This week UNICEF produced a report on the physical and emotional well-being of youngsters in the world's wealthiest nations. With the report came a league table and it was no surprise to find that Holland, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland are at the top and the nation that is said to think more of it’s pets than it’s children is languishing at the bottom.
The report, entitled Report Card 7, Child Poverty in Perspective: An Overview of Child Well-being in Rich Countries, is the first study of it’s kind. England came bottom of the well-being table and the overall quality of life for children in the United States was only narrowly better than in the UK
So what is it that that the Dutch do that makes their children so healthy and well?
Much of child well-being comes from the relationship that Dutch parents have with their children. Children are used to a highly protective, positive, caring environment. The percentage of young mothers in the labour force is not high in comparison to other countries, and there is a strong tendency for mothers to raise children or take a long time off work after children are born. Unlike here, sex, drugs, and a multitude of issues are openly examined and discussed in school, and at home relations are generally open and communicative, and parents, teachers, and children can talk about almost anything.
Though Nursery education in Holland starts at 4 years of age it is geared to learning about the world through play. My Dutch friends are horrified that many Indian children now start learning the 3Rs when they've just turned four. In Holland and all the table topping countries children begin to learn the 3Rs when they are almost 7 years of age or later! One Dutch visitor told me that he thought that we were crazy!
Unlike here, in Holland schooling is child centred, not exam centred and there is a commitment to the rights of the child. Dutch children learn to see themselves as special individuals and generally do not evaluate themselves in relation to their peers. They learn to cooperate and not compete and the ‘House’ system finds no place in their Schools. Regimentation is abhorred and school uniforms are against the law. If there are no classes the children are allowed to go home, and not hang around in school waiting for the next class. Class sizes are small and in nursery they will not employ teaching assistants since equality of opportunity is promoted in every aspect of schooling, and every child is entitled to the attention of a fully qualified teacher.
Significantly, Dutch schools do not concentrate on the needs of the economy at the expense of the families it is supposed to be serving, and they understand that institutions are not a substitute for parenting. They understand that child rearing is a collaborative process, and that "it takes a village to raise a child".
The report is a wake-up call to all our parents and schools. We have to stop competing so frenziedly and start collaborating, or we may find the next generation isn't bright or emotionally balanced enough to deal with the problems they are bound to face. We need become more like the table toppers, and not the pet preferring British.
