*We were surprised at the number of times students insisted that father- less homes were the source of a variety of problems:
"Fatherless children are many times more likely to commit crime than children with a male figure in their lives. Fatherless children are also more likely to abandon their [own] children when the time comes for them to take responsibility. I can personally attest to this fact, for one of my best friends, who is fatherless, has a brother who just left jail and is on parole. He also has a pregnant girlfriend." Richard Cioll, Garnet Valley High School, Glen Mills, Pennsylvania
"Studies of young criminals have found that more than 70 percent of all juveniles in state reform institutions come from fatherless homes. Kids without fathers are forced to find their own ways of doing things. They come up with their own ideas, from friends and from gangs. Nobody is showing them what to do except to be drunk, deal drugs or go to jail. They have no [constructive] role models." Ryan Hauer, Barnesville High School, Barnesville, Minnesota
"It is estimated that in New York alone there are 1500 fatherless children between the ages of one and five. This simple fact shows how many men are causing pregnancies and then just allowing their pregnant girl-friends and their unborn babies to fend for themselves." Thomas R. Velasco, Phoenix High School, Phoenix, OregonMaybe it's time to stop pretending a mother's marital status has no bearing on the fate of her child. Studies have shown that marital status of the parents plays a heavy part in determining infant mortality, childhood poverty, juvenile crime, drug addiction and whether the child does well in school. "Gaylynn L. Becker, the assistant director of counseling and testing for the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, said that students from his state performed better than the rest of the nation because the majority of them came from stable homes." Hess Wright Demopolis High School, Demopolis, AlabamaA study conducted by the Children's Defense Fund showed that a parent is more likely to fall behind on child support than on car payments. The delinquency rate for used car loans was less than 3 percent in 1992 whereas the delinquency rate for child support was 49 percent in 1990. "Eighty percent of adolescents in psychiatric hospitals come from broken homes. Three out of four teenagers who commit suicide come from broken homes. Girls from intact low-income families scored higher than boys from broken high-income homes on cognitive tests. In a government survey of 17,000 children, children living apart from a biological parent were found to be 20 percent to 40 percent more vulnerable to sickness. Twenty to thirty percent were found to be more likely to be injured in an accident." Karl Werner, Broken Arrow High School, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma"Experts in crime, drug abuse, depression, and school failure blame the family problems on the disappearance of fathers from the American family. David Blankenhorn comments that the trend of fatherlessness is the most socially consequential family trend of our generation. Studies of young criminals have found that more than seventy percent of all juveniles in state reform institutions come from fatherless homes. Children reared in broken homes are almost twice as likely as those in two-parent families to drop out of high school." Jennifer Stahl, James Valley Christian, Huron, South Dakota"Broken homes may teach a child to shift responsibility from himself. Some examples include: blaming a teacher for a bad grade, giving the excuse 'Well he made me do it' when in trouble, or even saying that the hungry dog was the reason for lost homework. If children learn early to shift the responsibility from themselves to avoid trouble, they will carry that habit with them throughout their life, eventually leading to a 'I only care about myself' and 'It's not my fault' society." Kimberly Knutson, Broken Arrow High School, Broken Arrow, OklahomaWorking mothers were frequently cited as the inadvertent cause of crime. Between 1985-1990 the percentage of working women 20-24 years-old dropped, stabilized and dropped ever so slightly again in 1993. The following reasons are often suggested: (1) better marriage prospects, (2) women had already saturated the workforce, (3) lower interest rates meant lower mortgage and car payments, allowing couples to live on one income and (4) telecommuting allowed women to work from the home. Cooking, cleaning, organizing and holding down the home front constitutes a career which is more appreciated today than ever before. Women are marrying older men who can afford to let the wife stay home with the kids. These women have less economic incentive to join the work force. The Foundation's 1991 essay contest was directed to child care. Although the book of excerpts resulting from that project is out of print (pending enough requests to warrant another printing) any reader with a computer and a modem can browse or download the entire text on Singer On-line 408-626-1700. The next 12 excerpts concerning "stay-at-home-moms" are from the 1991 HSF book, What, If Any, Should Government's Role Be Regarding Child Care In The United States?. Most of the writers are currently in college. They are identified here only by state:Pro:"If only we could get the mothers or fathers to stay home and raise their kids, instead of strangers, our society of tomorrow might be a better place to live." Montana"A parent who chooses to stay home and not pursue a career outside of the home is spending valuable time with the child. The parent keeps a family atmosphere in the home and hopefully will bring the value of a family back to society." Michigan"Mothers who do not go out to work, provide better and more fulfilling lives for their childrenÐ There are always disadvantages to every situation, but the advantages of mothers who stay at home to raise their children, are much greater and more important." Ohio"Many tests run on children from child-cares and stay-home situations lean firmly toward staying home. Studies show that by five or six months old, most of a baby's physical and mental abilities are acquired and the infants who bond solely with a mother or father have more well adjusted children." Washington"Recent studies have indicated that even children in quality child-care situations may not do as well academically or socially as generations before who spent their younger years home with mom." Minnesota"When the question is asked, 'What is really best for the children?', one has to say that there is just no substitute for parents. No day-care center or run-of-the-mill social worker can teach a child about life with the love and devotion of a mother and father. Though it may seem unfair to the woman who wishes to remain in the working force, a strong argument is given that states that the mother's round-the-clock presence is crucial to normal development of a child." New YorkCon:"Arthur, Betty Friedan, insists that children blossom in child careÐ Day-cares will ultimately become beneficial to society by better preparing children for real life situations." Michigan"Early reports on children who spent time in day-care were optimistic that those children were more independent and made friends easier." California"Mothers who are forced to stay at home with their children, as opposed to getting a job, sometimes don't feel very good about themselves. They develop a low sense of self-worth. They feel that their life is pointless and that they are not accomplishing anything for themselves. When the mother has a poor attitude, the child is bound to develop a poor attitude." Kansas"A working mother also shows the child that mom is trying to do her partÐby working. She is helping out with the financial status of the family. It also shows the child you have to work for what you get. The child may also realize that some sacrifices have to be made to achieve goals. Finally the children may realize the parents are doing it for them." Iowa"Clearly children who have working mothers who care for them, will develop into better people in the long run. The children will learn more, discover more, be more independent and be able to do things on their own. In a sense the children will be more prepared for what society has in store for them." Massachusetts"[Many children questioned by Parents magazine] said that if their mothers did not work, it would not be as much fun because they would not have as much money to get new clothes or take vacations. A few children said that even if their mother did stay at home, they would not see them that much anyway. Because of their activities such as soccer, little league, piano practice, church activities, and basketball practice, they would get home about the same time their mothers would from work. Other children said having a working mother gave them more space; time to be alone. When asked if they felt they would work outside the home when they grew up, most of the children said they would. They stated they 'would not feel useful simply sitting around the house.' "South DakotaIn the Foundation's 1991 book, Clinton Popetz's essay was reproduced in its entirety. It began with a familiar quotation from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1860):Between dark and the daylight,When night is beginning to lower,Comes a pause in the day's occupations,That is known as the Children's Hour.The excerpt that follows is taken from the last paragraph in Clinton's paper:"On the one hand, the current array of programs leaves federal funds lost in bureaucracy, and little trickles down to the individual families. However, as we unify the child care effort we must be cautious not to forget who this effort is directed to and thus we must not create an excess of regulations that would leave the family relationship stretched any further than it already is. We cannot hope to see progress in the child care system until our priorities are newly designated and the current efforts redirected. This implies setting aside ideology in congressional sessions in return for a little concern for the future of this nation. Ð surely the United States can pause for the children's hour." Clinton Popetz, Harrisburg High School, Harrisburg, IllinoisAnd now back to our 1994 excerpts: "Women have children, but instead of sticking by them in their most impressionable ages, they shove them off to nurseries and head back to work, leaving it up to strangers to instill in their kids the stranger's values." Heather Stearns, Carbondale High School, Carbondale, Illinois"There is no easy solution to the growing violence threat in our nation. Rather, it is a complicated side-effect of American's changing lifestyle. Ð Most '90's teens, many of whom come from split families, find it easy to shun religion and family values. Those who do not come from a broken home often have two parents who work at least part time. With their parents are at work, teens find it easier to 'get into trouble'. They lack the strong family ties common during their parents' youth, and they have nowhere to turn for guidance or moral direction." Paul Sweat, Kensington High School, Kensington, KansasThere were students in 1994 that vehemently disagreed, but unfortunately failed to counter with facts:"There are many statistics that try to prove one way or another that women who work out of the home do not teach their children [properly] but I think this theory is all wrong." Jessica Hines, Deer River High School, Deer River, MinnesotaWe often encountered nostalgia for the often imaginary good 'ol days:"Many people also are no longer keeping their vows, and therefore, single-parent families are on the rise. Child-care facilities and the Head Start program are trying to take the place of one or sometimes even both the parents. The results of these changes have been mostly devastating. Ð People are going to have to start facing the problem head-on, and come up with a reasonable solution. If it means going back to the ways of the 50's in which mom stays home and dad works, then so be it. Families may be poorer, and many women will complain, but it worked once and people were happy so why not try it again." Kevin Brown, Concordia High School, Concordia, Kansas High School, Concordia, Kansas