How a child’s environment affects their future

Children are influenced and affected by every aspect of their environments. From their parents at home, their teachers at school, the neighborhoods they live in and the friends they play with, their surroundings play a large part of influencing the people they will become and how they will act in adulthood. Time and time again there is a large discrepancy over children who grow up in underprivileged neighborhoods and those who are raised in affluence and the careers they pursue, the level of education they finish and their sentiments toward others. It is hard to believe that environment does not play a part on the lives of children because so much evidence supports the reality that a child’s future depends much upon the environments they are exposed to as children. The environment a child is brought up in can have a direct influence on the future of their careers and the people they will become.
One’s surroundings can play a large part on the careers they will eventually pursue. Children who are raised with affluent parents who prioritize education and personal achievement are more apt to be successful, attend university, and pursue careers with financially stability. An upper-class socioeconomic background will also breed a foundation that will allow a child to engage in extracurricular activities that promote mental expansion and physical fitness. Children from better socioeconomic backgrounds have a higher rate of attending higher education and pursuing more advanced degrees. This will in turn lead to their seeking careers that pay higher and promote career advancement. In this way, child’s environment can play a significant role in determining the educational paths and careers they chose as adults.
In contrast children who grow up in lower-class neighborhoods and attend inner-city schools are not as likely to pursue their education past high school and are more likely to become involved in gang-related activities and other unlawful actions. Children raise in socioeconomic disadvantaged areas find the path to higher education more difficult and are more likely to not spend time and invest money in their education, taking jobs that require only high school skills and staying with them instead of pursuing career advancing opportunities.
A child’s environment can also determine the kind of person they will become. Children who are raised in neighborhoods of heightened conflict among race and class will grow up with an increased likelihood of holding sentiments of hate, prejudice and discrimination. On the other hand, children who grow up in safe neighborhoods cultivate feelings of equality and are more likely to feel understanding and compassion.

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