My Personal Research Journey

Week 2: My Personal Research Journey

 

The subtopic I chose for my topic for simulation is “How toxic stress affects young children.”  I chose this topic because it can either negatively or positively impact children throughout their lives without early intervention.  Even if children receive intervention later in life, it is very costly and does not have the same effect as early intervention does on young children.  I went to school with children who grew up in poverty and/or abusive parents.  This children did not receive the proper services they needed to be successful in their developments and academically and always seemed to struggle throughout school.  Today, we know from studies done in neuroscience that our genes create the foundation for our brain’s development, but our early experience will decide how the brain get wired (Shonkoff, 2009).  A better understanding of adversities on children’s brain development, such as toxic stress, will help economists and policy-makers make better decisions on the type of quality care, education, and services needed for all young children, especially those in adverse situations.  Any information on toxic stress and its effects on young children would be appreciated in order to provide more information on this subject in order to expand my knowledge on it to be a better advocate for young children would be greatly appreciated.