Archive for July 18th, 2011

More support is needed to prevent children from suffering the loss of access to their grandparents because of family disputes, according to a researcher at the University of New England.

UNE’s Professor of Early Childhood Studies, Margaret Sims (pictured here), says that while the importance to children of relationships with their grandparents is clear, the legal system could create barriers in cases where the relationship between the child’s parents and grandparents has broken down.

In her recent study with Dr Maged Rofail, Professor Sims said that the rights of both grandchildren and grandparents needed to be given higher priority, and that arguments between a child’s parents and grandparents could be dealt with by better support for counselling and mediation.

“As many of these arise from feelings of hurt, pain and anger, counselling and mediation have a high likelihood of creating families where relationships can be managed in a more positive manner,” the study concludes. “This is to the advantage of all parties, but particularly the grandchildren themselves. Acting in the best interests of the child requires the legal system to put more effort into supporting the grandparent-grandchild relationship rather than allowing the relationship to fracture on the understanding that attempting resolution will stress parents.”

The study suggests that this could include “court-ordered (i.e. compulsory) mediation or counselling so that underlying problems exacerbating grandparent-grandchild contact problems (such as disagreements between grandparents and their adult children, and breakdown of in-law relationships) are dealt with in a manner that enables children to maintain relationships with their grandparents”.

“While people do feel hurt – sometimes very hurt – in family disputes, the real point is the welfare of growing children,” Professor Sims said. “We need to provide support that enables difficulties between parents and their children to heal so grandchildren don’t suffer.

“One of the big problems we now see is that children are tending to lose out by being isolated in nuclear families instead of being nourished by an extended family.”

At the same time, Professor Sims added, grandparents themselves often go through enormous suffering when denied access to their grandchildren, and this itself could lead to large social as well as personal costs.

Professor Sims has published a number of books in this area, including Social Inclusion and the Early Years Learning Framework, and is the Editor of the Australian Journal of Early Childhood. She says it is important that parents be receptive to dealing with difficulties with their own parents, and to make an effort to ensure that they are involved in the lives of their grandchildren. “Generally speaking, the more people in children’s lives the better,” she said. “Parents need to make time for the relationships with grandparents; they have to see that they’re important.”

At an exhibition in Coffs Harbour this week, the University of New England will be presenting some of the groundbreaking projects that the National Broadband Network is enabling it to develop.

“These projects aim to benefit people across their lifespan – from young children to parents and grandparents,” said UNE’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Jim Barber. “They will help them in the home as well as in schools, nursing homes, general practices and farms.”

“The capacity of the optical fibre made available through the Commonwealth Government’s National Broadband Network program is capturing the imagination of the University,” Professor Barber said.

T.H.E Exchange exhibition, sponsored by Regional Development Australia and NBNCo, will be at Coffs Harbour Ex-Services Club on Wednesday 20 July.

“During the event’s pre-opening cocktail party on Tuesday 19 July, colleagues from UNE and the University of California Irvine School of Medicine will give a live presentation that will demonstrate how general practices in rural and regional communities will be able to connect with a world-class medical teaching institution via fast broadband connections to share simulation facilities and teaching resources,” said Professor Victor Minichiello, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean of UNE’s Faculty of The Professions. In addition, Professor Minichiello and his UNE colleagues will talk about a range of programs that will benefit from fast broadband, enabling high-speed data exchanges that will bring tremendous service benefits to communities across Australia.

Among the UNE programs to be highlighted will be the QuickSmart programs, which help struggling students to become active and successful learners by improving their basic skills and understanding in numeracy and/or literacy. Currently, more than 600 schools offer QuickSmart programs to almost 10,000 students across Australia, with many of these students experiencing up to three years’ academic growth over the course of a single year. With the opportunities provided by the NBN, UNE is developing ”QuickSmart in the Home” to offer relevant, targeted and professional online educational support to parents and children around Australia. Another program that has relevance for all Australians is EduONE, which allows people to “try before they buy” while earning points towards TAFE/VET or university programs. They can study online, find out about local events, simply indulge their passions or interests, or videoconference from their desktop to join workshops or seminars anywhere in the world.

A program called “Smarter Safer Homes for Aged People” uses technologies including sensors and synchronous videoconferencing via the NBN to enhance the quality of life of aged persons – living independently or in a residential aged facility – and their families. The program is a joint venture between UNE and the CSIRO Australian Centre for Broadband Innovation and CSIRO E-Health.

UNE and CSIRO’s ICT Centre are establishing a SmartFarm on a commercial university farm in the New England region of NSW. Using functional, realistic, and accessible sensor and data management technologies, SmartFarm will demonstrate the operational benefits of a national broadband network for Australian farms.  This project will show how NBN-enabled platforms for gathering and interpreting information from crop and pasture sensors and livestock tracking and management tools will increase farm productivity by increasing water (up to 100%), fertiliser (40%) and pasture use (20%) efficiencies and reducing inputs.