Argumentative Essay On Foster Care

“About two-thirds of children admitted to public care have experienced abuse and neglect, and many have potentially been exposed to domestic violence, parental mental illness and substance abuse” (Dregan and Gulliford). These children are being placed into foster care so that they can get away from home abuse, not so they can move closer towards it. The foster children’s varied outcomes of what their adult lives are is because of the different experiences they grew up with in their foster homes. The one-third of those other foster children usually has a better outcome in adult life than the other two-thirds, which is a big problem considering the high percentage of children being abused in their foster homes. Although, the foster care

The Foster Care System with the kids who are in it is a massive social issue that America is facing today. There are more than 640,000 foster children in the United States every year. There are 23,000 foster children living in group homes at one time. There are 32,000 who live in institutions, and twenty-seven states do not meet federal abuse and neglect standards. (Attention) Personally, I am a foster sister, because my family currently fosters. Therefore, we see the issues and needs of fostering, daily. (Rapport and Credibility) This speech will discuss the importance of the nature of foster care, the catastrophic problems of foster care, and the proposed solution for the foster care system in America. (Preview)

Benefits of the foster care system include: keeping children out of abusive homes; providing stability; and cultivating secure attachments. In general, proponents of the foster care system believe it plays an essential role in providing a safe and stable environment for maltreated, neglected, and abused children (Lockwood, Friedman, & Christian, 2015). In fact, “advocates suggest that family situations that necessitate the use of the foster care system are often very complex and therefore require patience and time. They emphasize that the temporary nature of foster care is the best solution while state agencies work to achieve family reunification or otherwise resolve the family crisis” (Geraldine & Wagner, para 4, 2015).

Other health problems arise when the trauma from past experiences such as abuse or violence in the home cause long term effects in the children. The needs of children in foster care are multifaceted and the problems are exacerbated when the resources in the community are scarce and when the service system is fragmented (Halfon, Berkowitz, & Klee, 1993). Due to the complexity of their problems and the degree of vulnerability, a well-trained and

The author, Nina Biehal, tells of the treatment in foster care and the need for correction in her article, "Maltreatment in Foster Care: A review of the evidence." The author gives many facts about how the government needs to change the level of care provided for the children. This article is more of a constant reminder of how much still needs to change and the level of care offered to children of abuse today. Unlike the article by authors Kristen Turney and Christopher Wilderman, which bases their article on the number of children in foster care receiving mental health care, Biehal gives evidence to support the problems that result from being in foster care. My essay can use this article to paint a picture of the number of children in detrimental conditions and how foster care developed problems with their system to support my argument.

For many years, foster care has been a difficult subject throughout our society. When the idea of foster care comes to mind, many immediately think of screaming children, distressed parenting and uphill battles. Before foster care existed in the United States, orphaned children were sent to orphanages. While these institutions were often the best option available to children with nowhere else to go, they often lacked the necessary staff, structure and resources to adequately care for all of the children in need. As a result, some orphanages were overcrowded, and children lived in poor conditions. Some children even died due to the lack of sufficient care (Adoptions, 2017). In order to give children better living situations, the United

Since the 1970’s, many debates and arguments have formed over the problems in the Florida foster care system. Some of the arguments were made as to whether different races should become foster families or whether or not is was suitable for gay couples to foster children. Another issue that arose was the children with special needs or older children that people didn’t want. As the foster system grew, it began to experience setbacks. There were now more children needing homes than available homes. The foster care system became full of problems. Foster parents started to complain about not having an adequate support system. The children were not receiving the medical treatments they needed. And foster children were staying in the system so long that some were aging out. Those that age out a were not receiving any support or training to cope with adult life. There was also a shortage in funding. In addition, there had become an alarming number of child abuse and neglect cases within the foster families. Although some aspects of foster care have improved, some changes still need to be made.

Each year 542,000 children nationwide live temporarily with foster parents, while their own parents struggle to overcome an addiction to alcohol, drugs, illness, financial hardship or other difficulties (Mennen, Brensilver, & Trickett, 2010.) The maltreatment they experienced at home, the shock of being separated from their birth parents, and the uncertainty they face as they enter the foster care system leave many children feeling abandoned or lost. Children have many needs, but while in foster care these needs are not always met. A supportive family environment is created for those children whose parents are not able to take the

60 percent of kids who age out of foster care are dead, homeless, or in jail within a year. There needs to be more focus on the foster care system and child homelessness. Children should not be living on the streets, they need a home and a loving family so that they can grow up and live a stable, independent life.

I do not generally do a lot of arguing or debating unless it is with my brother, which in that case, I argue a lot. Even then, I do not argue unless I know that I am correct or that it is something that I am really passionate about. One thing that I am passionate about though is the foster care system and what happens to it. The foster care system has been going through a big debate on whether or not it should be completely eliminated and replaced or if it needs a strong reform. The side of the argument that I would like to be on is the side where people are fighting for reform in the system. Foster care is one of the many things that is broken in this world, but that does not mean that it cannot be fixed.

More than two-hundred and fifty thousand children enter the foster care system each year, making it extremely difficult to find the right caregiver for each child. There are so may effects on the child that last their entire lifetime, making it difficult for them to trust others. Not being able to trust their peers, they often find it hard to make friends and long-term relationships last. Fortunately, there are many results that can improve everyone’s position in placing the child. Foster care agencies repeatedly create destructive situations due to the selected caregiver, as well as the plethora of glitches that are created. Due to the unacceptable and inappropriate selection of foster parents, the child frequently experiences difficulties and disadvantages later on. Most children are placed into foster care because of mistreatment and experience the same treatment in their foster homes. Unfortunately, a lot of times the foster parent will take their anger out on their foster child, making a wide array of short-term and long-term complications for the child.

One of this disadvantages of foster care, is there is an instability in the system. At times social workers are unaware that the placement of the child was ruled in court for the return of the child to their parents. Another disadvantage is that the transitory environment of the foster placements has been a problematic component in the child welfare system (Crosson-Tower, 2014, p. 316). Some children already experience attachment issues prior to removal from their home. These issues will further advance and creating more problems with the child. Since foster care is a temporary environment for the child, children may adjust to this temporary placement only to be removed and either return home or be placed with another temporary family. These transitions effect the child’s behaviors and emotions. The goal is to provide the child permanency. However, the foster care system is not meant to

Everywhere across the world, more and more children are being placed into foster care or a welfare type system. Foster care can benefit children or harm them; the effects of foster care differ for every individual. These types of systems often have a major effect on young children’s physiological state. Children entering in foster care are often malnourished and have untreated health problems. A high percentage of children who are placed in these types of systems have mental health, physical health, and/or developmental issue which often originates while the individuals are still in the custody of the biological parents. Children in foster care should be provided with a healthy and nurturing environment which often provides positive long term results. The age of children in a foster care varies across the world, but it is often seen that majority of these children are young (George para. 1). There are more young children in the system because younger children require more adequate care than older children that are already in the system. Placing these children in welfare systems is supposed to be a healing process for them. Although this is supposed to be a healing process, statistics say these children have a negative experience while being in these systems, but this is not always the case. A number of children in foster care fall sucker to continuous neglect and recurrent abuse with the lack of nurturing and an unstable environment. These same children often have unmet

Maximizing the accessibility of foster care sectors would allow for substantial attention to more foster care children, leading to better mental health in an average foster care child. Furthermore, local institutions could be allowed more flexibility in terms of federal funding usage, which could result in a more centralized focus on providing the best outcomes for children involved in foster care. Changes in current policies, such as the aforementioned ASFA, would additionally aid in lessening the unclarity in cases and allow for a greater focus on the well-being of children. Removing children from unfit environments must be done at a faster rate and within maximum reasoning. Children are the future, and we need to attempt to help the future be the best it can

children spent time in U.S foster care. The stigma of the foster care system and the current condition it is in, is