Question

Most people make assumptions based on their personal experiences. These assumptions could affect your work with children and adolescents. You should be aware of your assumptions and how they may impact your interactions with children and adolescents.

To prepare:

• Think about your assumptions regarding family configurations.
• Consider how these assumptions could impact your work with children and adolescents.

Post by Day 4:

In child and adolescent settings, explain what assumptions people might make about different family configurations. Explain the impact those assumptions might have on the development of children and adolescents, and what impact those assumptions might have on your work with children and adolescents.

Answer 1

Various assumptions an indvidual may make are based on heteronormative norms where there is a cisgender heterosexual married couple. These assumptions are dismissive of other configurations that may exist such as same sex parents, single parents, guardianship etc.

Such assumptions may impact a child's development as they may reaffirm these norms for the individual and they may further perceive any family configuration other than the normative ones as unusual and make them despise their own family configuration.

These assumptions may impact individuals working with children and adolescents with non normative family configurations as their behaviour towards these children may be different. Along with that, they may also subconsciously or consciously influence the children to view their own family configuration as off therefore stunting their social development and familial relations.