Is School Education the Most Important Factor in Children's Personality Development?

The fundamental social issued affecting children in Romania

Romania faces numerous challenges related to human development, confirmed by European and national statistics, as well as by numerous debates in the media.

Romania has a high and growing percentage of the population exposed to the risk of impoverishment. Analysing the risk of poverty or social exclusion varied across the EU Member States, the highest shares of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion were recorded in Romania (34%) (Eurostat, 2021a). The highest rate of material and social deprivation in the European Union in 2019 was recorded in the South-East Romania region (56.2%). Children in Romania are in the worst situation among the EU states in terms of multidimensional poverty (44.1%), an indicator composed of the relative poverty rate, severe material deprivation and population’s percentage living in households with a low work intensity (Eurostat, 2021b). Among the EU countries, Romania recorded the highest rate of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion (41.5%) in 2020 (Eurostat, 2020).

Romania exhibits major socio-economic gaps between the urban and rural areas. Some of Romania's counties have urban areas among the best performing in Europe, while some rural areas have third-world characteristics (World Bank, 2020).

Romania ranks second in the European Union when it comes to the birth rate among teenage young (Nanu et al., 2021), their percentage being three times higher than the average of European countries.

In Romania, a high percentage of families go to work abroad (http://andpdca.gov.ro/w/date-statistice, 30.09.2021). The situation of children left at home from families where both parents are away working abroad is a worrying reality.

Violence against children is a national phenomenon. The most frequent form of violence is neglect, and the most prevalent context is the family.

In Romania, the incidence and prevalence of chronic medical conditions in children is increasing (Institutul Național de Sănătate Publică/The National Institute of Public Health, 2020, p. 16). Depending on the environment of origin, the main chronic conditions encountered in students are:

In the urban environment, refractive conditions are in first place: myopia, hypermetropia, astigmatism (5.3%), in second place is obesity due to non-endocrine causes (4.4%), followed by other metabolic diseases, such as diabetes (2 %), weight hypotrophy (1.9%), spine deficiencies (1.4%).

In the rural area, obesity of non-endocrine causes (3.4%), refractive conditions (2.4%), weight hypotrophy (1.3%), stature hypotrophy o (1.2%), speech disorders (1.1%), skin diseases (1%).

In 2020, family doctors declared 2306 new cases of children suffering from malnutrition (idem, p. 29).

The conclusion of these statistics is clear: We have poor, neglected, sick children, and this reality is one of magnitude!

The challenges of school education in response to current social problems

The social issues highlighted (poverty, migration, abandonment, violence, chronic diseases, etc.) lead to a series of vulnerabilities that limit the participation of Romanian children in education/school training.

The correlation between the educational level and the relative poverty rate suggests that the inequitable access to education of disadvantaged categories perpetuates the cycle of poverty and deepens inequalities between children from different social backgrounds (Pop & Onu, 2019).

Poverty is much more prevalent in rural areas than in urban areas, with the rate of risk of poverty or social exclusion reaching 45.5%, almost 2.5 times higher than in large cities (Eurostat, 2021b).

The pandemic had a negative impact on school pupils and students from disadvantaged backgrounds, including Roma students and those from rural areas. In the case of Roma students, only 7% of them graduated from high school.

The phenomenon of parental migration to work abroad remains a largely spread one. More than 430,000 children emigrated between 2008 and 2017, of which almost 91% are temporary migrants (Onu et al., 2019, pp. 22-23). In their case, the problem of educational and social integration arises. There is also the category of minors left at home, usually in the care of an adult. Many of them are at risk of social exclusion and are at risk of dropping out of school.

Domestic violence caused mainly by poverty continues to represent a patriarchal model of many families in Romania. The most widespread form of violence is neglect, and the most common context is the family. Among the effects of family neglect of children are poor school performance and school dropout.

Pregnancy among teenage girls in Romania is a cyclical phenomenon, which repeats itself from one generation to another in the same families (Nanu et al., 2021, pp. 14-15).

In Romania, the number of children with disabilities and/or special educational requirements is increasing. In 2017, 29% of children with disability certificates were not enrolled in any form of education, another 29% were educated in special schools or individually, and only 42% attended mainstream schools Most of them complete only primary education (Pop & Onu, 2019).

We thus complete the conclusion of the previous section: We have poor, neglected, sick children, etc., and because of these causes, we have children with school failure, at risk of school dropout and social exclusion.

The efficiency of government services in Romania

The fundamental problems affecting children in Romania draw attention to the low investment in relevant areas such as education, health and social protection. At the level of our country, the efficiency of government interventions through social services is very low:

Romania has a 58% Human Capital index. The index measures the amount of human capital that could be achieved by a child born today by the age of 18, as well as the losses caused by insufficient investment in people (World Bank, 2021). The score of 0.58 in 2020 means that, in Romania, children born today will have a 58% level of productivity when they grow up compared to what they could have had if they had benefited from integrated education, health and social protection services.

At the national level: a) there is no strategy for an integrated approach to child well-being; b) collaboration between key sectors - education, health and social child protection - is deficient; c) there is no institution that ensures the intersectoral coordination of services, a situation that leads to inequitable access of children from the most disadvantaged environments to a minimum package of social services.

Instead, there are numerous programs run by NGOs (with the support of government ministries and/or agencies), but these are rarely implemented on a large scale and consistently. Among the NGOs that provide services for the well-being of children, we list: UNICEF, Salvați Copiii, Roma Education Fund, OvidiuRo, Ready Nation, Copiii Noştri Foundation, Holt, etc.

The interventions of the civil community in mediating, identifying and supporting, in the short term, vulnerable children and their families are also noted. An important role is played by teachers, especially primary school teachers (the first level of compulsory education in Romania), who have the (not easy) responsibility of testing the complexity of social and school life.

These statistics argue three essential aspects for children's personality development:

Teachers have the major responsibility to test the complexity of social and school reality.

The family has a decisive role in the development of children's personality.

The level of children’s well-being of in Romania can only increase if and when children, especially the most vulnerable, benefit from increased access to integrated education, health and social protection services.

Vulnerabilities encountered in Romanian children

Objective 1: Identifying the categories of vulnerabilities encountered/observed by teachers in Romanian children and analysing their extent.

The fundamental social problems that affect children in Romania (poverty, migration, abandonment, violence, chronic diseases, etc.) lead to a series of vulnerabilities that limit their participation in education/school training.

What are the categories of vulnerabilities encountered/observed by teachers in children of small school age? What are the most common vulnerabilities observed by teachers in young school-aged children? What is the extent of this reality?

In an opinion poll carried out in 2022, 1312 primary education teachers from urban and rural areas were questioned about the categories of children's vulnerabilities they have faced in recent years.

What are the categories of vulnerabilities encountered/observed by teachers in children of small school age?

All the dimensions analysed (poverty, health, education, risk behaviours, family and social conditions) are found in vulnerabilities encountered in children of small school age.

Objective 2: Hierarchy of vulnerabilities found in children in Romania and analysis of causative factors.

What are the most common vulnerabilities observed by teachers in young school-aged children?

The most frequently encountered vulnerabilities in children belong to the family dimension or are directly related to it:

Child without a parent at home, vulnerability caused mainly by parents going to work abroad;

Child who is below the developmental standards, vulnerability caused by the increased incidence of chronic medical conditions in children, as well as the poverty level of the family;

Child at risk of violent behaviour, vulnerability caused by the patriarchal practices of many families in Romania, amplified by the degree of poverty. The most prevalent form of violence is neglect, and the most prevalent context is the family.

Child living in overcrowded housing, vulnerability caused by the poverty level of the family;

Child living in a household in monetary poverty. The most important factors that increase children's poverty risk are the family's ability to obtain income (closely related to the parents' education level), the family structure (the large number of children in the family) and the efficiency of government interventions through social services, efficiency which in the case of Romania is low.

What is the extent of this reality?

More than 90% of primary school teachers state that they have faced, annually, one or more vulnerabilities, observed in one or more students in the class.

Teachers' beliefs regarding the influence of factors on children's personality development

Objective 3: Analysis of the influence of education/school training in the development of children's personality, in the current socio-cultural context of Romania.

The results of the previously presented survey confirm the decisive role of the family in the development of children's personality. At the same time, these results call into question the axiom, fixed in academic and educational policy discourses, according to which education/school training is considered to be the most important factor in personality development.

What are the opinions of Romanian teachers regarding the influence of factors on children's personality development? Is education/school training the most important factor in the development of children's personality in Romania? Do teachers in Romania share the belief that the family is the most important factor in the development of the personality of young school-age students?

Theories of education/schooling appreciate that all normal children have similar learning capacities, the differentiation being determined by education/schooling. In other words, a weak student benefiting from optimal-ideal learning conditions can become as competent as a good student placed in normal learning conditions. In an opinion survey carried out in 2021, 1680 teachers for primary education answered that they totally agree with this statement in percentage of 15.5 %.

The belief that the influence of education/school training in the development of the personality of the young school-aged child is not absolute and unitary is also reinforced by the answers to the following question. 13.1%. of the responding teachers fully agree with the statement that all normal children have similar learning abilities, the differentiation being determined by education/school training.

In other words:

the power of education/schooling is not absolute and unitary;

children have different learning capacities and the differentiation is not solely determined by education/schooling;

not always a student benefiting from ideal conditions of education/school training can register school success. Other factors and conditions come into this equation.

not always a teacher will succeed in improving learning outcomes for all students. The quality of pedagogical action depends on the quality of the social environment (especially the family).

Do teachers in Romania share the belief that the family is the most important factor in the development of the personality of young school-age students?

Most of the responding teachers share the belief that the social environment, especially the family, is the most influential factor in the development of the personality of young school-aged children. Parenting style, family needs and resources influence the cognitive and socio-affective development of children, as well as the educational activity / school training.

However, analysing the direct influence of the family on school success or failure, teachers assign it a secondary role in relation to education/school training. In practice, school education/training has the greatest degree of influence in ensuring school success.

Primary school teachers share the belief that heredity is the second most influential factor in the development of the personality of young school children.

Analysing, however, the direct influence of heredity on school success or failure, teachers assign it a minor importance.

What are the opinions of Romanian teachers regarding the influence of factors on children's personality development?

In the beliefs expressed by primary education teachers in Romania, the hierarchy regarding the influence of factors on the development of personality in students of low school age is presented as follows:

Family;

Heredity;

Education/school training.

In the practice of primary education teachers, the hierarchy regarding the influence of factors of personality development on school success for students of low school age is presented as follows:

Education/school training;

Social environment, especially the family;

Heredity.

Do teachers in Romania share the belief that the family is the most important factor in the development of the personality of young school-age students?

In the beliefs expressed by teachers for primary education in Romania, the family is the most important factor in the formation and development of the personality of children of small school age.

Teachers' awareness of the family environment in which children develop

In the opinions of teachers for primary education, the social environment, especially the family, represents the most influential factor in the development of the personality of children of small school age.

Do teachers in Romania know the family contexts of the children?

Although they recognize the major importance of the family in the development of the child's personality, 63.1% of the responding teachers say that they visit the students' homes only in special situations, 17.8% of them - never.

In order to ensure a personalized training, it is necessary to know the family environment in which the child develops.

Personalized training is aimed at ensuring the child's well-being and thriving. It is focused on the person, on the empowerment of the pupils, so that they exhibit the availability and desire to learn. The pupil’s learning is the coordinate of a personalized training. Customised actions are carried out to remove vulnerabilities that alter the pupils’ learning ability; ensuring basic needs (physiological, security, belonging, affection) through an effective partnership with the family, expanding the support network, support from qualified institutions and organizations; increasing self-esteem, etc.

Personalized training is a first step in achieving differentiated training.

Differentiated instruction aims to ensure progress in learning. It is focused on activating the learning potential, on improving the ability and learning pace of each school pupil and student. The coordinates of a differentiated training are: enable pupils to learn more easily; to learn with more pleasure; to learn more thoroughly; to study independently. Differentiated training aims to address performance by each pupil and student.

In building personalized learning environments, awareness and understanding of the contexts in which children develop, the environments and social forces that limit or help shape learning experiences is paramount.