ESRI report shows how we treat children 100 years after Proclamation to 'cherish all... equally'
A child’s likelihood of reaching his or her potential is still enormously influenced by their parents’ education, financial circumstances, and whether they live in a lone family, .
An ESRI study using 10 years of data from the Growing Up in Ireland study, highlights the need to devise public policy that targets resources and support services at families with the greatest needs.
The report reveals that despite having made huge strides in our attitude to and investment in children, 100 years on from the Proclamation, we have not succeeded in “cherish[ing] all of the children of the nation equally”.
ESRI research professor James Williams said: “Despite the changing nature of inequality over time, children’s future prospects continue to be shaped by family circumstances. Measures existing to help children flourish must be cognisant of the impact of the home environment on child wellbeing and development.”
The report found clear evidence that children in one-parent families are at a disadvantage as they are more likely to be dependent on welfare; have a less educated mother; and lower income. The authors found that children living in one-parent families are “still at greater risk of socio-emotional and behavioural difficulties” than children in two-parent families — even when compared to two-parent families with insufficient income, low levels of maternal education, parent-child conflict and maternal depression.
It also found that a child’s language skills are enormously influenced by the parents’ education and income levels — even at three years of age. Children’s language and speech benefit from higher expectations in the home; being read to; visits to the library; and more learning in the home.
The analysis of the study data found that children from more prosperous families are more likely to be taken care of in creches while children from poorer backgrounds are more likely to be taken care of by relatives, mostly grandparents. Poorer families do not pay their relatives for their childcare either. According to the ESRI, more research should be done on the implications of these care patterns on children’s development.
However, the report praised the introduction of two free preschool years as giving early education “to disadvantaged groups who would not otherwise have been able to avail of it”.
The study shows that even by age of five, some children are already at a marked disadvantage. Their attitudes, disposition and language skills are already affected by their social class and their mother’s education. However, these social gaps are smaller than gaps provoked by special needs; home environment; and any impediment in language or cognitive development.
It also found that babies born to poorer families are more likely to be low birthweight — weighing less than 2.5kg. Low-birthweight children are five more times likely not to meet development milestones at nine months and will likely still lag behind at nine years old.
