So, the government have voted to raise the tuition fees, let’s not act shocked, we already knew it was inevitable and all protests and lobbying were held in vain. I mean come on, let’s not kid ourselves, look how many thousands or people marched in protest against the Iraq war. We all know what happened then. In fact, all those who protested will know what the poor gentlemen who sit outside Parliament every day protesting about various causes feel like by now.
So, the government have voted to raise the tuition fees, let’s not act shocked, we already knew it was inevitable and all protests and lobbying were held in vain. I mean come on, let’s not kid ourselves, look how many thousands or people marched in protest against the Iraq war. We all know what happened then. In fact, all those who protested will know what the poor gentlemen who sit outside Parliament every day protesting about various causes feel like by now. X-factor, same thing…we HOPE they will make the sensible decision but, in the end, all it comes down to is profit. Sir Alan Sugar said it in the last episode of ‘The Apprentice’ – “You understand, all that matters is making a profit? Ticket sales and profit.” This just begs the question: What now? Many young people will feel like their world has been shattered, just seeing pictures of a mother with her baby walking a pram laden with the words ‘my mum won’t be able to pay my uni fees’, is a testament to how far the effects of this vote reaches. So what now? Young people, need answers now, more than ever. No university for many, no jobs for any; it is double jeopardy. The only solution is alternatives – finding different routes to a degree (longer process, limited options), applying for scholarship in a university 9,000 miles away (fat chance) or creating their OWN jobs (now you’re talking!). It is amazing how many ideas young people have but are unable to implement them, either due to lack of information, lack of confidence or both. This is where the guidance of adults comes in, adults who have enterprising thought and live in a world of progressive thought and put it into positive action. Now is the time of enterprise and entrepeneurism, why? Because this generation has resources at its disposal that previous generations did not have. Technology, ability to grasp and understand concepts at a quicker pace, unlimited access to information and the ability to reach out to any part of the world in the comfort of their homes. Amazing right? Young people are all set then, hey? Well… The only problem that stops young people taking advantage of these things is the restrictive culture in which they are born, the culture that dictates to them that in order to be successful, they must spend 16 years in school, 2-3 years in college and then a further 3 years in university. So how can they then be expected to show enterprising thought? Most times when I mention to a young person that they can start their own business they look at me as if I was fresh out of a mental institution. Mostly because it seems contrary to the system they are brought up in. Also, because they are afraid to step out of the comfort zones that the educational system conditions them into. Being free of restrictions is every young person’s dream but very few actually go after it. Some young people have started their own businesses but they not not necessarily be sustainable, (fashion labels, music, party promotion, events planning), which means there is room for their minds to be truly stretched. I don’t think that the fee rise is the end of the road, maybe that is because I have not been in education since college, maybe it is because I was home-taught before that, but for me the bottom line is that this vote, as negative as it is, has also presented us with a silver-lining: Freedom from the system, an opportunity to explore a new world, a world that our minds were closed off to in the confines of the educational system. Over time, the government will have to accept entrepeneurism as a career choice in its search for solutions, if any, because the enterprises and entrepeneurs will see the opportunities presented by this begin to take on young people and reinvent the way we think about employment. How we move on from this is SOLELY up to us, not the government we can either choose to keep voicing our anger and discontent or we can channel that anger into solutions and develop something for ourselves.
I’ve been occasionally blogging here for a short while but who I am and what I have achieved I have never really explained, even in the ‘About Me’ section of this blog.
So, I am going to take a few moments, so sit right there and I’ll tell you the story of who I am and what I have achieved.
My name is Sabian Muhammad. I am a 22 year old award-winning youth advocate, public speaker, presenter, social entrepeneur, Olympic Youth Panelist, school worker and soon-to-be author
That’s the easy explanation anyone can do that, but there is more.
I have worked with young people for the last 7 years, in schools, colleges and youth clubs around the country. My work, at first, was primarily with young people working as a stop-gap between adults in their schools and youth clubs helping them to understand each other. I have always been passionate about helping adults understand the young and find ways to communicate with them. I started in my local youth club at 15 years old helping out with organising activities for young people. I was there for 5 years as a volunteer before I moved on. In the years I was there I had a variety of jobs elsewhere including the role of play worker in a primary school.
But you don’t really need to know all this, you want to know where the light switch moment is, at what point did I begin to start making real waves, and that occurred on 10th July 2009 when I spoke in the House Of Lords.
On the back of a national campaign backed by O2 called ‘Why Do’, and seeing the numerous issues brought up by parents inspired the creation of this book.
In today’s society we have a vast number of problems to face, the apparent breakdown of family and family values does not help the situation.
The Why Do Q&A website allows adults to ask young people why they do the things they do and after close observation, I noticed there is a huge gap, even a disconnection between parents and children. Things that should be basic for parents to understand have become complicated, clouded problems that further wedge the communications between adults and young people.
I have created this book, ideally to help reconnect adults to their children and what they may be going through. What you get out of this book is very much down to you remembering what it was like to be a child and putting yourself in the shoes of your child or if you do not have a child, in the shoes of the children you may make assumptions about everyday.
So, Why Do parents need a book like this?
On evidence of the questions adults are asking young people on the ‘Why Do?’ website, it would seem that many parents have the same problems dealing with, understanding or communicating with their children, from very young ages.
This doesn’t shine a good light on the depth of the generation gap and points to a possibly irreversible problem, and I believe if parents have a very short and simple resource they can refer to as a guide, they may have a better chance increasing relations with the young people in their lives.
Look out for the release of Part 1 soon!
This is an excerpt from my upcoming short book “Why Do for Parents” which is being developed on the back of my ‘WhyDo’ campaign. It is being designed to help adults understand what their children go through in different areas of life and how it affects what they do - please give any feedback! Enjoy!
In a society where being “perfect” is praised and imperfect despised, raising disabled children was never going to be easy. It is even harder for the disabled child.
Being hearing impaired myself, I have experienced this first-hand; at times it is a feeling of isolation, of frustration at not having the same faculties as everyone else, even a sense of injustice. How we may be perceived by others always is a problem for a disabled child, the fear of reprimand and rejection causes them to retreat into solitude, their own personal world where they can feel safe being themselves.
Every week I will collate the 5 most pressing issues adults have asked on Whydo.co.uk.
Get your questions in at www.whydo.co.uk!
1. Communities
2. Politics
3. Music
4. Family
5. Education
Visit www.WhyDo.co.uk and ask a question now!
Are these questions important to you? Would you like to see these questions answered?
Lack of interest. - That is the simple answer, the easy answer.
But if we take it deeper and look at why this is the case then maybe we can pinpoint the missing links.
When I was growing up I was taught to love learning, I was encouraged to be curious, to ask questions to explore my environment.
Although I was taught at home, I always saw every morning as an opportunity to learn something new, I loved learning.
In today’s society, I don’t get the impression that young people enjoy learning, when I work in schools I don’t get the feeling that I am in an environment that fosters curiosity. Curiosity is part of the innocence of youth, every child needs to understand their environment and learning is an important part of that.
…. is it becoz they are purely innocent about sex, or is it “the trend” to have babies at 15/16 to make them appear cool or what?
It most definitely isn’t a trend. It is simply innocence. Young people do not truly know about sex, they experiment with it and often times they do not use protection.
They trust the person they have sex with and feel use of a condom isn’t necessary. Other times they just cannot be bothered to use a condom.
Personally, I feel that the sex education in the UK is not adequate enough. Many in the system claim that if young people are taught earlier in life about sex they will only be encouraged to go out and try it as a result. This is not necessarily true. In the UK we treat so many things as taboo, and sex is one of those things. We only need look at the example of The Netherlands who teach their children about sex at an early age and as a result they have one of the lowest levels of teenage pregnancy and STIs in Europe.
Young people need to be taught these things early so that they understand the responsibility that comes with having sex, they do not understand emotional consequences or the biological effects, well enough to make informed decisions.
