L3

Excelsior College

PSY 235, Lifespan Developmental Psychology

Kryijztoff Novotnaj, Student ID 30883865

Module 1, Exercise 2

October 23, 2013

Complete the following: Visit the website sponsored by the Children’s Defense Fund:

www.childrensdefense.org. Click on U.S. State Child Data, and find your state’s

ranking on several leading social indicators of children’s well-being.

Using information from the website, answer the following questions:

• How are cultural values, special interests, and economic conditions reflected in

public policies for children?

• Do you think that these policies reflect current research in the field of child

development?

• How large is the gap between what we know and its application to public policy?

It saddens me to say that my state, California has some of the worst markings in the

country as it relates to a child’s well-being. Despite having one of the largest economies in

the country, let-alone the world, and access to some of the best public universities in the

northern hemisphere, 68% of the United States spends less on education per pupil than does

California.

Additionally, one would think that California, with its image of hippies and non-profit

spirit would rise up and show solidarity and love for all young people; however, every 7

minutes, a child is abused or neglected. Moreover, 22% of children live in poverty. This

occurs in one of the richest, most expensive and lavish places to live in the country.

Albeit that California has its challenges, it does have some unique characteristics that

attract people far and wide to move to this great state. First, culture is huge in California. In

a land where Caucasian is the minority race and where your neighbour to your right speaks

Tagalog and the neighbour to the left speaks Hindi diversity is one of the greatest attributes of

the state. This creates interesting dynamics of social interaction where the color of your skin,

the tone and inflection of your language and foods that you eat are not judged, but rather

embraced…and I must say explored by those of Caucasian background. The laws

surrounding social inclusion for children are a top priority for the state. California’s First 5

child program allows low income or no income families to provide free health care for

children under the age of 5. Regardless of your legal status, children have access to join the

program and receive the precious care needed for health.

Additionally, California's Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA) is one of

the strictest and most damaging laws to face those who abuse or neglect children. In fact, if

you hold a professional job where you interact with children or even suspect to have

involvement with children you are obligated by law to report any acts of abuse or neglect on

children. Failure to do so implicates you guilt, equal to that of the actual offender.

While these policies and social welfare programs help the young children out, they only

touch on the development needs of children. For example, once my child reaches age 5, the

rules of health care change. Everyone knows that a child’s needs through adolescence as it

pertain to health care increases. However, once a child reaches this age, they can still have

health insurance, but must reapply and have a gap of care greater than ninety (90) days (some

exceptions apply). So, can health care impact the development of children? The answer is

yes.

The gap of what we know about public policy and the application of it is quite broad

and wide. Some policies are great within the state, particularly with children under the age of

5, but the disparity grows after this age, leaving many vulnerable. Another gap in public

policy is serving the undocumented. While First 5 covers the undocumented, it leaves a

whole in coverage availability between ages 5 and older – this perpetuates a deficit in health

care access, which causes financial exposure and risk to families whose children are

uninsured and limited in their ability to access care when needed.

References

Berk, L.E. (2010) Development through the Lifespan 5th Ed. New York: Allyn & Bacon. p.

11-25.

University of California, Berkeley, California Child Abuse and Neglect Act., Retrieved 23

October 2013.

Children’s Defense, 2013. California State Metrics for Child Welfare. Sourced from

http://www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/state-data-

repository/cits/2013/2013-california-children-in-the-states.pdf