Recently I have came across an article on BBC news which is quite some time ago and the article is about youths in UK are wandering the streets because they have nowhere else to go. The 4Children charity has conducted a survey on 16,000 youths and 80% of them said that they had nothing to do outside of school. And 70% said youths became involved in anti-social behaviour and also crimes because they were bored.
The charity is calling for a national programme of UK youth centres, to provide dedicated space for teenagers. These centres would give young people the opportunity to socialise and give them access to music, the creative arts, sports facilities, extra classes and specialist support. An investigation has been carried out and they have found out that 60% of young people in deprived areas had been victims of crime in their community.
In my opinion, I felt that youth centres can really help youths that are bored and it can also reduce the percentage of crimes happening as youths can hang around at the youth centres instead of wandering the streets which might lead them into creating a crime. Parents also play an important role in ensuring that their children is free from crimes and that they are not bored at home by making sure that they are spending enough time with their child instead of working for long hours and neglecting them.
For more information about the article you can visit the following website http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6288962.stm
Hi Weiren, I agree that teenagers need avenues to socialise and participate in engaging activities like music and sports.
ReplyDeleteI think new media can play a part in keeping youth engaged, especially since most youth grow up new media-savvy. For instance, online societies for teenage musicians to create/share songs would help give youth something enjoyable to do. such new media societies would also be cheaper to set up and maintain than brick-and-mortar centres.
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hi Aubrey, i agree with you that new media can keep youth engaged but there is also a possibility that youth will also commit crimes online.
ReplyDeleteHi Weiren! I agree with Aubrey that new media can provide entertainment for youths -- and it has the capacity to reach so much larger a number of youths than brick-and-mortar centres. New media efforts would also probably enjoy greater popularity due to its tech nature.
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Hi Weiren!
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you too. It is good to have a place for youngsters to engage with healthy activities like music, sports and arts. At least these activities are useful and at the same time with the suitable place to do the activities they feel belong. Their time will not be wasted doing unhealthy activities like taking drugs or some crimes.
Syabrina =)