Hello Everyone,
This post starts the week 3 blogging. Many of you have been doing an excellent job. Thank you. I would like to remind you once again my instructions for blogging. Please review them.
Week 3: After analysis of Urie Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development, describe what happens when one or more components of the Mesosystem breaks down. Careful synthesis of the pages following Bronfenbrenner's model should help. Namely, Family, Peers, and Teachers.
Providing "examples" always helps fortify your responses.
Thanks, Splichal
Because each component of the Mesosystem (home, school, neighborhood, work, etc) is constantly interacting and influencing each other, if one component breaks down all of the other components are therefore affected. One example is divorce which, as our text discussed, is very hard on all those involved. Divorce can affect how parents interact with each other, which in turn affects the child. In addition, it can also affect how parents communicate with the teacher and how the teacher communicates with the parents (i.e. sending two sets of notes, information, etc). How both the child and parents interacts with peers, teachers, neighbors, and others can also be affected. Additionally, a loss of a job by a parent would also affect the other components of the system. Additional stress created by the job loss can affect how parents interact with each other, their children, the school, and the community. In some scenarios, it may result in relocation, in which all the components of the mesosytem are again affected. However, if I correctly understand the concept Bronfenbrenner's model, can’t positive outcomes also be a result of the reciprocal nature of this system? An example of such a positive affect might be a teacher who decides to develop quality relationships with students’ families. As a result, the teacher’s influence encourages families to become more involved in the students' education which results in a better educational experience and higher test scores. This then has a positive impact on the school and community. Therefore, though we were only instructed to describe the event of a breakdown, it is my understanding that any change in a component of the system will directly impact the other components within the system, both positively and negatively dependent on the initial change.
ReplyDeleteYou gave some great examples of some breakdowns in the Mesosystem. I have a personal example that I believe fits in with something like divorce or the parent losing a job. My husband has had some major medical problems lately and was recently placed on a liver transplant list. Although I feel like my children are dealing with things pretty well, I have noticed some changes in my 9 year old son (as did his teacher). It seems that he has become VERY concerned with his own health lately and seems to panic about something being medically wrong with him. I informed his teacher at the beginning of the school year about our current situation at home (we have to be gone a lot for hospital stays 6 hours away). My son's teacher has been very supportive and even called me to his classroom to check out a mesquite bite that he was concerned about (she thought it might give him piece of mind).
DeleteAs teachers we cannot always know exactly what is going on at home or with peers, but it definitely plays a major role in a students academic performance, behavior, etc... I believe it is important to ask questions, be on the look out for unusual behavior, and try to communicate with parents often so that we understand where our students are coming from.
Each of the areas of the Mesosystem is directly affected by the others so if one is altered they will all be affected in some way. I grew up in a very sheltered home. My parents role was parent, provider, medical and education all wrapped up into one crazy ball. This altered my perception of reality and it took me many years to adjust to the norms of society. Adjusting to college was the first big jump. I have never taken notes before nor written a formal paper. Let’s just say I spent many stressful months building these skills from the floor up. This changed my outlook on education because it was something that was a privilege in my world not a right. I went one to be the first person in my family (including first cousins) to achieve a Bachelor’s degree in 08 and I haven’t looked back once.
ReplyDeleteThis absence of having peers in the impressionable years of adolescents also made me develop an odd since of self that has luckily changed for the better over the last 12 years. For me not having peers outside of siblings made it hard to know what was normal and what wasn’t. Not a good scenario for an adolescent. I would say that my adolescence was spent in the identity diffusion stage and didn’t move away from it until around 18.
It is obvious that once sense f self is closely impacted by family, teachers, peers and communities and when all of these are the same it has an even larger affect on how you develop. The mesosystem plays an important role in developing your sense of self. It influences all areas of one’s self and can have negative and positive affects in construction one’s self identity.
Cathryn,
DeleteWow, thanks for sharing your personal and highly relevant example of how the inner most circle impacted you significantly during childhood and adolescent developmental stages. I can totally see how your mother as 'everything' would give you a limited schema base for your vision for how the world works. I've only known a few people in my entire life who home-schooled. She did it well, but also used community resources (their church) for a lot of social stimulation, so they were not as isolated as it sounds like you may have been.
I had a odd parenting situation when I was growing up too. I was the baby of the family, and my dad was 50 and my mom 40 when I was born. My father had been in the Air Force for 35 years and our family before I came along had traveled the world and lived in France for years. Saying my folks had 'been there; done that.' is a bit of a understatement. Everyone said when I was growing up that I acted older than I was. People started assuming when I was an adolescent that I was in my twenties, just because of the extra mature influence my extra seasoning parents provided me while growing up. Everyone thought my dad was my grandpa, because he had white hair and heavily scarred from agent orange.
I'm happy to hear that your life has luckily changed for the better. I would say mine has too considering my unique upbringing. Thanks for the post. It really got my thinking.
You make a great point about how if the different components of the mesosystem are not different it has a different impact on the individual. This can be true in very large cities and very close communities. Thank you for giving me another way of looking at things!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIf one is altered, they are all affected. Families can be structured in many different ways, single family, parents who never marry, or blended families all have an effect on the child. How we raise them or parenting styles as the book would say, definitely influences the child. One example that could cause a breakdown in the mesosystem are the parents that reject, neglect or are uninvolved with their children. Divorce or loss of a parents job will also have an effect.
ReplyDeleteChildren hang out in groups, or peers, that help them identify themselves. If the groups are seen as bad, this begins to affect the system. Even if the groups are perceived to be good, they may still be sharing homework, abusing drugs or even bullying. I believe if the child does not receive proper parenting styles at home, it becomes very hard on them to succeed in the other categories of the mesosystem. I do not believe that this is the only factor, I have seen kids come from great families and get mixed up with the wrong crowd. I guess this kind of proves that if one system breaks down, they all begin to be affected.
All of the components fit together and are run off of each other so if one of them breaks down then problems can arise in all of the areas. An example from each component was described and you can tell that each one relies on each other. We are all connected by our families, our peers, our teachers and ourselves which is why it is so important to make sure all units are running in order. I think that most people do not realize the effect that our families have on our learning situations in school. I think that they way you were raised, how your family treated school, how many people stayed in school, your home situations all can have an effect on how a student wants or tries to learn. This can also be helped by the way a teacher treats a student. I think that this chapter said it well when it depends on the teachers caring ways to keep things in order for school. I once heard a story from one of my old teachers who had a child that didn’t want to learn and didn’t care about school so this teacher didn’t push him or try to make him better she just complained about him to other teachers. She then found out that his home life was being torn apart by a death and a parent who did not care about him. She then changed her whole opinion on him and really worked hard to get him to open up to her and the idea of learning. She did this by exactly what the book stated. She started with personal caring and then slowly moved into academic caring. This helped him in school and he is had graduated at the top of his class and became a lawyer. This story came back to my memory when reading this chapter and I think it shows exactly what the book was trying to say. Teachers have a huge impact on how a student thinks about the school system and learning in general. Another aspect I know about personally is the peer situation. I have been in many different groups throughout my days in school and I can tell you first hand how easy it is to fall into the wrong group. I had very authoritative parents and now I can be so grateful for how they raised me into the person I have become. I am one of the lucky ones who still have married parents but I know a lot of people who have had to deal with divorce first hand and it is not an easy thing to go through but as the book stated it is much better than having to live in a house with nothing but violence and hate, which I have also seen first hand. I have had the opportunity to see a lot of different families growing up and it made me not only appreciate mine so much more but also be open minded to those who did not have it as good as me in the family area. I think that this will help me in my teaching career because I will be able to relate to these students through my own experiences from my peers throughout my life. I also know that it is easy to fall into a certain group and go with the flow of that group. I have been a victim of a lot of bullying throughout my life but I was lucky enough to have parents and teachers who supported me and made me see that I am better because of the things that I have had to deal with in my life. I think that this system that Bronfenbrenner has created is a solid base for all teachers to really learn and understand. I think all of these parts work together and need to be seen as such and worked toward an understanding that each part is important and each part needs to be kept together as best as possible.
ReplyDeleteChristine Moses
Something that came to mind after reading your post was a message my family and consumer science teacher always told her classes. When having discussions about life and choices, she would always speak of suicide and the consequences. She said that suicide is one of the most self things a person can do because others are affected greatly. In this can, if the individual is taken out of the center of the model, the entire thing disintegrates.
DeleteNathan,
DeleteThis is a great analogy. The individual is the key position in the model that is surrounded by the supporting systems.
When one or more components of the mesosystem breaks down, other components will be affected, positive or negative. Urie's concentric circle model is similar to James Comer's whose model for school reform School Development Program. He literally created the biological theory of human development, and recently passed away in 2005. I can't say much more about this topic except that the fact that this is a integrated, multi-level ecology of human development which is conceived of a nested system is the trend right now and considered a modern vision that attempts to explain how people (from our closest to our most distant relationships)all work together to form personal identity. Our lives are constantly being affected daily by incoming stimuli from other humans.
ReplyDeleteOn a complete sidenote: Isn't it interesting how pyramids are out and circles are in. Think about how they are changing the food pyramid (again), it won't be a pyramid anymore. Even this school has went from a pyramid model to a circular one. I just think it is interesting. I'm waiting now for RTI to go to a circular model too. (ha, ha)
Each of the components of the Mesosystem interact. If there is a breakdown or problem within any of those components then it can and will affect the other components in the system. The individual is the core component and is greatly impacted when there are large changes such as divorce, death in the family, or sudden change of a teacher. The type of day a parent has at work can affect the way they treat their child and then in turn can affect the child. The saying that "it takes a village to raise a child" is not that far off. Every aspect of a child's life and the people they come in contact with can help to shape that child into the adult they will become. There will be positive and negative aspects that come into contact with a child and how that child deals with each of those things will shape and mold their future selves. The coping mechanisms that are instilled in children as they grow will determine how detrimental each different breakdown of the different components within the mesosystem will impact the individual.
ReplyDeleteThis model sort of reminded me about the human brain, which we learned about last week. We learned that some people who have areas of the brain that are underdeveloped often have areas that compensate for the difference. If something in the brain changes or stops working, the entire brain begins a process of rebuilding or compensating for the change. Just like in the model, when one component is affected, the other components must make up for the difference.
DeleteI like that you mentioned the saying "it takes a village to raise a child." Although the a child's home life plays one of the biggest parts in influencing a child, everyone else who is apart of a child's life has an impact too. I think we as teachers should get to know each and everyone of our students so if the home life component were to break down, we would be there to encourage the child to work through the situation and have a positive impact on that child's life.
DeleteThe mesosystem essentially shields the microsystem so that there is less possible break down. If a break down of one of the components in the mesosystem occurs the microsystems and the exosystem are more than likely affected. For example, if a parent were to pass away the child would likely be affected as an individual and the child’s school might also be affect because the child is taking time off. The ripple affect occurs through three systems even though the problem occurred in only one level. In addition the family structure might change as the parents start to remarry. Like in a divorce, the family structure is likely to change which could affect all 5 parts of the model.
ReplyDeleteNathan – I couldn’t agree more with your statement about a death of a parent. If a child looses a parent it will affect their entire life, as well as the life of the child’s teacher. More than likely the child is going to have their home life turned upside down. This can affect the child’s attention span during instruction periods, as well as the amount of homework that the child completes.
DeleteAll components of the Mesosystem are interchangeable. Home affects school, as well as work, as so on. If one component is outstanding more than likely the other components will shine as well. With that being said is one component falls apart the others are more than likely to fall apart as well. An example close to my heart is death. Death of a family member or close friend is difficult for all involved. When I was a freshman in high school and good friend of mine was killed in a car accident. Due to the fact that I am from a small rural community that death affected us all. It affected students because we were left wondering why, and teachers were trying to calm us and help us understand. Parents of close friends tried to help us accept the fact that our friend was in a better place and out of pain. Another example that I have personally dealt in terms of younger students is birth of a sibling. During my first internship we had several students in my class that were becoming big brothers and/or big sisters. Some students were welcoming of their younger sibling, and some were not. This affected how students reacted to their parents being involved, which therefore affected how teachers communicated with their students parents, as well as how students communicated with their own parents. This example demonstrates the positive side Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development; good things can come from things that seem bad at first. The students who welcome their younger siblings into their lives demonstrate the positive aspect.
ReplyDeleteI think on thing that has struck me working in various school districts is how in many cases school/teachers are being asked to fill more of the needs that have been tradionally filled by home/family. Basically if the circle were a pie chart I think the area that is covered by home/family is getting smaller while the area that is covered by school/teachers seems to be expanding. Often the school is being asked to provide things like food and after school supervision that were once things that were provided by parents. Teachers are being asked to be more than educators instead they are the primary emtional support for the students. This has often been out of nessecity because if students did not get say breakfast from school the would not get it at home. I have been told that some inner city schools are now looking at providing all meals for students. My fear is that these additional responsiblities will draw resources away from the primary function of schools to provide an education for students. This will negatitively affect students in two ways. One, since resources(money, time, etc.) that should have been spent on education will be spent on trying to meet other needs the students education will suffer. Additionally, since schools/teachers may not be the best option for meeting needs that has been tradionally filled at home/family they students may not get those needs properly met.
ReplyDeleteJohn,
DeleteYou are exactly right. Schools and teachers are being asked (or expected) to fill more of the needs that have been traditionally filled by home/family. The breakdown of our society has changed dramatically and continues to change; unfortunately, not for the better. With the increase of single parent homes, which often leads to poverty, the roles of teachers and schools will continue to expand in the lives of our society's children. I also fear that teachers will be spending more time and resources on areas that should be fulfilled at home instead of being able to spend the time needed to educate their students to the best of their ability. It is sad...but definitely true.
Becky
John,
DeleteI loved the way you explained the portions of home teaching vs. school teaching. I was a oddball growing up, having both parents. Even back in the 80's, I was seeing many responsibilities falling on schools that had been considered home/family learning up to that point. Even then, more than half of my friends had single parent (usually mother, but sometimes a father)families. Just forward 30 yrs. and families have shifted again dramatically. I have noticed many more social workers in the schools now. There is a reason for that. Your right, struggling families are sad, and becoming the norm almost.
John,
DeleteI love your pie chart analogy. I believe you are exactly right! Schools are taking on more and more responsibility when it comes to "raising" children. This is unfortunate because while teachers love their students, they are not able to give the same kind of individualized attention and love that families are supposed to provide for these children. Too many children are left feeling alone and unloved (these are their emotional needs), many are also hungry and hurt physically. We are definitely experiencing a breakdown in the American family.
It is almost ironic really that we are talking about this topic during this week – that is the broader topic of self, social and moral development. I am currently in the midst of a near mesosystem break down. Or rather my sister had the break down and I am on the fringes getting sucked into the vortex of her mesosystem break down. The mesosystem is the level where all things are connected. If any one of these components becomes disrupted then all components are affected. For example, my sister lost her job almost one year ago. She moved in with my family almost 2.5 months ago, I do not live in the same town that she did. She has only recently found employment, but not full-time. Her struggle in finding gainful employment has caused stress in her life (home), removal from her home and neighborhood, is causing stress in my old immediately family (siblings and parents) as well as my current immediate family (husband and children) and is currently affecting my school work. All because (clearly there are many factors that I have respectfully left out) there was a break down in one of the mesosystem components – her work. On the flip side of that, as another poster mentioned, there is also a positive correlation to this level. I have attempted to offer stability, safety and structure to my sister (family) so that she would be able to resolve the “upset component” (work) – in order that her mesosystem level could once again find harmony. That was at least the theory. However, I wonder – something the other poster did not surmise – if the reason why positive correlations cannot or perhaps do not occur on this level is because it takes more than just one action to rectify a broken component. Even if my sister were to find gainful employment soon, she would still be removed from her previous home and neighborhood. She has not (stubborn willfulness) chosen to claim her new (temporary) home and neighborhood as her own and so this component would still be broken even though the original component was “fixed” (work). It seems that it takes a good self image to keep the positive correlation going, even once the broken component is fixed.
ReplyDeleteIf a component of the Mesosystem breaks down it will of course affect the microsystem, which are the individual's immediate relationships such as their home, school, neighborhood, pets, friends, or immediate family. It will also affect the exosystem, which are things that are connected to the individual but not directly. These are things such as the child's school, their parent's workplace, or even connections with the community. If something in the Mesosystem breaks down it can easily pull the child's parents, friends, or something else close to them away. An example of this could be if a parent got a new job. This could cause the parent to be gone more often, which would then give the child less attention and maybe less help on his or her homework or activities. This can affect the child's attitude towards school, homework, or even their baseball game after school. The student reaction can then affect their teacher's attitude and could eventually affect the exosystem. If something in the mesosystem breaks down it can affect to the very core of the bioecological model, the individual, all the way to the macrosystem.
ReplyDeleteI believe teachers need to be aware of their student's home life so they understand what may be causing a child to act a certain way. There are so many different ways that the Mesosystem can affect the individual in negative and even positive ways. If the teacher in a classroom understands why the child may be acting they way they are, it may be an easier problem to solve.
Amberly,
DeleteI love your comment "I believe teachers need to be aware of their student's home life........". As a teacher, we not only need to know about a student’s home life because of behaviors a student may be exhibiting, but we also need to be aware of their background (poverty, ethnicity, etc.) in order to provide those students with the best education we can. If we know a student's background, it can give us the insight into what knowledge a student is bringing with him/her into the classroom; which in turn, will help us to develop lesson plans best suited for our students.
Becky
All parts of the Mesosystem are related to one another. If you are having trouble at home it is likely to carry over to our work or school work. Even when you are trying not to let it bother you it just does. You may be at school physically or at work physically but your mind may not be all there. It's hard to focus on anything else if you are having trouble at home or with a relationship. Nothing else really seems to matter and it gets difficult to care about stuff because your mind is somewhere else. Some people let it effect their system more than others. It just depends on how well you cope with things or how you were raised.
ReplyDeleteI have actually witnessed the affects of home issues affecting with work issues. This last fall, I was blessed with my sister moving in with me until she was healthy enough and able to live on her own. She was with me for about six months before she moved into her own apartment. Two days later she passed away. At the time of all this I thought I had actually handle it well; her living with me, me being a full time student, and working full time. Now I look back on the whole situation and see the changes and differences it made in my life. I can say my mesosystem was affected by all of this. The way I handled work, my classes, and my family as well. It was a slow consistent change, but it did affect everything. It is taking me some time to get back where I need to be but my personal life very much affected my mesosystem by affecting the work environment. Great example that you gave.
DeleteBronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Model of Human Development consists of the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and the macrosystem. Each component interacts with each of the other components. With the mesosystem being the set of all the interactions and relationships among all the sets of the microsystem, any breakdown within the mesosystem can be very damaging. A breakdown in one area of the mesosystem can lead to breakdowns in other areas as well. Even though children are not directly involved in the mesosytem, the interactions that take place within the mesosystem can affect a child in many ways.
ReplyDeleteOur textbook states that the first context for child development is within the mother’s womb. Unfortunately, bad decisions made by expectant mothers are often the beginning of a chain of damaging events and interactions for a child for the rest of his/her life. Women who do not take care of themselves during their pregnancy by drinking, smoking, using drugs, etc. are likely to be unmarried and often live in poverty. Since the mesosystem includes home, neighborhoods, religious or spiritual groups, local industry, schools, and child care, the children born to these mothers often end up living in poverty stricken neighborhoods and do not receive adequate childcare. In addition, mothers (or parents) living in poverty often tend to fall into the category of “rejecting/neglecting/uninvolved parents”. That first context in a child’s life which has a profound negative affect on the mesosystem, then snowballs and has a direct affect on the child’s exosystem and macrosystem as well.
Sadly, it is easy for me to “spot” the children who have had one or more components of their mesosystem break down. They are the children who never have a parent show up for parent-teach conferences. They are the children who never have a parent or family member show up for their class plays, musicals and programs. They are the children who are often socially awkward. They are the children who come to school hungry. They are the children who come to school in ill-fitting and dirty clothes. They are the children who come to school with dark circles under their eyes. They are the children who often misbehave to just get attention regardless if the attention is negative attention. They are the children who at first don’t know how to react to a hug….because a hug is something foreign to them.
A breakdown of one component doesn’t always lead to everything I described above; but unfortunately, it often does.
Becky
Hi Becky,
DeleteI think you were right on in saying that children are not directly involved in the mesosystem, but rather the actions and decisions that take place within the mesosystem can have long term damaging effects on a child. I also agree with the text that the first context for children absolutely starts in the mother’s womb. Based on the decisions that are made during this time determines outcomes for that new born baby. Like you said, if a mother decides to use drugs, smoke, or drink during their pregnancy then the chain of long lasting damaging effects begins right there.
Now when discussing poverty, rejection, neglect, and uninvolved parenting, I do believe that these are effects that children can turn positive. I know many things happened in my childhood that made me want to be a better parent, and fight hard to create a better living environment for my children.
I can definitely relate to your blog when you discuss seeing components of mesosystem first hand. Working with children and in the education field definitely opens your eyes to some very sad situations.
However, like you said, the breakdown of one component does not always have to lead to a doomed future.
Becky-
DeleteI agree with your statement that you can spot of students who have a break in their mesosystem. Working at the school the past years taught me that I needed to smile and encourage every students, no matter how I felt. I needed to be that one smile they got for the day!
Gosh Becky - you totally nailed it in the last part of your post. It about made me cry because unfortunately, it's all so true.
DeleteAmy - I cry enough myself....I don't need you crying too. Unless you want to cry together!
DeleteChristine in your post you mentioned a child that was facing a death in the family. Talk about something that breaks down the system! Not only the child, but for everyone involved, there is some kind of change. Two years ago, my brother in law passed away at the young age of 40. My sister and he have 3 little girls, and losing that component of the family affected the kids, my sister, neighbors, teachers, and other friends and family. For the last couple of years, it seems that each component has had to rearrange and adjust in order to bring the girls back to a place where they are comfortable in their own skin again. I was inspired and thrilled with the way family, friends, teachers, administrators, and neighbors have helped. The school system where my nieces live did an amazing job at recognizing their role. It was less than a week before school started when my brother in law passed away. Within 72 hours after his death, the girls had been contacted by their new classroom teachers, the principals had made contact with my sister, and their teachers from the previous year had come by the house. It was a hard year anyway for the girls; one was starting Kindergarten, one going to 1st grade and the oldest going to 6th grade. But everyone stepped up; in fact, a first grade teacher stepped forward and pleaded to have my middle niece in her class that year. She had already been assigned to another classroom, but hadn’t started school. The teacher told the principal that she had lost her mother to cancer the summer before her 1st grade year, and she felt that it was a sign that my niece was to be in her classroom. Now that is showing personal caring. She knew first hand that there were going to be challenges, and she asked for them. So, through this long winded story, my point is that the different components of self, family, peers, etc... do create a system, and when one component is shifted or ripped away the entire thing is thrown out of balance. It is then, that everyone must shift, change, and rebalance themselves in their new role.
ReplyDeleteJackie-
DeleteWow that is a very inspiring story! I am really glad that you shared that with me and I think that it is something that all people going into or already in this profession need to take note on because we as staff can help people through these rough times in their lives.
You response brought me to tears! For a teacher to have gone through a loss and feel that she was meant to have the 1st grader! Wow, that is awesome! I am glad to hear of such a great school helping a family deal with a loss!
DeleteHi Jackie,
DeleteWhat a very heartbreaking story. I think that it is great that your nieces have such a great support system in their school, family, and community. This means that those people that work there have the compassion that is needed in every educational facility. School is a major part of a child's life. This is where they spend a majority of their time, outside of the home. How awesome that these educators and administrators took the time to help your family. Thank you for sharing.
Jackie,
DeleteYour post made me tear up. Wiping tears from my eyes as I type. That is so sad. My heart goes out to all of you. They were all to young to have to go through that. I am glad to hear that there was support provided though.
As educators we will be faced with a "break" in students (or ourselves) in the model of human development. Relating to having a death breakdown the system, the last two years working for a school I had two deaths with in the school "family". The first death was a family that died in a plane crash. I worked with the mom, had helped the daughter, and the youngest daughter went to the same daycare my daughter went to. So in one plane crash a friend/coworker, student and friend to my daughter was lost. It was a very hard to deal with loss and an evident break was made in our model. Then last year I had two students die in a fire. Both girls, I had worked with at school. One had been my line leader, just the day before. It was really hard to understand the "Whys" of both situations.
ReplyDeleteSo any break in the model can affect a number of people. If there is lack of parental involvement or divorce, it can affect a student. Sometimes as an educator we may see some behaviors at school that can indicate problems. These can include being reserve or stealing. While we can not prevent all of life's hiccups, we can be ready to help out students when they need it!
That is so sad! I think that everything is related so way or another even if it is down the line. As you mentioned, educators have to know what to look for if a student is having trouble and know what to do if such crisis arise when losing an aspect of life or someone they know.
DeleteHanna
Like everyone has stated, the system relies on each of the pieces working properly, if one does not, the whole system is affected. It's like a tripod. If you kick one of the legs the others fall down. Now that's not to say that the whole system would collapse if one of the pieces is affected in this scenario, but it works kind of the same. A good example would be suicide, which we've seen a lot of in the past couple years here in Midwest Kansas. Every student in the high school, whether they are a friend to the person or not, is affected, as well as parents of the student, other student's parents, teachers, and every one else in the system.
ReplyDeleteI really like your comparison of the mesosystem to the tripod. It is a great example. We can continue in the mesosystem, yet things are changed and will be different. The suicide example was a great way to help us understand the affects one has on the other. Sucicide affects us all just how much depends on the place you are in the connection to the person who has passed. Sometimes people are affected and no one would expect it. Great post and scenerios.
DeleteWhen one part of the mesosystem breaks down then other parts that precede it are affected. The individual is surrounded by the microsystems which make up home, family and school. That is surrounded by the mesosystem that involves parent’s jobs, home and neighborhood. All of these parts even if the child is not directly related have an impact on the child. Each one affects a certain aspect within the child’s life. If one of these fails, or changes then the child will be affected by some link throughout the system. Being a caring teacher to a student who may not have a warm home life will help that child cope with the changes that they are going through and can help them still become emotional healthy because of this positive relationship. Divorce can be directly related to children. When parents get divorced some children lose interest in school even skipping it altogether. Sleeping problems and eating habits can arise too. As a teacher we have to look out for problems that can affect our students. Everything seems related one way or another even if it is a little down the road, it can and will reach a child.
ReplyDeleteI am looking through everyone's examples and it seems divorce is our biggest breakdown of the mesosystem isn't it?! Why is there so much divorce? Are people just not willing to try? Maybe divorce has gotten too easy. It's so sad. Sad for everyone involved, not just the kids. I'm so sorry for anyone who has had to endure something so painful.
DeleteThe components of the mesosystem are all connected; therefore, when one breaks down, the others are immediately affected. I have seen the components fall apart first hand when I worked at an after-school program. A child's life at school is completely affected by his/her home life and relationship with the immediate family. As Becky mentioned, I can, unfortunately, pick out those students who have had a break down within one or more of the components. Many of the students at the after-school program had parents who were divorced. It is just saddening to see how that divorce affected each of the students' relationships with other students, classroom teachers, and after-school teachers. The students were often mean toward other students or broke the rules just to get the attention from people that they did not get at home. Since there was a lack of attention at home, they were not always given the extra encouragement and help to complete their homework. As a result, they chose not to have a good relationship with their classroom teacher and disrupt the other students because they were not understanding what was being taught.
ReplyDeleteIt breaks my heart to see that more and more students do not have strong connections between the components in the mesosystem. I was fortunate enough to grow up in a household where the relationships were strong. Because of this, my parents encouraged me to do well in school which included me having a good relationship with my teacher and the other students. As a result, I have tried to build good relationships with the people I work with no matter which job I have. Since I was lucky enough to have all of the components in the mesosystem, I want to encourage those students who may have had a break down in one component to work through it and build the best relationships possible with anyone that plays a part in their life.
Sara, I agree with you that a break down in one area adversely affects other areas of the child’s life. I do however believe that as teachers we can work around this. Take for example that I am mentoring in a VERY socio-economical disadvantaged school yet within the walls of the school I would almost not know it. The school has such a strong school wide behavior management that it just runs smoothly. In my own 4th grade classroom I was shocked at how well it is run. The kids have a since of safety and acceptance when the walk through the classroom door and because of this very little misbehaving occurs. But working with a small group during a guided exploration on heritage I was quickly remained that most of these student come from a world that safety is not to be taken for granted and food may or may not be there when they get home. It is heart breaking to see and hear their responses about family traditions that they hold dear that most people would not even see as something special. I think that as teachers we need to be able to provide a safe place that our student feels that they can let their guard down and just learn.
DeleteIt breaks my heart also!! It is really hard when you have to work with them and with all the politics, are restricted with what you can or cannot do to help them. I want so bad to do more for them, but I cant. My husband and I would have no issue doing things with these kids to help restore what we can, but I am not allowed to associate with them outside of school. I have had students that have never experience eating dinner at the table with love ones. I wish there was more I could do.
DeleteBronfenbrenner’s model of development looks at both the biological and cultural aspects of a person. According to Bronfenbrenner, people develop by those who are close to them and by the community they live in, as well as the time period they are living. If a component of that life breaks, it will effect how that individual not only copes with life but also looks at life as a whole. If something unfortunate happens in a child’s family life, like divorce, which is very common in our society today, that child will have to learn to live differently. They will have to learn to live with only one parent around instead of two. Mom or dad may have to work more hours or a second job to make ends meet and because of that, they may not be around to help that child do homework or deal with social issues causing grades to fall and friendships to suffer. Children who have a hard time making friends or keeping friends may feel rejected, or not good enough, and in return, may grow up to be depressed or even cause trouble. Teachers who show students they really care not only about grades and how they perform in the class, but about who they are as a person can make or break a student. If a teacher does not show this kind of compassion, students may feel school is not important and fail or drop out. All of these components must work together as one in order to shape the development and learning of an individual.
ReplyDeleteDivorce is a very common thing in our culture. Your blog reminded me of something on page 78 at the top. The text says to avoid using the term "your parents", "your mom and dad" or similar phrases because many times this is not what a family may look like for a student.
DeleteAbout a month ago a young boy came up to me (I work in a school as a Para) and he needed help with his Velcro shoes. It turns out the straps wouldn't stick to the shoe because a section of the Velcro had fallen off of the strap. So I said something like, 'sorry but I can't help you with this I don't have any way to fix the strap you need to go home and tell your mom and dad they can help.' The poor little boy proceeded to tell me about how he doesn't have a dad anymore. I was thinking 'O CRAP!' So I learned the hard way not to say that. I have decided next time to say something like, 'you need to go home and tell your grown-up.'
Typo - *OH
DeleteBy the way what is the politically correct thing to call a students adults at home? I can't say parents, mom, or dad. Maybe guardian? I don't know, any ideas from you all?
I know what you mean! You just never know what the situation is at home. Perhaps you can ask "is there someone at home that could help you fix this" and then the response can help you understand who that person is that can help them fix it. Sometimes it's a brother or an uncle or a grandparent. We just never know do we!
DeleteMary,
DeleteI liked your post because you pointed out something that I failed to do in my post. You showed, by way of a teacher caring, how certain parts of the mesosytem can put a child's mesosystem back in balance. A teacher dealing with a student whose parents are divorcing can either be caring and supportive and make a positive difference in their lives or be unaffected and just another source of hurt for that child.
I have to say that when I read this in the book, I surprised myself! I actually remember studying this 17 years ago when I took General Psychology. The book that we were in used the same example as this book did about the Russian Dolls being stacked inside one of another to display a visual of the Human development. When I read it, I stopped and thought, “I remember this” I just thought that was funny and wanted to share it with you guys…Anyways, Bronfenbrenner created a model of human development. In the core of that development he places the individual (the smallest Russian doll). He builds the model out to represent the things that are around that individual that may affect that person as they grow. Each level of his model grows a bit bigger than the last (likes the stackable Russian dolls). His entire model have five levels: Individual, Microsystem-family, school, ect.., Mesosystem-is a lot like Microsystem, but the person’s understanding of home, school..expands, Exosystem- Mass media, community, ect.., and Macrosystem-culture values, beliefs, customs, ect... He felt that each level needed to be fully developed for the person to fully grasp the next level. If one of the systems is off, its like a domino effect, the rest will be off. All these levels flow into each other and effect one and another. It is believed that a child needs be loved by one or more adult to develop on track. It also states that encouragement to branch out to other areas in critical. The loving parent should encourage the child to interact with friends, school, ect.. If this system gets off, the child will not develop properly. If the child does not have a loving parent to encourage growth, they won’t do it on their own. I am going to use an example of a student that I work with. Due to confidentially, I am going to be as vague as I can about the child. The child’s father was never in the picture. The childs mother decided she didn’t want the child so the child went to live with a biological family member and their spouse. That family member and spouse got divorce and the biological family member didn’t want the child anymore. The child was about to go into the system. The ex-spouse (not biological) could stand to see that happen. That person fought for guardianship and has raised that child as their own. The child displays no trust what so ever with adults. The child is very oppositional. Anything an adult asks of the child, the child will do the opposite. The child is however, very protective over the non-biological guardian. It’s interesting to contemplate the human development model with this child. It is very true. The child was lacking the support at the very young age and has a very hard time adjusting in the community and lacks values. Its really sad and depressing when you hear such stories with the students that we will all work with. I have been exposed to this child because of my position at work. The child is getting better with me, but still does not trust that I won’t hurt them. I HATE THAT!!! I breaks my heart :(
ReplyDeleteIsn't it just sad what kids have to go through that they have absolutely no control over! Adults just don't realize what they are putting their kids through. My husband has a friend who is now raising his two grandkids after he had to fight social services to get them back after they had been taken away from their mother because she would just take off for days at a time. HOW SELFISH and irresponsible; and what kind of message were those kids getting. They were getting the message that they were not important. The older one, a boy, is a complete mess and it is going to take a lot of therapy to get him straightened out. And he may never get over it! I wish I could just "make it all better" for all the kids who suffer under such circumstances.
DeleteIf part of a person’s Mesosystem breaks down they may be devastated. Discord between the elements of the Microsystem can cause serious internal conflict and confusion that may turn into negative behaviors. It is important for us to learn and understand Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Bioechological Model of Human Development because we can better understand our future students which will help us to help them.
ReplyDeleteI saw somewhere in the text that peers influence a student’s style and socialization and a student’s family influences the students religion, morals, and career decisions. This could be an example of conflict in a student’s Mesosystem. A student may be torn between parents and peers ideas of a valuable way to spend time.
There are many other examples, the point is that teachers should be aware of Mesosystem discord and help in an appropriate way. School may be the only stable place in a student’s life. Teachers should be organized and consistent with their students and have high expectations while also motivating them. In addition it is important that teachers care about the student’s academics and about the student’s as individuals.
You are so right when you say that school may be the only stable place in a student's life. It is so sad to me, but I definitely see students in this exact same position everyday. I try to be there for them, but they aren't always the most easy students to talk to. They don't have that sense of communication because they were never given the chance to communicate as a young child. You can just tell that they don't come from a warm, loving environment, that in which every child needs. I try my best to interact and be there for them, but sometimes that is all you can do is try.
DeleteIf there is a breakdown in the stability of one of the elements in the mesosystem, the rest of the system is thrown out of balance. Each element has an affect on another. These elements include home, work, school and community. An example of this can be divorce affecting a child. I am living this scenario right now with one of my close friends. Mom and dad got divorced so the kids were immediately thrown into the battle for custody and visitation. Mom and dad have joint custody so every day the kid is at a different house! One day they are with mom; the next day dad; the next day mom. I think this is just crazy to put the kids through. So this not only affected the kids’ lives at home but their interactions at school since mom was keeping company with the dad of her daughter’s good friend from class. To further complicate matters, mom lost her job and might have to move to another school district so the kids don’t want to move but don’t want to have to live full time with dad. My relationship with them has been affected because I love and care about both of them and have felt torn about the situation. Neither of them go to church any more either for fear they will run into the other one so the kids no longer have that system of support once offered within the church through catechesis and Sunday school. Many of the neighbors have also felt stuck in the middle and try to help the kids adjust with having to go back and forth between mom’s house and dad’s house. The kids’ grades at school have suffered. The parents don’t want to attend meetings together concerning the kids. It’s a complete and total mess! The entire balance within those kids’ mesosytem was completely destroyed by this divorce. These are just innocent kids and this is just one example of the stress thousands and thousands of kids go through in our nation where the rate of divorce and single parent households has rapidly been increasing. Teachers really must be aware of these situations. They need to get to know their students so they have a better idea of what some of them are going through and to be a source of strength and stability for so many that have none.
ReplyDeleteAmy,
DeleteDivorce never is good for anyone, especially the kids. I understand in cases of abuse and such, that getting the kids and spouse away from that is better, but divorce as a whole is damaging and the kids are usually the ones hurt the most. I like your personal example and how you can see how one aspect of the mesosytem fails, the balance of the entire system gets thrown out of whack. The mesosystem really is a delicate balance of all factors and when there are breakdowns, whether it is from school, community, peers, or at home, a person's development,(academically and socially) will be effected.
I agree with Amy, Stacie and others as well as the text when using divorce as an example of a component of the Mesosystem breaking down which results in influencing all others. I know this to be true from my own experience. My parents divorced when I was very young and even though I was determined to stay married I also got divorced after 19 years of marriage. Divorce has directly affected my children in all aspects of their lives. I am too embarrassed to go into detail so let’s just say almost everything turned to poor choices and negative results with my children. I like to think we had the American dream and now things have completely turned. My ex-wife and I are both school teachers and we were very involved with our kids but the divorce has caused so much damage.
DeleteIt is very difficult to honestly say that I can help every student.
I try to support my students and I know I help some by being a positive influence in their lives and constantly trying to motivate them about their choices. Their family life is every day, every year and an overwhelming influence on their choice and direction. I know it takes a village to raise a child and that’s the main reason that I love being a teacher. The opportunity that we have as teachers is to impact a few who need us the most. We are one of the components in the model that must try to make up the difference when a component is affected.
The mesosytem entails a person's interaction with their microsystem (home, school, immediate family, and community) These interactions serve to mold and develop an individual based on the nature of these relationships. When there is a breakdown either with family, school, peers, or the community, an individual's development will be affected. These influences are known as social contexts and they help to mold how a person develops and ultimately how they might learn and act. For example, when a child's parents might be going through a divorce, this is a breakdown in the family unit and how that child is affected socially and academically can be devastating. A familiy's parenting style will make a world of difference on how a child develops as well. Parents that assert control yet are warm will have more secure children that tend to perform well academically and socially where as parents that neglect/reject their kids usually damage their kids socially/mentally and inhibit their learning growth. How kids interact with their peers makes a huge difference in their esteem, confidence, academic performance, and social success. Whether or not a person is accepted or rejected by their peers affects their feelings of self-concept and self-esteem. If these feelings of self are positive, these students are in better position to learn. If there is a breakdown here, students ability to focus on learning will suffer. Teachers also have a huge impact whether it be with their direct realationship with the student or the possible reporting of suspected abuses. All of an individual's interactions within their mesosytem work to shape us and how we ultimately function whether it be academically or socially.
ReplyDeleteThe mesosystems all work together to create what the child can be. An example would be that if a child's caregivers are involved and go to parent teacher conferences, little league games...so on...the child's well being will be very good. If the child's caretakers disagree on how to raise them and what is best then it can really hinder the development. That is what I think is happening more and more today in children's lives.
ReplyDeleteDan,
DeleteYou are so right, I think we have allowed divorce to be so easy that we have lost the true value of committment. Parents stop communicating and working through disagreements to find the best solution.
Urie Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development is both complex and simple. A break down in the mesosystem will cause changes throughout the entire model. I dislike the term breakdown because I'm wondering, is it meant to imply any kind of change in this system or merely a negative or subtractive change? I'm interpreting it as any kind of change, be it good or bad, based on the idea that all change can be traumatic. I think that probably the most commonly heard of mesosystem breakdown is the story of the kid that just “fell in with the wrong crowd.” This is a common saying and directly implicates a breakdown in this system through addition. In this story, the child meets someone who is a bad influence. The child then begins to make bad choices at home and at school. These changes can lead to the student dropping out of school, getting kicked out of their home, and even result in jail time for being destructive or dangerous in the community. One change close to the student has had a dramatic impact on all systems: the immediate family is saddened at the choices of the child and possibly shamed by jailtime, the neighborhood may bare scars of the activity the student did, the media may report on the case causing others to see the child’s behavior and a) decide not to do it and thereby avoid jail, or b) decide to do it and see what happens. Of course, destructive and dangerous activities are socially and chronologically confined. (Such as what was illegal during prohibition is legal today.) Or a breakdown can have the opposite effect. When I was in 3rd grade my brother kicked me in the ribs so hard that the school nurse was pretty sure a couple of them were broken. She made some phone calls and then sent me back to music class. My music teacher asked what was wrong and made one comment to me. I’m not sure what it was but to this day, I still remember at that moment thinking that maybe this isn’t the way kids were supposed to grow up. Shortly thereafter, I was homeschooled but I kept thinking about this idea that things could be different. I carried it with me when I read books (and I read a lot) and it changed who I am. It changed who I interacted with. It changed what groups I decided to join or to not join. In the end, it made me a much better parent and a better member of society. As a better member of society, I am able to help create safe and accepting classrooms for 280 students in my community. This, I hope, will help the community become stronger, safer, and more accepting through a trickle-down effect.
ReplyDeleteThanks for telling your personal story--I think so many kids have no idea what it's like to grow up in a warm, caring home. Letting them know that it can be different is a pretty important role of a teacher.
DeleteI resonated as well when you talked about how students' choices that lead to involvement with the law or jail jar the mesosystem. As a high school teacher, I am always worried about the choices my students make and tend to feel a personal failing if something happens, as if I haven't reached out enough. Last year, three of my students were in jail at different times, and one of them dropped out. It helps to know that there are a NUMBER of factors at play--this way, teachers don't take all that blame on themselves and try to hold it there.
Within Urie Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development, the mesosystem plays a highly important role in childrens lives. Not only is each part of the mesosystem affected when another part changes, but other systems within the model are also affected. In other words, if some part of the mesosystem changes, then the individual, microsystem, and exosystem can also change. Among the most common instances in the U.S. today of a change in a child's mesosystem is divorce. Divorce always affects the family in several ways. Many times there were problems within the family which led to the divorce, or it could come as a complete surprise to the child and the rest of the family. Regardless, the family dynamic is irrevocably changed by divorce. Divorce also entails many legal arguments over distribution of property, child custody, and child support. Depending on how these legal actions go, the child may have move out of their current home to live with one of their parents, disrupting their home environment and neighborhood. They may also have to transfer to a new school, changing their school environment. All of these changes can cause a lot of stress for the child. Even if a divorce goes very smoothly and the child is able to remain in their home, neighborhood, and school, the fact that their parents are no longer together and their family is forever changed can still cause the child emotional stress. As teachers, it is our job to pay attention to our students. We should know what sort of family situations our students live in and pay attention to any changes our students situations. Oftentimes, these changes can happen quietly because the family doesn't want other people to know right away. We should observe any changes in our students behavior and work. If we find any troubling changes, we should ask the student if there is anything stressful going on in his or her life, and if there is, try to work with the student to make the event easier for them to cope with.
ReplyDeleteIn Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Model of Human Development every person develops within a microsystem, which consists of family, friends, school, community, etc. When there is a break down within the mesosystem, or the interaction among the microsystem, then this creates an influence on the individual’s development. For example, if the father in a family gets deployed to Iraq for a year, then there is a breakdown of the microsystem, or the family unit. This type of situation creates a change in how the child might act, and behaviors that may occur in a social context, such as the school system. This type of happening can affect the child’s social settings with friends, teachers, and family. It can also cause a drastic effect on the child’s academics in the classroom setting and environment. It is important that everyone involved in the child’s microsystem work together to help this child when a break down occurs. In other words, perhaps making sure the child seeks out the school counselor when having a hard time, or allowing the child to journal during those times when they are sad, or frightened. In Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model it is acknowledged that there are many influences on children, but parents are extremely important. This is in reference to the family structure, and parenting styles. If a parent is warm and nurturing then the child may perhaps take an active role in making sure that their child is getting all the help that is offered to help them. Teachers and all individuals within a child’s microsystem and mesosystem play an active role in helping to shape them.
ReplyDeleteWhen one area of the Mesosystem breaks down then the following areas of the Mesosystem is affected by the breakdown. The other systems are not forgotten or skipped; however they are affected and make changes that might not have otherwise been affected. The things that can affect the family are one of the first to affect a person. Single family homes have a significant effect on the individual. Parenting styles affect the mesosystem. There are four different parenting styles and depending on which one that is use as to how the rest of the cycle is completed. If the family is missing in the process then the child’s definitely going to be changed by it as well as the rest of the mesosystem. Peers are another important aspect in the mesosystem. Peers often form in two groups; cliques and crowds. Cliques are more personal friendships than crowds. Our friends affect the mesosystem by teaching us how to deal with different kinds of people and their beliefs. Peers seem to be the number on determinates in how students will do in school. Attitudes are many times shared among peers. Teacher support helps students to learn and develop. A teacher who is understanding, yet holds high standards from a classroom, will help in the learning of the child. If the teacher teaches one way then many students will be lost and uninterested.
ReplyDeleteThe mesosystem is dependent on each level of the system and they scaffold off the previous one. If one level or area is affected then the rest of the areas are affected also. Many times it is difficult to move on to the next stage, yet it can happen. I have to say that this is the first time I have really understood what the Mesosystem is about. I love the way this book explained it and it seemed to really help make that connection for me.
In high school, I am shocked at how much peers contribute to the mesosystem--they often override other influences. Drives a teacher crazy!
DeleteFor example, in my high school, many young men who are eligible choose NOT to be in National Honor Society because it's not "cool." Something that would help them on resumes and college applications, and they won't join! It isn't even much extra responsibility, and it looks good. However, there is a huge masculinity culture in my school where young men see academics as patently "uncool." I wish more of our male teachers would encourage kids to join NHS, and that there would be less peer influence NOT to join.
As most others have done, I think it is necessary to first define mesosystem to help myself explain my thoughts. A mesosystem is the interaction of all microsystem elements - elements like home, school, family, and neighborhood within which a person develops. I see the mesosystem as a plate that is balanced on a point, with the different elements spread around it keeping it level. If one element, say neighborhood, were to develop significant problems and become heavier on the plate, then the plate would become off balance and fall. Since most people talked about divorce, I will talk about gang activity in the neighborhood. It loosely relates to what Carolyn was saying about cliques and crowds being too different types of peer groups. Gang culture is a topic that I do not have much experience with, but I could imagine the difficult choices that inner city children and adolescents must face every day. If a student feels pressure to join a gang, so much pressure that he feels he could be in great danger whether or not he joins a particular gang, then the rest of the elements in his life could begin to break down. His school work will suffer, his home life can become stressful because he may not be able to discuss it with his family, or his family (like a sibling) could be part of the pressure to join a gang. In fact, how his family feels about gangs further supports the definition of a mesosystem, which is the interaction of those elements.
ReplyDeleteThe Mesosystem is the interactions between the pieces of a child’s “inner circle” -their family members, friends, teachers, and neighborhood. The text illustrates how important each of these pieces are and how critical to development it is that they function cohesively. Divorce is a very common breakdown in the family, no matter how smoothly it goes, a child’s world is torn apart. Deployment of a military parent is also a more common occurrence these days and can cause rifts. But what I have seen the most of in the past year in my center, is job loss for one or both parents. At the very least this causes a change in routine for a child and carries much more severe consequences. I have had multiple families suffer job loss and each has handled it differently. One family was fortunate enough to be in a position to maintain their child’s routine. They continued to attend preschool, but had to drop extra programs that were now outside of their budget. Another family went through a series of jobs and their child attended sporadically based on the parent’s employment. When the child was able to attend, his schedule varied from one week to the next and even one day to the next. This led to more temper tantrums and defiant behavior in a child that had been easy going. The parent’s changing schedule also made it hard for teachers to communicate as different people would pick up and drop off to accommodate the long and changing hours. The parent really had no choice as she was single and needed to work and so took whatever opportunities came available. I’m sure this child’s home life was severely changed as well. As a center we kept our eyes and ears open for steady work in her field and worked to make her child’s day as routine as possible. My teacher exchanged cell phone numbers with her so that she could text her about the day. I utilized email to send pictures and notes and we tried to create a bridge from school to home. I can’t imagine how much harder this would have been had any other pieces to this child’s life had broken apart.
ReplyDeleteI have many students in my class where loss of their parents jobs totally affects school and how they behave around others. I really hate the fact that the student is affected by this but it doesn't help them when their routine and they see the stress of their parents. The main problem I have in my classroom is that more than 50% of my students have either mom, dad, or both parents in jail. I think that sometimes I have children that are placed into their grandparents home and at first they have an attitude but they seem to get better later one because, they are in a better home and place then what they were in before.
DeleteAll of the components of the Mesosystem are all linked together in some way or another. Since all of the components depend on each other and are linked if one part of a individuals Mesosystem breaks down it will affect the other components. The components will be affected in a positive or negative way. One example that comes to mind of a Mesosystem being affected is divorce. When my parents got divorced my Mesosystem broke down in a negative way. I began to hate my mother father and future step-dad. I was so upset and had so much anger inside of me that I punched my soon to be step-dad in the nose and broke it. I have to say at the age of four it felt good to be able to break a grown man’s nose and a man that I hated. I hated him because I thought he broke my parents up and I wanted my dad back and not him. Looking back I wish my mom explained to me what was going on even thou I was four I would understand but I didn’t because nothing was explained to me. Also in preschool I was starting to not sit on the carpet run around, wake everyone up from nap time, and wouldn’t do my work. I have to be honest and I am still upset with the whole situation even thou it was 16 years ago. So with divorce my Mesosystem broke down and negatively affect every relation I had with anyone and affected my learning.
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing to me how important those first few years of life are for parents who form a bond with their child (attachment).
ReplyDeleteIn other courses, I've read about psychopaths, serial killers, and many more disturbed sorts of individuals where the authors of the book speculated that those early attachments to mother and/or father were disrupted or never formed. So, if attachment doesn't happen as part of the home life in the mesosystem early on, issues will form later when kids try to develop relationships with other peers, adults, and teachers. They may be incapable of forming the same sorts of emotional bonds that securely attached kids are.
I think as somebody who hasn't had kids yet, one of my greatest fears is ensuring that secure attachment that is so essential to the rest of a child's life. That's a lot of pressure on moms and dads!
The other thing that I have seen break down most often in the mesosystem is when divorce occurs. Students' personalities can change rapidly, and where they may have been really kind and friendly before, aggression and anger can creep in.
I see this especially with my high school students. For those kids whose parents get divorced when they are 15-18 years old, it seems like their high school-aged kids suffer a lot. Even though they may have more emotional maturity and may have an awareness of why their parents can't be together, they still have a lot to deal with.
They are almost independent, and so think they can give their parents advice or chastise them for their choices, which can lead to family conflict as a child tries to "act adult" when they feel their parents aren't. This mesosystem breakdown has implications for kids at any age level, but I've been able to observe it most closely in high school kids. I feel fortunate that my parents have been together for 30 years now, and I never felt maladjusted because of their relationship.
A Mesosystem is made up of many different elements and these elements are important to keep a balance within the Mesosystem. The elements include family, friends, community, school, and other areas that one is involved in. If any of these areas are changed significantly, then the Mesosystem is out of balance. These incidents could involve job loss of a parent, death of a family member, divorce, crime in the community, loss of a home, and many other events. Any of these events can have a big impact on a child. Their education can be greatly impacted when children are struggling to cope with a troubling issue. Often the troubling issues tend to outweigh school and other areas as far as priority. People tend to become focused on the negative and other areas suffer. Children have less experience in coping so they are more susceptible to fall in other areas of life, especially in school. Many movies and documentaries have addressed such issues in the field of teaching including: Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, 187, and Waiting for Superman. Each movie shows examples of how students face deficits in their Mesosystem and some examples of success and failure in attempt to overcome struggles and be successful in the classroom. As teachers it is important for us to recognize possible deficits in a child's Mesosystem to better understand impacts to their education. By recognizing these issues we can better approach students to help them during their tough times and provide a positive element during those times. This will allow students to build better coping mechanisms to promote their personal success as they face difficult situations through their lives.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that you brought "Waiting for Superman" up. That movie didn't even cross my mind but now that you have mentioned it, this model definitely coincides with what those children are going through in that movie. Where they live effects the kind of education they are going to receive and once they have received that education, more than likely that will have a lot to do with what kind of life they choose to live.
DeleteI like how you mentioned the different movies and the ways they have tried to help show students examples of face deficits and overcoming in the end. I think sometimes movies like that have a special way of getting a certain message across to students, sometimes it's something that a teacher or adult isn't able to tell them. Or maybe just put it in a way they better understand. A teacher whom I work with tries to show a certain movie in particular, can't think of the name right now, but it has a very powerful meaning behind it. I think she is successful in trying to get the message across to her kids with it.
DeleteI agree all of these elements interact with each other and when one fails it can throw the entire system out of balance. I believe that death and divorce are the two most traumatic events that can impact the entire system as a whole.
DeleteAs the text stated, all relationships are reciprocal. If one area is failing, than they will all be effected. They all have so much to do with each other; they are intermingled on so many different levels. The family structure really got my attention. I will have a soon to be step son, so he is part of a blended family. I see first-hand the effects that this has on him. This is especially difficult, because no matter how much co-parents try to work together, there are going to be differences. Working in a middle school for nearly the past four years, the divorce impact is something that I have seen entirely too much of. It is so sad to see children go through the turmoil that divorce can put on a family. This will of course have adverse effects on every aspect of their life, not only school. As teachers, we must be there for our students, showing them empathy and try to help them through this difficult time. There are those crows and cliques in every school I think. This is definitely something that can stick with somebody for the rest of their lives. Kids can be just plain mean, and not think twice about it. As one can see, students nowadays have many different trials and tribulations to deal with on a daily basis. From their family, the classroom, their peer group, to even their religious setting. If they aren’t in equal balance with their life, than they aren’t going to be the person they are meant to be. We as educators must take the time to get to know our students, so we can be there for them when things aren’t right in their lives. We must be aware of our surroundings, and the students who are in them as well.
ReplyDeleteJust as the book says the mesosystem is pretty much an ecosystem. If there are major changes in weather or they clear out all of the trees in an area then some of those animals are going to lose their home and this in turn will affect the animals that eat or depend on those animals to survive. If one or more factors in our mesosystem change drastically change such as a divorce, death in the family, change of teacher, or fighting at home can affect the students all in positive or negative ways. It can make students more happy at home if the parents are not fighting as much or it can drastically affect a students grades because they don't know how to deal with the stress. If a best friend or a family member dies then they are going to be very depressed and may start to rebel against who is left in the family or friend circle. We are social beings where we base our whole lives off of other people. So when these people whether they are family, friends, teachers or whoever we have to be able to deal with the outcomes that come with being so reliant on other people. We have to be able to get our mesosystem back in check so that we can go on with our lives.
ReplyDeleteWhen one or more components break down in a mesosystem, it can threaten the other parts of the mesosystem as a whole. The components of family, peers, and teachers all work together and are affected by one another when one or more break down. For example if a student does not have the support of his or her family at home, then they are at a higher risk of having less confidence and the skills they need in school with their teachers. If a child is raised by their family to be closed off and are not allowed to socialize, this can affect the relationship they have with the peers and with their teachers, all of these components work together equally in the concept of human development for each and every person. The death of a person in any one of these systems dramatically impacts the mesosystem as a whole. One must have a very strong relationship with each of these components when a death of a family member, teacher, or a fellow peer occurs. If these systems do not remain intact, the entire system may fail as well. For example, if a teacher had fallen ill or passed away, that person would rely on the support of their family and friends to help them in their time of need.
ReplyDeleteAt first glance, Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Model of Human Development can look somewhat complicated. There are many aspects of this model but to put it simply, what the children are exposed throughout childhood and adolescence can impact the rest of their lives, which in turn affects the next layers of the model. An example of how parents can affect all the systems in the bioecological model of human development could be how a mother takes care of herself and what kind of lifestyle she leads while pregnant with the child. The choices that she makes during that fragile time period could affect the child for the rest of their lives. If she drinks, smokes, or does drugs while pregnant, the child is at greater risk to grow up with a physical, mental, or learning disability. The child could have issues with school work, fitting in with other children in their neighborhood and even difficulties with simple tasks at their home, which all make up the components of the mesosystem. The problems that can occur in those settings more than likely will be transferred over to exosystem and then finally the macrosystem.
ReplyDeleteAnother example of an influence that affects a child with every system of Bronfenbrenner’s model is the child’s peer group. This group is especially important in their adolescent stage. I have seen many of my old classmates go down the wrong path after making friends with the wrong people. In one specific case there was this young man in my class who went through all of elementary and middle school with straight A’s, All-Star in sports, and just a really nice kid. Our freshman year of high school, a few new kids came to our school. What we didn’t know was that these kids were ex-gang members and they were coming to our school right out of juvenile detention. This young man became friends with them and got caught up in some bad situations. These influences that were experienced in his micro and meso systems most definitely affected how the rest of his life turned out, how his parents had to deal with it, and how he was perceived by his teachers and other peers throughout the rest of high school.
Bronfenbrenner's mesosystem is the set of interactions and relationships among all of the elements of the microsystem which is a person's immediate relationships and activities. For most children, the microsystem consists of family, peers, and teachers. As a person who is going into math, I view the mesosystem as an equation where everything in the microsystem is has a direct relationship with the student. When the family and teachers get together, the child is affected. The same is true with the family and peers, peers and peers, teacher and peers, and the family's relationship. If one part of the mesosystem breaks down, the child would be negatively affected as well as the other parts of the mesosystem. A child needs every part of the mesosystem for proper development. Although I think each part of the mesosystem is important, I think that family and peers may affect a child more long term than teachers because typically, children get new teachers every year.
ReplyDeleteI think that parenting styles have a huge impact on the mesosystem. I think relationships between teachers and parents would be very different depending on whether the parents are authoritarian styled compared to parents who are permissive styled. Along with parenting style, I think the family dynamic and structure also impacts a child. Divorce is more prominent. That is one example of a relationship that would most definitely affect a child. Peer groups also have a very large impact on children. Popularity and close friend relationships really affect a child and how they develop.
Because the mesosystem is all connected, I do wonder how a child may develop differently if they were homeschooled or if development would be much different because they would still have a mesosystem.
There are many wonderful examples of the interdependence of the parts of the Mesosystem: a tripod, ecosystem, parts of an engine, or even a successful sports team. None of which can function in isolation. All need the entire workings of the other in order to accomplish a common goal. Many of you have used divorce as an example, but I would have to disagree with this to a certain extent. As the book stated, some children develop better after divorce because of the conflic they experienced when both parents were cohabitating. I know this is the exeption and not the rule, but I do think it is important to remember. A more recent cause for Mesosystem breakdown that many students have not had to experience before the economic downturn is the long distance commute, or a parent living far away due to employment. Many families have had to live seperately, not because of divorce, but because they cannot sell their homes, and one parent has found employment elsewhere. This can cause great stress on the family unit. Children must often become more independent and face many of the same issues as children of divorce, but with the added pressure of wondering when the family will be together again. The child may also suffer from the impending thought of changing schools if the family does relocate. I strongly believe that the nation has forgotten the mental and emotional effect the economy has on the students in America's schools. We are often concerned with those students who are economically disadvantaged, and rightly so, but we often forget about the middle class students who may only be seeing mom or dad once or twice a month because of relocation. This student is also experiencing a breakdown in the Mesosystem. All students need support because life is unpredictable. Educators must work to help students remain stable in times of instability. Adolescents are very prone to self destruct when they feel a lack of control in their lives. We must help them by finding and celebrating the successes in their lives no matter how large or small.
ReplyDeleteThe mesosystem is the relationship between the people or settings. If the communication breaks down before then all of the relationships suffer. The book used the example of teachers influencing parents and in return parents influence teachers. I think that this is a great example of why teachers need to communicate with parents. If the teachers do not communicate what is going on in the classroom then how can you expect the parents to get involved. Not only involved in the classroom but also involved in homework or even reading to the child. The other side of this is for the parents. It is up to the parents to take an interest in the child and their education. I just finished reading a book called "The Promise"and this lady promise that she was going to send a group of first graders to college. A point that she made in the book is that if you take a few minutes as a parent and show an interest in that your child gets the best teacher or that the principle knows the classroom needs things then they are more likely to get the tings they need. As a teacher it is important to open the lines of communication and keep in touch with the parents.
ReplyDeleteSamantha,
DeleteI enjoyed reading your view on this model and how you related it to the topic in the book about communication between the parents and teachers. I agree that without communication in general there is bound to be a problem. Even when everything in the mesosystem seems to be going fine, if there isn't communication built from the beginning, then when there is an issue that arises the communication barrier will already be in place. I do think this is a responsibility that is placed on both the educator and the parents - there has to be equal interest in the child and their education in order for the best outcome to be possible. Great post!
I agree! Communication between parents and teachers is a key element! I also believe that that communication can be positive. SO often we focus on the negative, when a phone call because something amazing happened in school could also be made. Even a note home with the student. There is great power in our words and how we choose to use them, and I believe if we keep up communication in a very positive manner with the good and with the issues that need work we will find huge supports with the parents in our schools.
DeleteThis model of human development was very interesting to me. I enjoyed reading chapter 3 of the Educational Psychology text book and learning about this particular model. The Bronfenbrenner’s bio ecological model of development, according to our textbook, focuses on both the physical and social contexts in which we develop are considered ecosystems because they are always interacting or influencing each other. This model then goes on to describe how each person lives within a microsystem within a mesosystem within an exosystem within a macrosystem, all of which interact and influence each other. In reference to the statement regarding what happens when one or more components of a mesosystem break down, I was able to relate to a few real life situations in order to explain this. Within a mesosytem there are components such as one’s home, their school, and neighborhood. When reflecting upon interactions that occur with an individual and all of these things or people involved with them such as parents, teachers, etc. I was able to better understand the relationship between each system. The textbook discussed divorce on page 80 and how this affects children’s development, both boys and girls. This is one situation that I primarily thought about, when the ‘family’ component of the mesosystem breaks down, it causes multiple issues to arise within the individual and others components including at school or with friends. The section in our textbook on page 84 discussed academic and personal caring. I enjoyed reading this section because I feel as though when other components are the mesosystem are breaking down it is bound to cause issues with other varying components; however, as an educator we have a responsibility to build positive relationships with our students to be able to help them through these break downs. On page 84 it stated, “When researchers ask students to describe a ‘good teacher,’ three qualities are consistently at the center of their descriptions. Good teachers have positive interpersonal relationships – they care about their students. Second, good teachers keep the classroom organized and maintain authority without being rigid or ‘mean.’ Finally, good teachers are great motivators – they can make learning fun by being creative and innovative so students learn something.” (Woolfolk, 84) What a moving statement? To know that the majority of children feel this way about the “good” teachers in their lives should make all educators want to fully exhibit these three qualities; thus, being able to provide students with the help that they need.
ReplyDeleteWhat a huge job we have ahead of us! Good teachers are so much more than just teachers of academic curriculum, for many we are their saving grace!
DeleteIf one or more of the components of the mesosystem were to break down, then the whole thing is at risk of falling apart. If the mom does not speak with the teacher about concerns that she has for her son, then the teacher will not know how to help the student. In turn the student could begin getting failing grades, and this could lead to the students joining a gang and getting mixed up with drugs. This could lead to an increase in neighborhood crime. Bronfenbrenner’s model shows us that for everyone to find success; we must all play our part.
ReplyDeleteMy husband has just signed up for Site Council at our son’s school. This will allow him to become a bigger part of the model. He will be able to help the school by being an active member of the community. He will get to make decisions that will in turn help the teachers of the school, this will help out our son in the long run. I think that Bronfenbrenner is showing us that everything that we do will affect our students.
I think your comment is interesting an well put. "We must all play our part". This is something I have noticed a lack of in schools today from observation working in a school for the last six years. I have observed a lot of pressure being put on the school to fix it all, to take over the role of not only educator but also parent. I believe everyone in the school is willing to take that role, but it's not healthy for the child. I wonder if some behavioral problems are actually due to the lack of playing of parts on part of parents. Great post.
DeleteUrie Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development can Be looked at like a building block system, or even the growth rings of a tree. Each part helps to hold and support the other systems, all of which work together To make a strong center core, the individual. IF something does wrong in one of these systems, The entire structure can fall onto the core. Looking at the mesosystem, we see this is the area of Our growth ring that lets us interact with our microsystem elements (our friends, family, teachers, school) If there is a break down in our mesosyste we will no longer have that ring, no longer Can we have the interactions we need to keep growing as an individual. Once that growth ring structure breaks down, we can no longer form the next systems properly. Our exosystem will be harmed, we will not be able to branch out in more social interaction as well as our macrosystem which is society as a whole. That said, if your mesosystem is interrupted, the effects also head inward. Our microsystem will not hold strong if our mesosystem for interaction is not in place. No matter which way we observe the implosion that happens with the crash of the mesosystem one thing is clear, the pressure falls to the individual, that type of stress, being cut off from a social system that is meant to help support your growth will deeply effect learning of that individual.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, your analogy to the growth rings of a tree make it so clear. It is important that we all work together to be certain that we help our students maintain strong growth rings!
DeleteThe mesosystem is the makeup of our students. An analogy that comes to mind is when you are cutting a fruit pie when it is warm and filling from another piece spills out in the pan, this is what happens when one piece of the mesosystem is affected. Our students come to us with their own mesosystem intact. We may view the mesosystem as a mess, but it is what they know. When we disrupt their system, we have failed them. It is imperative that educators work with the family, respect their religious values and monitor their peer group to make them the successful student. When the one component of the mesosystem in interrupted, the whole mesosystem falls into the middle and has to be repaired, just as the piece of pie missing some filling.
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