People should attend parenting classes before having a baby

Dear Jasse, the topic is people should attend parenting classes before having a baby vs people should not attend parenting classes before having a baby. As I wrote in my comment: "Poiyurt The debate would be on whether they should... " and, "Only the first few classes would be compulsory" as they are the most important ones. OK, here follows my opinion on why I think parenting classes are important: PARENTING CLASSES PROMOTE CHILDREN'S RIGHT TO A HIGH STANDARD OF PARENTING: Given that it may not be possible to use legal or monitoring systems to encourage parents to take better care of their children, making the first few parenting classes compulsory would help prioritize the best interests of the child (inhttp://www.fivecounties.on.ca... terms of health and future opportunities) without necessarily constraining the educational choices of parents. Parenting classes would help ensure that parents know what is regarded as good for their children and would promote the rights of young people to a decent upbringing, whilst only minimally impacting on parents. In 2006, the then Home Secretary John Reid argues that 'By tackling bad parenting we are tackling child disadvantage and social exclusion. For example, 90 per cent of repeating juvenile offenders have a history of behavior problems as a child.* I, personally believe that as children are obliged by the law to live with their parents who have the right to decide what is bad and good for them until they become adults, the state should at least make sure that these people have been informed about their role. *. http://www.theguardian.com... BAD PARENTING HAS AN IMPACT ON THE REST OF SOCIETY: The state has a strong moral, practical and financial interest in the raising of its future citizens. This is why most liberal democracies offer extensive and costly child support systems (including child-support payments, free nursery care, parental leave arrangements) to aid parents in raising young people who can be active and respectful members of society. Louise Casey, Government Respect Co-ordinator, argues that the best results come from preventative action: "I think we have got to do everything to make sure we are tackling not just anti-social behavior today, but preventing the next generation of people growing up with signs of anti-social behavior in the future." *Compulsory parenting classes could be a means to ensure the cohesion and prosperity of its future generations by raising the standard of parenting they receive. * http://news.bbc.co.uk... ]2;he structure within the family household could determine the extent of delinquency manifested by a juvenile. Family relationships, duties, responsibilities and privileges, and the amount of control exercised over children all play roles in forming character and influencing behavior. The attitudes and actions of parents can create an important influence in the lives of children. Families in crisis will most likely affect the behavior of juveniles. (http://yale.edu...) STANDARDIZED INFORMATION HAS GREAT VALUE: Currently, information about parenting is scarce, patchy and inconsistent. It would benefit all if up-to-date parenting information provided by medical staff, psychologists, nutritionists, educators and so on, were made accessible and standardized: all parents would receive the same basic and essential information. And information is always valuable and often appreciated by those who receive it. The charity Barnardo"s argues that those who attended their classes "were unanimously positive about the impact of courses and were clear that attending them provided them with new skills and confidence in their parenting ability." 1Parenting classes would provide up-to-date and standardized information useful to guide prospective parents" behavior and it would not amount to imposing one model of parenting on all. 1 http://www.barnardos.org.uk...