Scenario Evaluation

Essay Instructions:

The first half of the semester has focused on middle childhood development, (school age children between 7-12 years of age.) You have read chapters 11-13 in the text as well as online lecture information and you have completed various online assignments and discussions about the development of children this age. The HMS 340 text should be a beginning source of information and page numbers from the text should be included when citing information from the text. In addition, three (3) professional references should be included and referenced using correct APA format (6th edition). The Scenario Evaluation assignment provides a brief description about a middle school age child. Limited information is given, but enough information is provided to ‘paint a picture' about particular areas of development related to the age and gender of the child and situations and conditions that may impact this child's development. It is important to remember you are not a therapist or counselor and your response should be based on sound development within the theoretical frameworks you have studied in this course and other human development related courses. Your discussion should include as many domains as possible. Remember that development in each domain can adversely or positively impact development in other domains. The Scenario Evaluation assignment should contain all of the following: Introduction The introduction should be a well developed paragraph or two that clearly and concisely identifies the developmental issues. Body of paper The body of the paper should clearly focus on the issues as described in the scenario from a developmental prospective and should consider and include discussion about all appropriate domains (e.g., physical, emotional, social, cognitive). Each scenario includes enough information for you to focus on the important developmental issues of the specific age and gender of the child. Summary paragraph A summary should provide a concise paragraph concluding the main points of the evaluation and the primary findings from your resources. Opinion section Although you will no doubt form a personal opinion about the situation, the opinion section should be based on appropriate facts, research, and developmental data; and should identify important questions and concerns you have about the scenario situation as well as possible recommendations for those involved (parents, family members, teachers, social service agencies). The Scenario Evaluation assignment must be a minimum of three (3) pages in length. A minimum of three additional current references must be included. All references should be current (within the last 5 years). The assignment must be: · double-spaced using 12 point font · a minimum of three (3) pages in length · written in third person narrative In addition to the HMS 340 text, at least three professional references must be used and referenced using correct APA format (American Psychological Association Publication Manual - 6th edition) Scenario 1 Megan leans over to get a hug from her father in the dropoff loop of Carter Middle School. Like every other day she gets a hand on her shoulder that pats her and pushes her out the car door to avoid her interrupting her father's business call. The kids waiting outside the school all gather around to admire the red flashy Porsche she emerges from. She is known among her peers as the girl who has everything. The expensive clothes, flashy cars, big house, the latest technology, pretty much anything a kid could dream of. Though all the kids flock around her, it is not for the reason she wishes they did. Her fellow students get close to her in the hopes of gaining access to the things she owns. Megan eventually pushes through the crowd with her eyes on her feet and makes her way to class. She walks into her 6th grade English class and sits in her usual seat. In the last couple of minutes before class begins, the other students are asking if they can see her new purse, and if her dad has gotten her the new pink cell phone cover she has been wanting. Mrs. Richardson, her teacher, has observed Megan in the classroom, during lunch in the cafeteria, and before and after school. Although she seems to have all the material things she could possibly want, Mrs. Richardson notices that beyond her expensive apparel and gadgets, Megan appears sad and lonely and as she looks beyond the obvious she believes the real problem stems from Megan feeling neglected. Her parents are always working and sometimes their work takes one or both of them out of town. They have a full time live in household help who also stays with Megan when her parents are traveling. Mrs. Richardson realizes that although Megan has many students around her, she does not have a close friend. On several occasions Mrs. Richardson has heard the other girls planning a sleepover, but Megan does not seem to be included in the plans. Though the other students are friendly and polite to Megan, she is really not included in the group. *References must be written within the last 5 years.

Essay Sample Content Preview:

SCENARIO EVALUATION
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INTRODUCTION
In the past children were often viewed as small versions of adults and this led to much of their childhood development phases to be ignored throughout much history (Davies 2011). Focus was not directed towards children’s language usage, cognitive abilities as well as physical growth. However in the recent past most psychologists and researchers have began focusing on childhood development as by understanding childhood development allows them to understand physical, cognitive, social, educational and emotional growth that these children experience in the course of their growing up (Anderson, Cruz & Popper 2000). A few major theories regarding the development of children have also been developed by theorists such as Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, B. F. Skinner, Ivan Pavlov and Erik Erikson (Waldegrave & Waldegrave 2009). According to childhood development experts there are three main developmental stages involved in one’s life that is early childhood development, middle childhood development and late childhood development. Early childhood development ranges from birth up to the age of 5 or 6 years, middle childhood development is from the age of 7 or 8 years up to the age of 12 years while late childhood development is usually teenage years of a child (NSCDC 2009).
ESSAY
As mentioned earlier middle childhood development begins at around the age of 7 or 8 years up to the age of 12 years. It is often believed that middle childhood development has its foundations on early childhood development where each child has his/her own unique way of developing their physical, emotional, cognitive, social and educational skills (Davies 2011). Middle childhood usually brings about numerous transformations in a child’s life where at this particular stage a child is capable of dressing themselves, tying their shoes and catching a ball more easily. Friendships at this stage are also considered an important part of the child’s development and their social, mental and physical skills develop more quickly at this particular phase (Anderson, et al. 2000). There are a number of characteristics exhibited by a child at the middle childhood phase for instance such children tend to show more independence from family and parents, have a better understanding about their place in the world, have the desire to be accepted and liked by their peers and move from concrete to abstract thinking (Waldegrave & Waldegrave 2009).
Middle childhood phase also tends to make a child begin developing the ability to reason, have the desire to be in a stimulating environment that focuses more on their needs. Children at the middle childhood are also considered to be in an extremely sensitive emotional stage for self-confidence and self-esteem (NSCDC 2009). In the case study scenario provided, despite the fact that Megan has more than what most children tend to have at that particular stage in relations to material possessions, it is quite obvious that she lacks the attention and love from her parents. Instead of receiving a hug from her f...

Updated on January 26, 2024

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