PAC 405 Module 2 Relationships With Parents, Teachers and Other Adults Example

The Adults Around Jaylen: Parents, Teachers and a Coach as the Foundation for Helping a Child

Student Name

Psychology and Addiction Studies Program, Aspen University

PAC 405: Child Psychology

Instructor Name

Month Day, Year

The Adults Around Jaylen: Parents, Teachers and a Coach as the Foundation for Helping a Child

In Module 1, Jaylen, a twelve-year-old in Tampa, was referred to Bayview Children's Counseling, the agency invented for these papers, after drinking with older cousins and bringing a cannabis vape to school. The research on drivers of early use pointed again and again to adults: monitoring by parents, relationships at school and the influence of older peers. This paper maps the adults in Jaylen's life and plans how they can help. Jaylen, his family and the adults described are composites, and the research is real.

Jaylen's Relationships

Jaylen's mother, Keisha, has been in recovery from opioid use for a year. During her years of use, she was often absent or unreliable, and she feels deep guilt about it. She is working hard to rebuild trust, and Jaylen is warm with her but tests her limits. His grandmother, Loretta, raised him for long stretches when Keisha was using and is the steadiest adult in his life, but she works nights as a hospital housekeeper and sleeps during the afternoons, when Jaylen is home from school. His sixth-grade teacher, Ms. Alvarez, likes him, has noticed his restlessness and was the one who found the vape and called home rather than only reporting it. His basketball coach, Mr. Brooks, runs a community league three afternoons a week. Jaylen calls him the only adult who "doesn't nag."

Parenting and Adolescent Drinking

Ryan et al. (2010) systematically reviewed longitudinal studies of parenting factors and adolescent alcohol use. Several factors were associated with later initiation and lower levels of drinking: parental monitoring, meaning knowing where children are, with whom and what they are doing; parental support and warmth; good parent-child communication; parents' disapproval of adolescent drinking and their own modeling of responsible use; and limiting children's access to alcohol. Parents' provision of alcohol to adolescents, even at home, was associated with more drinking later. The review suggested that these factors are modifiable and could be targets for family interventions.

For Jaylen, monitoring during the after-school hours is the clearest gap, since his grandmother is asleep and his mother works until five. His cousins' access to alcohol at family gatherings is another.

Teacher-Child Relationships

Hamre and Pianta (2001) followed children from kindergarten through eighth grade and examined how the quality of their relationships with kindergarten teachers predicted later outcomes. Children whose kindergarten relationships were marked by conflict or excessive dependency had poorer academic and behavioral outcomes through eighth grade, even after accounting for earlier problems, and the effects were strongest for children who had shown behavior problems early. The authors concluded that teacher-child relationships are a lasting part of children's school experience and a potential target for intervention.

Ms. Alvarez's warmth toward Jaylen, and her decision to call his mother rather than only discipline him, are the kind of relationship that research links to better outcomes for restless children.

Mentors and Other Adults

DuBois et al. (2011) conducted a meta-analysis of evaluations of youth mentoring programs. Across the programs studied, mentoring helped a little on many fronts at once: behavior, schoolwork and how young people felt. Effects were larger when programs fostered strong, lasting relationships, when mentors had relevant experience and when programs matched mentors and youth well. The authors cautioned that effects were modest and that short, broken relationships could disappoint children.

Mr. Brooks is not a formal mentor, but he plays that role. His league offers structured, supervised time three afternoons a week, exactly when Jaylen's supervision is weakest, and a relationship with an adult Jaylen trusts.

The Support Network

Filling the Afternoon Gap

The afternoon hours on the two days without basketball remain unsupervised. Keisha and Loretta will ask a neighbor, a retired bus driver whom Jaylen knows, whether Jaylen can do homework at her apartment on those days. If not, Bayview will help the family find an after-school program near the school.

Family Gatherings

Keisha will talk with her sister about the cousins giving Jaylen alcohol at gatherings. Bayview's family counselor can help her plan that conversation, since it involves her own family and her recovery.

Communication Among the Adults

With Keisha's written consent, the counselor will speak with Ms. Alvarez monthly and with Mr. Brooks as needed. The adults will share what they notice, such as Jaylen's mood or signs of use, but not the details of his counseling. Keisha remains the decision maker.

When Adults Disagree

The adults in Jaylen's life do not always agree. Loretta thinks Keisha is too strict now, overcorrecting for her years of absence, and Keisha thinks Loretta lets Jaylen get away with too much. Jaylen has learned to go to whichever adult is more likely to say yes. Research on parenting emphasizes consistency, and inconsistent rules between caregivers are common in multigenerational households. Bayview's family counselor will meet with Keisha and Loretta together to agree on a few core rules, such as where Jaylen may go after school and the consequence for breaking curfew, so that he hears the same message from both.

Jaylen's View

When asked who helps him most, Jaylen named his grandmother and Mr. Brooks. He said his mother "is trying" and that Ms. Alvarez "is okay." The plan will build on his own sense of who matters, rather than assigning him relationships he does not feel.

Conclusion

The adults around Jaylen are the foundation for helping him. Ryan, Jorm and Lubman show that monitoring, warmth and clear disapproval of drinking protect children, Hamre and Pianta show that teacher-child relationships shape outcomes for years and DuBois and colleagues show that mentoring relationships help when they are strong and lasting. Giving each adult a realistic role, filling the afternoon gap and keeping the adults in touch makes the counselor's work one part of a wider web of support.

References

DuBois, D. L., Portillo, N., Rhodes, J. E., Silverthorn, N., & Valentine, J. C. (2011). How effective are mentoring programs for youth? A systematic assessment of the evidence. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 12(2), 57-91. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100611414806

Hamre, B. K., & Pianta, R. C. (2001). Early teacher-child relationships and the trajectory of children's school outcomes through eighth grade. Child Development, 72(2), 625-638. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00301

Ryan, S. M., Jorm, A. F., & Lubman, D. I. (2010). Parenting factors associated with reduced adolescent alcohol use: A systematic review of longitudinal studies. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 44(9), 774-783. https://doi.org/10.1080/00048674.2010.501759