One of the biggest misconceptions that we have in our country is that foster care is a great thing; well, it’s not. There are so many flaws in our foster care system to even consider it a good idea. With constant reports of abuse, depression, lack of stability, to even the terrible after effects of the foster care system, like homelessness and incarceration; the foster care system hurts more than it helps. Our foster care system is bad for America, but most of all, our children. Chronic abuse and neglect is a huge part of the foster care system. According to the Children's Rights website, “Nearly 700,000 abused and neglected children will spend time in foster care in the United States this year.” Many children find themselves being looked after by a social worker, and eventually into the arms of a new family. The authors of Foster Care Placement, Poor Parenting, and Negative Outcomes Among Homeless Young Adults state that “More than half a million American youth currently [are] in foster homes due to child abuse and neglect,” (Tyler, Kimberly A., and Lisa A. Melander). This is a very terrifying statistic. It’s hard to think that there are that many children in foster care, let alone that over half a million are in the system because of child abuse and neglect. Some have even dealt with abuse before, during, and after foster care (787). This leads me to my first point; if foster care is so great, why are children still having to deal with abuse once they’ve been placed in foster care? Why are children like Krystal Scurry being raped and killed by those who are supposed to be offering better living conditions (Ambrose, Jeanne). Why are little children like Joshua Lindsey being beaten to death by their foster parents (1)? Who is re... ... middle of paper ... ...r. 2014. Child Welfare Information Gateway. "Foster Care Statistics 2012." Foster Care Statistics 2012. N.p., 2013. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. "Facts About Aging Out." Childrens Rights RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. Kerrigan, Nancy. "Nancy Kerrigan Sits down with Bob Costas." Interview by Bob Costas. NBC Sports Olympic Coverage. NBC. Sochi, Russia, Feb. 2014. Television. Tyler, Kimberly A., and Lisa A. Melander. "Foster Care Placement, Poor Parenting, And Negative Outcomes Among Homeless Young Adults." Journal Of Child And Family Studies 19.6 (2010): 787-794. ERIC. Web. 10 Mar. 2014. Wells, Melissa, and Melissa Correia. "Reentry Into Out-Of-Home Care: Implications Of Child Welfare Workers' Assessments Of Risk And Safety." Social Work Research 36.3 (2012): 181-195. ERIC. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.
This paper will contain research done about foster care, including a brief history and progressing along to the system today. This research interested me because it is a professional career option after graduation. I found both positives and negatives about the foster care system that children and foster parents go through on a daily basis. As the paper progresses I will be explaining these positives and negatives in more detail. Throughout the paper I will be referencing different scholarly sources that explain foster care in different ways. Overall, this paper will show different aspects that the general public may never know about foster care.
There is nearly 400,000 children in out-of-home care in the United States right now (Children’s Right). Just about every day children are being shipped in and out of foster homes and group homes. Most people want the best for children in foster care and decide to take care of them until their parents can possibly recover. The foster care system can have both a negative or positive effect on children, foster parents, and biological parents because of the gaps in the system. Foster cannot not be avoided but the some aspects of the foster care system can be avoided if the missing gaps were filled.
Many potential adopted parents have experienced heartbreak, anguish and other problems that can be associated with adoption. There is an imbalance in the Nations foster care system and the system needs to be strengthening and the quality of services improved.
Addressing the needs of children in foster care has been an issue that has tried to be addressed in many ways. In 2001, approximately 300,000 children entered the foster care system, with the average time spent in placement equaling 33 months (Bass Shields, & Behrman, n.d.). Statistically, the longer a child is in the foster care system, the greater number of placements they will have, and instability increases each year (Bass Shields, & Behrman, n.d). I recently read a novel by a girl who was placed into the system at age two, and by age 12 she had already experienced 14 different placements (Rhodes-Courter, 2007). Stories such as this one are not uncommon in the foster care system, especially if the child is a member of a sibling group or
Garrett Therolf said “Children in foster homes overseen by private agencies are one-third more likely to be physically, mentally, or sexually abused than children in homes overseen by the state” (qtd. in White). The debate on whether or not to privatize the foster care system is ongoing and is an excellent source for debate. While privatizing the foster care system does seem to have its advantages, such as the convenience, they are heavily outweighed by the many negative aspects of a privatized system. Privatizing the foster care system is an overall negative idea due to the fact that it turns desperate children into business pawns putting them at higher risk for many kinds of abuse. Privatization increases abuse and neglect among helpless
In todays’ society many Americans never think about our foster care system. Foster care is when a child is temporarily placed with another family. This child may have been abused, neglected, or may be a child who is dependent and can survive on their own but needs a place to stay. Normally the child parents are sick, alcohol or drug abusers, or may even be homeless themselves. We have forgotten about the thousands of children who are without families and living in foster homes. Many do not even know how foster care came about. A few of the earliest documentation of foster care can be found in the Old Testament. The Christian church put children into homes with widowers and then paid them using collection from the church congregation. The system that the church had in place was actually successful, and was continued to be used until English Poor Law eventually regulated family foster care in the U.S.
Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home, or
Foster care needs to be reformed, especially when it comes to private agencies. Many people seem to overlook the issues embedded within the foster care system; all it does is take care of children, right? Wrong. Private agencies pervert the system with the nightmares they create. Foster children already feel unwanted and neglected because of the abandonment from their birth parents; private agencies provide them with conditions that further solidify their disbelief of care and love. Money comes first in the eyes of these agencies, followed by the need of control. This “control” can easily become abuse. It would only be sensible for a higher authority to intervene and put an end to these profound
“I believe the best service to the child is the service closest to the child, and children who are victims of neglect, abuse, or abandonment must not also be victims of bureaucracy. They deserve our devoted attention, not our divided attention.” these are the words of the 27th governor of nevada (Kenny Guin). The world we now resign in is the outcome of the decisions man has made. A system in which were made to help those in need is now the obstacle preventing their success. In the article “American foster care system needs work” the authors state “On any given day, there are nearly 397,000 American children in foster care, according to a report conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. That's enough to fill Tiger Stadium
To many outsiders, the foster care system may appear to be a safe haven for those children that are abused or abandoned by their birth family. This is correct, but the system with which it is based, has many flaws. A background check is mandatory for all foster parents, but a test to see if a child 's temperament matches that caregiver 's parenting style, is not. Now, this is seen as a minor issue, but there is not enough evidence to support this. Plus, there are many other, much worse reasons, why the system is not perfect. Altogether, the foster care system and a multitude of its rules are flawed and may actually be negatively affecting foster children.
Twenty-five percent of all participating adolescents experienced physical abuse, which is a nearly three-fold increase in risk compared to the general population. Prevalence rates in residential care, especially in secure care, were significantly higher than in foster care” (Euser, Alink, Tharner, Van IJzendoorn, Bakersman-Kranenburg, 2013). Children who are abused often act out in other forums. These are the children that become the bullies, or begin stealing from stores. They also have a decrease in grades. It is sometimes difficult for children who are abused before entering foster care, to find a home placement due to their background. Many foster families do not want to take a chance with an abused child who may begin to act out, especially with older children. Abused children many times, turn to drugs and alcohol. They become addicted to these things and when they become legal age to live on their own, they become homeless. They do not have the skills and knowledge that they need to
“About two-thirds of children admitted to public care have experienced abuse and neglect, and many have potentially been exposed to domestic violence, parental mental illness and substance abuse” (Dregan and Gulliford). These children are being placed into foster care so that they can get away from home abuse, not so they can move closer towards it. The foster children’s varied outcomes of what their adult lives are is because of the different experiences they grew up with in their foster homes. The one-third of those other foster children usually has a better outcome in adult life than the other two-thirds, which is a big problem considering the high percentage of children being abused in their foster homes. Although, the foster care system has most definitely allowed children to experience the positive home atmosphere that they need there is still an existed kind of abusive system in the foster care program that is unofficial but seems to be very popular. Foster care focuses on helping children in need of a temporary stable environment; however, foster care can have negative impacts to the children and the people around them concerning the foster child going through the transition, the parents of the foster child, a new sibling relationship, and problems that arrive later influencing the foster child long-term.
Child abuse and neglect are “social” issues that were addressed by the author. While children are in foster care, they may become victims of maltreatment: child neglect, child emotional, physical and sexual abuse. The terms neglect refers to when parents fail to provide a child’s basic needs and provide satisfactory level of care (Downs, Moore and McFadden, 2009). An example of a child being neglected is when parents or c...
According to the International Foster Care Organization “Foster care is a way of providing a family life for children who cannot live with their own parents.”(2004) Foster care is supposed to provide temporary care while parents get help dealing with problems, or to help children or young people through a difficult period in their lives. Children will return home once their parents are able to provide a safe enviorment for them. However if parent are unable to resolve the issues that cause their child in foster care their children may stay in long-term foster care, some may be adopted, and others will move on to live independently. (IFCO, 2004) Foster care has been a problem for many years and although there have been many attempts to improve it; it there still seems to be negatively impacting
In an article written by Bolg.acton.org titled as Our Foster Care System Is Becoming A ‘Pipeline’ For Human, half of a million of children in the U.S are put into foster care for a short period of time or for a long time due to crisis happening in their houses. Some of those children are placed with their relatives if they are ‘lucky’ enough. However, in the same article, in an interview with Malika Saada of Rights4Girls by NPR, she stated various issues occurring in the broken foster care system. As for what is happening with the children that are put into various houses in which at times are being abused without the knowledge of the state. In other cases, circumstances are different and unfortunate as for those who are seeing as profit. As for the story of one of the survivor leader whom they work with who was trafficked from the age of 10-17-all through California, Nevada, and Washington states-seeing foster care as training ground to being trafficked. However, even though she knew that the foster parents were getting pay to take care of her, all she cared about was that the pimp told her that he loved her. The lack of love, affirmation and protection are the reasons Malika thinks children pledge to follow their commands. In other cases, the children are told that the checks given by the government is not enough, that the only thing that made them worth was the money they would bring in. Malika also states that 60 percent of the children rescued in a recent FBI sting were from foster care at a point. Child maltreatment is being reported by the FBI throughout all the 50 states as stated by the