peer pressure
PEER PRESSURE By Khadija Hamidani
Throughout our school lives we ourselves have seen and experienced the impact of "peer effect". Like everything that has positive and negative effects, peer pressure has its own list of negative and positive effects that influences child's upbringing and development both morally and psychologically. In short it can make someone or break someone.
“Not all peer pressure is bad. If you have peers who are pushing you to go further in life and believe in your dreams. Man, you got it made!” – Jeff Moore Lets first implore the positive influence of "peer effect". It can give a moral boost to a child to share and connect with others his/her age. It makes them feel good to be part of a group and make them feel belonged and cherished and valued by others. It can develop their trust and compassion to be there for each other through thick and thin. And it can help them do better
at school, take interest in sports activities and make them more confident to achieve something.
“What kind of peer pressure you receive says a lot about your peer group.” Now if we look at negative effects, peer pressure can arise socio economical differences, makes a person feel inferior, make them account their self worth and push them towards worse. These days being hip and cool is the new thing. People appreciate brands, in fact they value them insanely. If you want to be popular and cool you should have expensive branded clothes and branded sneakers and you have to be rude (whether you like it or not). Smirking over smiling is better. Otherwise you are called a buffoon, or a goofy nerd, or a geek with no sense of fashion. In short you get labeled. You really need to keep a celebrity tab of makeup and accessories and all the bling bling even if you are an academic failure. Where do teens get such ideas? Of course you can say media, movies, tabloids and fashion magazines. But what influences
them most is the circle of friends they hang out with at their school. Child who gets influenced by such effects of peer pressure might question his/her parents as to why he/she does not have what their friends have and why can't they have the latest cell phone or new gadget, and they might get agitated, and feel distant from their parents.
“Peer pressure becomes more powerful when our children are away from our influence and when their defenses are weakened late at night. If you have ever felt uneasy about an overnight activity, don’t be afraid to respond to that warning voice inside. Always be prayerful when it comes to protecting your precious children.” ― Larry R. Lawrence It is a parental and teachers duty to make sure you teach your child the difference between good company and bad company. And what is that matters at the end of the day. The difference between right and wrong, about hard work and life and family.
“Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.” – Alexander Hamilton Some youngsters if indulged with wrong crowds stray on towards drug addictions, smoking, alcohol and other vices. Teachers can condone this by briefing their students on negative impacts of drugs, by showcasing some living examples of families and lives ruined by drugs and alcohol consumption, by making kids aware about how their behavior affects their peers or people around them, and by teaching them a person should not be valued by his/her wealth or status but by their characters and their morals, and that money is fleeting but being true to yourself and kind to everyone and those around you counts the most. This will help with bullying as well.
In a classroom teachers should also indulged students to get involved into giving back to their community, to make their lives better and same goes for those around them. To cause a positive impact and that will not only make them strong individuals but also help them be compassionate and hardworking human beings.
Throughout our school lives we ourselves have seen and experienced the impact of "peer effect". Like everything that has positive and negative effects, peer pressure has its own list of negative and positive effects that influences child's upbringing and development both morally and psychologically. In short it can make someone or break someone.
“Not all peer pressure is bad. If you have peers who are pushing you to go further in life and believe in your dreams. Man, you got it made!” – Jeff Moore Lets first implore the positive influence of "peer effect". It can give a moral boost to a child to share and connect with others his/her age. It makes them feel good to be part of a group and make them feel belonged and cherished and valued by others. It can develop their trust and compassion to be there for each other through thick and thin. And it can help them do better
at school, take interest in sports activities and make them more confident to achieve something.
“What kind of peer pressure you receive says a lot about your peer group.” Now if we look at negative effects, peer pressure can arise socio economical differences, makes a person feel inferior, make them account their self worth and push them towards worse. These days being hip and cool is the new thing. People appreciate brands, in fact they value them insanely. If you want to be popular and cool you should have expensive branded clothes and branded sneakers and you have to be rude (whether you like it or not). Smirking over smiling is better. Otherwise you are called a buffoon, or a goofy nerd, or a geek with no sense of fashion. In short you get labeled. You really need to keep a celebrity tab of makeup and accessories and all the bling bling even if you are an academic failure. Where do teens get such ideas? Of course you can say media, movies, tabloids and fashion magazines. But what influences
them most is the circle of friends they hang out with at their school. Child who gets influenced by such effects of peer pressure might question his/her parents as to why he/she does not have what their friends have and why can't they have the latest cell phone or new gadget, and they might get agitated, and feel distant from their parents.
“Peer pressure becomes more powerful when our children are away from our influence and when their defenses are weakened late at night. If you have ever felt uneasy about an overnight activity, don’t be afraid to respond to that warning voice inside. Always be prayerful when it comes to protecting your precious children.” ― Larry R. Lawrence It is a parental and teachers duty to make sure you teach your child the difference between good company and bad company. And what is that matters at the end of the day. The difference between right and wrong, about hard work and life and family.
“Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.” – Alexander Hamilton Some youngsters if indulged with wrong crowds stray on towards drug addictions, smoking, alcohol and other vices. Teachers can condone this by briefing their students on negative impacts of drugs, by showcasing some living examples of families and lives ruined by drugs and alcohol consumption, by making kids aware about how their behavior affects their peers or people around them, and by teaching them a person should not be valued by his/her wealth or status but by their characters and their morals, and that money is fleeting but being true to yourself and kind to everyone and those around you counts the most. This will help with bullying as well.
In a classroom teachers should also indulged students to get involved into giving back to their community, to make their lives better and same goes for those around them. To cause a positive impact and that will not only make them strong individuals but also help them be compassionate and hardworking human beings.
