Purdue News
Purdue News
Judy Myers-Walls suggests taking advantage of community resources on parenting.
"Extension is probably the most extensive and available parenting resource in the state," the specialist said. "It's available in every county. Sometimes it's the only resource in the county."
Myers-Walls said Cooperative Extension Service parenting programs are low-cost and research-based. The educational programs have no political agenda and offer parents a choice of topics. Unlike some commercial parenting programs, she said, the Extension programs don't revolve around the philosophy that one approach works for every child. They're developed by different people for different audiences. For example, one program may target parents of teens, another may target teen parents.
"They focus on practical, usable solutions to everyday problems," she said.
Extension has offered parenting programs for many years, according to Myers-Walls, and they've changed with the times. These days, she explained, the Extension Service is more likely to pool its resources with other organizations and to offer program series. This provides more information and accommodates busy lifestyles.
"It's also more likely to help if we see people more than once," she said.
Another change is the move to the more targeted programs. One of those, "It's My Child, Too," is aimed at helping young fathers become comfortable with their new, often unplanned and unexpected, role. The number of U.S. teen-age males becoming fathers is increasing steadily, yet the specific needs of teen-age fathers have been largely ignored. "It's My Child, Too" was initiated in the Purdue Department of Child Development and Family Studies with support from the Department of 4-H Youth and Consumer and Family Science Extension. Sessions are taught by trained Extension educators in the counties. Training modules include child behavior, proactive parenting, crying, diapering, nutrition, immunizations, visitations, stress, parent cooperation, dads and kids together, and responsible decision making.
"It's My Child, Too" is a relatively new program, so evaluation data is limited, but what's available shows an increase in knowledge and skills necessary to be a competent parent. The majority of participating fathers said they'd learned about nutrition and immunizations for their children, how to deal with stress involved in parenting, where to go for assistance, how to better communicate with their children, and how to effectively deal with problem behavior.
On the other end of the program spectrum is "Blue Ribbon Parenting," which offers a potpourri of information for interested parents.
"It's a good opportunity for parents to sample parent education," Myers-Walls said. "'Blue Ribbon Parenting' was designed as an introduction to let parents decide what they want to know more about."
She explained that the programs often begin with an opening presentation, followed by breakout sessions on topics such as discipline, communication, self-esteem, parental stress, sexuality, learning problems, homework, single-parenting, and sibling rivalry. Displays are exhibited by libraries, health clinics, parent-teacher organizations, guidance counselors and others.
In Warrick County, "Blue Ribbon Parenting" is run much that way, according to Extension educator Mary Lou Elbert. Their keynote speaker is usually a motivational or a child-development expert.
"We have a parent fair with local family service agencies," she said. "There's free food and drinks, and day care is provided."
She said each of the three years they've presented the program, they've learned from it and made improvements the next year to accommodate the interests and schedules of parents. Attendance averages around 100 parents, who say they find the program worthwhile.
Myers-Walls said evaluations have shown that "Blue Ribbon Parenting" participants report being more specific and consistent with discipline, being creative with learning, changing homework rituals, and being more realistic in goal-setting.
Those also are some of the goals of another Extension program called "A Child in Your Life."
Hamilton County Extension educator Joanne King said: "Discipline is always a major issue for parents. But other things are closely related. For instance, maybe the child isn't eating well or the parent has unrealistic expectations of what the child can do, and the parent sees it as a discipline problem. It's all interrelated."
There are six pamphlets in "A Child in Your Life":
Videotapes are available for use with "A Child in Your Life," but King said she's found the written materials more appropriate for parents in her area. In fact, she said, "I've used the materials as handouts in other parenting programs."
To find out more about Extension's parenting programs, contact your county Cooperative Extension Service office.
Sources: Judy Myers-Walls, (765) 494-2959; e-mail, myerswal@cdfs.purdue.edu
Mary Lou Elbert, (812) 897-6101; e-mail, Mary_Elbert@acn.purdue.edu
Joanne King, (317) 776-0854; e-mail, Joanne_King@acn.purdue.edu
Writer: Andrea McCann, (765) 494-8406; e-mail, mccann@aes.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
