Views from a Child and Youth Care Worker perspective on the Movie “Short Term 12
Views from a Child and Youth Care Worker perspective on the Movie “Short Term 12
- Describe some times in the movie where you felt the staff were too quick to discipline, rather than figure out the root of the behavior. (10 marks)
Marcus is turning 18 years old and is supposed to leave the facility. While Grace was informing the rest of the teenagers, one of the officials makes a statement that offends him. The official refers to the rest of the students as “Underprivileged.” Marcus demands to know the meaning of the word as used by the official, but instead, Grace, the leader, turns him down and sends him out of the meeting (08:38 to 10:15). Marcus’ question is meaningful, but Grace thought he is provoking her colleague and decides to send him to his room.
Jack, who is an official at the group home, allows Jayden to go with her without a clear understanding of the actual relationship. The officials argue that the father had made an apology and was ready to take her home. Grace is frightened and storms out with the new lamp from Jack’s office and breaks it as a result (1:06:16 to 1:10:44). The officials in charge have mandated the duty of taking care of the group home and the youths within it. The welfare of these youths includes when they are in the system and their whereabouts outside the home care facility. The case of Jayden indicates that some of the children might experience the same abuse as before when left into the hands of the unconcerned persons.
At the playing ground, Marcus is attacking one of his pears after saying a joke to him. The staff reacts by sending him away from the pitch before understanding the problem at hand (minute 25). There is haste in decision making and aggressiveness in delivering services to the youths. Settling disputes involves two parties, but Marcus is the only individual who is put to answer the entire question regarding the problem.
- Give some examples of how you might ‘stand up’ for the rights of youth voice within this residence. (10 marks)
Creating space and accepting the role of helping one another, especially the youths, has in-depth evidence in this movie. Creating a positive mind and identity for young adults is a subject of many disciplines. Providing care and protection to vulnerable youth involves various steps and advances (Noble-Carr et al. 2014). Standing up for one another is the first approach to helping the teenagers at the homegroup resident.
- Standing up for one another
Most of the youths are facing problems that relate to their previous life. When we join hands together, we can help one another and create a substantial reduction in such challenges. Recent studies show that most of the youths and children from vulnerable backgrounds face difficulties in constructing and developing a sense of their identity (Noble-Carr et al. 2014). That is, creating open harm for accepting most of these children and youths enable them to understand their life beyond the struggle.
- Exercising a critical approach in evaluating and understanding the root cause of the problems affecting the youths at the residents.
When one is facing a specific challenge, exercising the best approach of understanding is very vital. Evaluating the kind person we are dealing with help to formulate the best way to approach them and solve their problem. Understanding the vulnerable youths creates long term solutions to their questions and evaluating how such issues affect their young life.
- Helping one another through their challenges to the success of their recovery
The affected persons are taken through a form of rehabilitation that allows them to recover and fit back to society. Taking care and listening to the problems from the youths is an example of how concerned an individual is towards regenerating their livelihood. Most of the teenagers from vulnerable backgrounds are facing the challenge of love, care, and protection. Providing this is evidence of concern and helps them in learning to live as healthy as other privileged counterparts.
- Helping one another in fighting trauma
Those who are undergoing trauma like Grace, Jayden, and Marcus are taken through a procedural process to help them forget about the past and accept the current situation.
- Do you feel that any of the staff in this residential program made an incorrect judgment about self-disclosure? If so, who and what might you have done instead to ensure that the same result of support for the young person was acquired? (15 marks)
The facility staff’s (Grace) decision to keep her story to herself contradicts her role as the head of the facility. Grace and Mason are fostering care and protection to the children with risk background histories. But she is not ready to narrate her past to Mason and the rest of the children. Grace is holding onto her past relationship with her father that forced her not to trust easily. At 65 minutes of the movie, Mason pleads with her to tell him all the problems so he can help in solving such challenges. She realizes her ability to run away from her trauma through Jayden after sharing her past life with her.
Leading the facility requires an open-ended interaction from the youths and the management. Creating an environment where everyone can share their challenges helps in reducing personal difficulties such as frustrations and trauma. Referring to the staff from the Short Term 12, Grace finds it uneasy about sharing her problems to Mason, her intended workmate, and lover. Sharing one’s problems creates room for staff members to develop a positive mindset to help them serve their subjects. I would participate in helping the children through to their psychological and traumatic challenges related to their past life. At 52 minutes, Grace chooses not to allow Mason to assist in pursuing Jayden when she was fleeing the facility. Such a self-centered mind may drag the group down.
Moreover, I would develop a good rapport with the children to find the ease of access to their behavioral patterns and variations. They are inventing all the certain subjects that surround the youth’s life, including their teachers at school, peers, parents, among other relays the background story of the youth’s life (Brendtro et al., 2012). Learning about the people relating to affected children helps to understand the root cause of the challenge in question.
- Identify three themes each that you see about the narratives we learn about with both Marcus (the resident existing in the program) and Jayden (the new resident). What informed your identification of these themes? (30 marks)
The movie Short Term 12 presents specific issues that relate to the life of youths that are undergoing psychological trauma due to their past experiences. About Jayden and Marcus, the movie unveils strategic themes such as love, care, and protection leading to a traumatic life. The two characters are struggling to gain stability from the previous injury as a result of their parents. Jayden is scared to talk about how his father is treating her while Marcus is relating to his traumatized life as a result of her mother.
Themes Related to Jayden
- “I am not lovable.”
Reflection on his father’s attempt to stock her and all his abusive endeavors, Jayden feels coming to the facility will not bring such love to her. Jayden can talk about her problems through her comical art representing the kind of life she is leading with her father. This kind of technology presents a skillful picture to such children with self-expression issues to offer their thoughts of abuse. Jayden feels she has to struggle alone as no one can understand her. She is not ready to open up to anyone as a result, despite the numerous trials from Grace. She runs away from the facility, terming it a no solution area.
- “nobody will believe me.”
Jayden is finding it uneasy about presenting her challenges to Grace due to her communication challenges. She believes no one will be able to understand her problems and creates the desired solutions. She cannot participate in any general activity with the rest of the youths in the facility. She storms out of the movie hall and closes herself in her room (minute 45).
- “I am damaged goods.”
Jayden feels that his parents had ruined her life, and she no longer worthy of anyone. Jayden is traumatized by the kind of life her father is offering to her. It is through such life that she writes a comic representing the happenings between herself and her father. Trauma occurs as a result duration of time of severe lifestyles such as neglect, violence, death, and other personal experience (Freeman, 2015).
Themes related to Marcus
- “No one loves me.”
Marcus feels that he is in his world alone with no love and affection. His mother had forced him to participate in drug selling that ruined his mode of life. As a child, his missing the love of the parent and struggling in the presence of drugs. He is forced to live a temperamental life. That is the reason why he attempts to commit suicide when someone interfered with his fish bucket (minute 72).
- “No one cares about me.”
Marcus is suffering from a lack of care and protection from all his young and teen life. His only mother, who is responsible for this theme, forces him to become a drug addict. Through his song, he relates to how his mother carelessly forced him to sell drugs. He was denied a chance to play with other kids and to learn like his fellow age mates. Marcus feels like his whole life is in the past as a result of the form of parental care. He can’t live a healthy life as the rest of his teens (minute 30).
- “No one understands me.”
Despite the staff playing their role of taking care of the youths, they fail to understand some of them like Marcus. One of the inmates in the homecare facility ridicule Marcus, he reacts by beating the fellow. Grace is seeing responding by sending him away from the pitch without understanding the source of the problem (minute 27). Either the idea of him being sent home after turning 18 is a result of failure to follow him and his whole life. The facility management does not understand the kind of relationship between Marcus and the mother and how this will impact on him after the release. Grace finds some drugs from him and threatens to arrest him without understanding the reason for accessing such drugs (minute 27).
5(a). What did Grace do to her self-care? If you were another youth worker in this residence, what advice might you give her about self-care? (15 marks)
Grace plays a significant role in protecting herself from a replica of what happens between herself and her father. Her love is ruined by her father, who allegedly raped. That trauma forces her not to trust Mason very easily. She plans to abort the child without informing her coworker, Mason, who is in love with her. Either way, the best advice that Grace deserves involves her decision and traumatic life. Sharing is an enormous gift of relieving the pain of trauma and accepting change to live freely with others. Therefore, she ought to take and forget the past by addressing her problems to Mason or any other close associate.
5(b).
Most importantly, speak about how you are presently dealing with your self-care during these unusual, difficult times. (20 marks)
The covid-19 comes with traumatic problems leading to panic, anxiety stress, fear, and loneliness, among other related feelings. As a result, providing self-care and protection is vital for the sustainability of the pandemic. The following are some of the best self-care measures to consider during this pandemic period:
- Establish a good food supply
Food is the priority when handling a personal life. One requires having a ready food staff collection to help in minimizing the social interaction from outside their homes. Either way, if the environment is not so contagious, one would mind picking food from the nearby restaurant in for of taking away.
- Organizing of the place of self-care
Avoiding congested areas is a form of self-care organization. Practicing hygiene is a form of personal protection from the disease. Categorically, one can decide on who to meet and their conditions. Enhancing and improving the mode of communication to be up-to-date with the current situation.
- Work out and exercise
Rigorous and continuous body exercise keeps one fit to fight any disease that may arise. Keeping fit reduces the risk of severe infection in case you get in contact with the disease. Personal care requires an individual to keep the body active and to maintain the functional system of the body.
References
Brendtro, L. K., Mitchell, M. L., Freado, M. D., & du Toit, L. (2012). The development audit: From deficits to strengths. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 21(1), 7.
Freeman, J. (2015). Trauma and Relational Care: Integrating an Awareness of Trauma Into The Characteristics Of Relational Child And Youth Care. Child and Youth Care Work, 120.
Noble-Carr, D., Barker, J., McArthur, M., & Woodman, E. (2014). Improving practice: The importance of connections in establishing positive identity and meaning in the lives of vulnerable young people. Children and Youth Services Review, 47, 389-396.
Short Term 12 (n.a.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8T351hCl6Y#action=share