The present-day youth deal with a number of concerns. Luckily, the society has begun to recognize these problems. Some of these issues have always been around, but they are now being highlighted into the eyes of the public in a bid to look for solutions. Others relate to the new trends as the society begins to adapt to a faster pace of life. Below are some of the issues that the youth presently face.
“Young people need models, not critics.” — John Wooden
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Issues Faced by Single-Parent Households
The faster pace of life is solely responsible for the problems presently faced by our youth. The problem invariably begins within the home. Since the 50s, the number of single-parent homes has significantly increased to cause plenty of concerns. Presently, 28 million children are under the care of 14 million single parents. In today’s tough economic conditions, raising a child in a two-parent household is a difficult job.
The situation becomes hazardous when only one parent is on hand to care for the child. Single parents are likely to bring home a smaller income. This is one of the reasons for fewer opportunities available to children, particularly in matters of education. Single parents cannot devote their entire time to their children because of professional responsibilities. This leads to higher absenteeism from school, high dropout rates, and the dangers of sexual behaviors, pregnancies, and drug and alcohol abuse. Therefore, it takes more to raise a child than just a single parent.
Drug and Alcohol Abuse
In the past, smoking was considered as a cool habit. History is evidence to the fact that every actor or an actress would appear on the screen with a cigarette in hand. Children were picking up the habit quite fast. However, with the passage of time and the awareness of the dangers of smoking, they were able to keep off from smoking. However, the same cannot be said to be true for drugs and alcohol, which are vices that are being displayed as cool in most media channels.
Research shows that 21% of high school seniors have used drugs and 41% of the same group indulge in alcohol. This clearly means that our children are moving around intoxicated and displaying immature behavior, which is amplified because they are under the influence of substances. The youth are susceptible to having poor grades, poor school attendance. Besides that, they are antisocial, violent behavior and even end up driving under the influence.
Pressure To Grow up Faster
There was a time when our children were happy being kids. However, things have changed drastically ever since. Presently, children take part in activities despite not being old enough to do so. The situation is similar to what is being seen with alcohol, drugs, and sex, which are quite popular subject matters in the movies, TV, and the Internet.
Youth are being bombarded with suggestions of a sexual nature regardless of the type of media they watch. There are instances of the youth indulging in sexual activity by the age of ten. Besides, Teen pregnancies are significantly on the rise. The concept of childhood has been literally wiped off from the lives of our youth.
Violence in Schools
However, things have changed dramatically in the recent past. Presently, and especially in low-income areas, schools have assumed the role of a war zone. We are not discussing minors bullying each other. Rather, we are pointing at serious violence. This vice has led to the loss of 284 kids within the last decade. There have been incidences of shootings, stabbing, suicides, and fighting.
