In regard to the physical and emotional aspects, these can have positive or negative sensations in later life. Children base their future actions on previous actions. Although they are initially scared and nervous to try something new, once the child has achieved their target, Stephenson wrote that ‘Foreboding was replaced by elation when she conquered her fear’. The adult carer needs to be aware of a child’s need to a challenge and the support needed to achieve. The achievement is not always positive, such as falling off a climbing frame, but it can be turned into the positive by helping the child to learn from previous experiences and mistakes. Adult carers should also consider that what is considered as an acceptable risk in one community, may be completely unacceptable in another. The adult should be sensitive to their surrounding environment and include cultural awareness when determening a mutually agreeable level of risk.
Children need to take risks in every day life. Stine (1997) implied that a challenge is important in the developing of competence. He thought that a suitable balance needs to be achieved between the access for the child to the risk and the security that is in place for the activity. In an outdoor setting this could be a climbing frame that is used by various age groups. The younger children are attempting the first few steps and the older children are attempting the monkey bars. They are all risk taking on their own levels. The children are choosing to participate and are allowing themselves to be part of a risk taking process. The older children would not be at the top if they had not started with small steps, building on previous experience to get higher. An adult carer should be aware of individual children’s needs and build upon them. Stephenson (2003) posed two questions in relation to risk taking; the first one is ‘How can we juggle the requirement for safety with the need to provide children with the physical challenge, when regulations that govern our playgrounds are becoming increasingly restrictive ?’ The rules governing our outdoor play areas are becoming more and more restrictive. Although the need for safety is acknowledged, children need to learn by experience. Susan Isaacs felt that when her theories were ‘tested’ at The Malting House, some were unworkable. An example of this was that one theory meant that the children were not to be restrained in any way. This included physical and emotional risk taking. They were to have a schooling that was free from physical and emotional restraints. The children were intrigued by an old metal roof that was extremely unstable. Rather then stop them climbing up (eliminating the danger factor) and never finding out for themselves the result behind the risk, she limited the activity of climbing on the roof to one child at a time. In the modern day, adults would never subject children to such a risk, and quite understandably. My point is adults are moving too far into the realm of being too safe. Stephenson’s second question was, ‘If children are not able to confront and conquer risky physical activities are there some less obvious longer term implications we should be thinking about?’ As mentioned previously, part of a child’s natural curiosity needs to be satisfied. If we are not satisfying that natural curiosity, will future generations struggle to cross the road, as the road and the traffic upon it are ‘too risky and scary’.
The adult carer needs to be aware that if they set about curtailing natural curiosity, we will be driving the children to a very boring and unchallenging world. Froebel argued that children’s best thinking is done when they are playing. Did he mean that the play should be limited and restricted in some way, making it safe play doesn’t necessarily make it good play. The adult should not make the play safe by taking over or initiating play; The adult will be in a better position if they watch and scaffold the children’s development. Therefore still allowing free-flow play.
The Effective Early Learning Project based at Worcester University highlights two ways in which adults can help children progress; The first is the way the adult encourages the child to be autonomous, to get on and try new things; The second, is the way the adult offers experiences which are stimulating, challenging and interesting. Adults need to be a supporting factor when the child is in a ‘risky’ environment. Children and adults alike enjoy climbing trees; adults know when they are too high as do children. This is a whole other debate in terms of nature or nurture debate. This is where we could explore the idea of children learning to be safe when risk taking or is it already ‘there’. Stephenson (2003) wrote about a child on a swing, ‘Swinging was very popular with these younger children, but more often than the older children their reactions indicated that they felt unsafe and wanted the swing slowed down’. Therefore the child has taken the risk, has agreed a boundary, enjoyed the activity and acknowledged the safety aspect. The adult was there to ensure the safety and also make the activity a positive one by being readily available.
Children must face all different kinds of risks in order to support their development and learning. Stine (1997) wrote that to support their learning and development is a complex issue. There always has to be provision for a physical challenge. More and more educational settings are using outdoor play/activity to challenge the children. Although, what is an acceptable risk to one person, may be completely the opposite of another. Bruce and Meggitt (2002) write that ‘outdoor space needs to be available most of the time’; They continue that, safety is the only consideration for keeping children in doors.
Children can feel safe in ‘risk taking’ environments and activities in many ways. Initially the adult to child ratio, with a high number of adults’ children can be supported and helped to achieve. Secondly by minimising, if possible, the risk aspect. This could be ensuring the activity is a positive and acceptable environment. Thirdly by giving the children all the opportunities available for physical risk taking, children need a stimulating and challenging environment. And finally, a well maintained balance between the child’s safety and the challenge of the activity. In an educational setting, an adult carer will go to the ‘risk area’ and carry out an assessment. They will check the route to be taken, dangers in the area and also any area that poses extreme concern. An adult carer should also think about the child to adult ratio. A local nursery allows children to climb trees. Due to the child to adult ratio, the nursery feels that the level of risk posed can be curtailed by having by having the children supervised and supported through the activity by adults. The children are therefore enjoying the activity of risk taking, as well as feeling safe in knowing an adult is available to help at any time.
Another factor that the adult carer should be aware of is the idea of making a child’s environment completely hazard free. Therefore taking away any risk or danger. Walsh (1993) thought that children in an environment that is completely ‘safe’ could become bored and this could lead to self initiated risk taking that could be dangerous. Durberry (2001) felt that children who grow up in an ultra safe environment would ‘lack confidence in their own physical ability’. This would be due to the poor opportunities for the children to build and extend upon their exiting knowledge. He continued that children had to be both confident and competent physically in order to feel competent emotionally.
The ideals on risk taking vary from culture to culture. Although the main aim remains the same. The child needs to remain safe, but feel they are being challenged and stimulated. To minimise hazards there needs to be a high adult to child ratio. Children need opportunities to explore and do so independently. Over the last decade, the child’s freedom of choice has been limited. Adult carers are sometimes over anxious about letting the child experiment with risk taking. The procedures and guidelines that are in place give the adult carer a frame work on which to base their activities upon. The adult carer should exploit and become fluent in the procedures and guidelines in place. This in turn will provide groundwork for safe risk taking.
Bibliography
Smith, P., Cowie, H. & Blades, M. (2003) Understanding Children’s Development, London: Blackwell Publishing.
Bruce, T. & Meggitt, C. (2002) Childcare & Education, London: Hodder & Stoughton.
DfEE (2003) Early Years (Volume 23, Number 1), London: Taylor & Francis
