popindex.princeton.edu. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  29. ↑ "Child brides around the world sold off like cattle". USA Today. 8 March 2013.
  30. ↑ Official Journal of the European Union
  31. 1 2 UNICEF. 2010. The State of the World’s Children Report, Special Edition. New York, UNICEF.
  32. ↑ Shannon, M. P., Lonigan, C. J., Finch, A. J. and Taylor, C. M. 1994. Children exposed to disaster: I. Epidemiology of post-traumatic symptoms and symptom profiles. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Vol. 33, pp. 80-93.
  33. ↑ De Jong, J. T. V. M. 2002. Trauma, War, and Violence: Public Mental Health in Socio Cultural Context. New York, Kluwer.
  34. ↑ Marope, P.T.M.; Kaga, Y. (2015). Investing against Evidence: The Global State of Early Childhood Care and Education (PDF). Paris, UNESCO. pp. 118–125. ISBN 978-92-3-100113-0.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.