Question

In your reading assignment, “Engaging With Children and Young People” by Mary Kellett, the author suggested methods for more effective communication.

Mention three “pearls” that you will utilize in practice involving general and/or specific pediatric populations.

https://epubs.scu.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=ccyp_pubs/

Answer 1

Mary Kellett is Professor of Childhood and Youth at the Centre for Childhood Development and Learning, Open University, UK where she is Director of the Childhood and Youth academic programme. She is best known for her pioneering work empowering children and young people as researchers.

Children and young people’s domains are partially opaque to adults. Complexities of peer subcultures,ranging from the imaginary worlds of young children to teenage social internet chat rooms, position us as outsiders.Children and young people see with different eyes and have different priorities and concerns. Effective engagement is about children guiding us into their worlds. Communicating with children and young people requires both different and similar approaches to engagement with adults.

VOICE

Participation is the act of doing and being involved. There is a danger that it becomes no more than this and children merely participate in participation. Voice, on the other hand is the right to free expression of views that may, or may not, be linked to participation.

POWER RELATIONS

Power relations are someway connected to ethics.Children, as a powerless minority group, struggle tohave their voices heard or their views acted upon.One way of reinforcing adult‐child power relationsis the confining of children to the private spaces of home and family and keeping them away from the public arenas of policy and decision‐making.

GROUP POWER DYNAMICS

In group situations, power can be exerted by adults favouring some children and/or excluding others in the communication flow. Focus groups with young people are still an effective communication tool but we have to be willing to arrange these at places.

Professionals have the good opportunity to lead the field. Indeed, for those vocationally‐inspired individuals there is a moral imperative to stand firm against any potential erosion of children’s rights and weakening of effective engagement. This is best done by seeking collaborative common ground and strong inter‐agency liaison to fortify.