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Ask for help > Dear collegues!!!
Dear collegues!!!
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olga1977
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Dear collegues!!!
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Do you know where to find the anwer on the following topic "In European countries children after they are 18, are supposed to live on their own. What�s your oppinion? What can you say for and against living with your parents"
Thank you in advance!!! |
30 Oct 2008
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jujuka
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Hi Olga,
It seems to be a very tough question and I don�t think we can give a clear yes-no answer. It is rather a topic for debate. You may try www.debatabase.org which is great resource for lots of different debate topics.
Anyway, I don�t think young adults (aged 18) are mature enough to start living on their own: most of them don�t even have qualifications, they just leave sec school, and they do need parental or other help to get further education, somewhere to live, etc. Of course this is just my personal opinion based on real experience (my son is also a young adult (19) and has no sense of responsibility  , takes whatever he wants and takes it for granted that he gets everything and doesn�t feel the need of giving something in return. You may say that it is my mistake but unfortunately all the young adults I know (many of my students) think and behave in the same way. They are adults only in a physical sense but they are still adolescent in their way of thinking, i.e. they are adultolescents.
Adultolescence is a global phenomenon and Europe is no exception to this . Here is a link to an interesting article which deals with the problem: http://money.cnn.com/2006/12/29/magazines/moneymag/boomerangkids.moneymag/index.htm.
and another one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boomerang_Generation
Hoping you can find something useful.
Judit
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30 Oct 2008
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emstacks
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Hi
well i moved out of home at 18 - and became financially independent at that time as well ... i was at uni and now 4 years on could not imagine living at home.
I think it depends on the person - i was always independent so me moving out and living on my own was not that big of a step than it may have been for some of my peers. I do have friends that are still living at home and i know people who are 28-30 still living at home and again it depends on the situation.
There are of course pros and cons:
pros for moving out are increased freedom, a sense of responsibility however this can be a con as well depending upon how a person deals with responsibility .... i have to admit the concept of living at home and having washing, cooking and cleaning done for me sounds like a holiday however i know it is a reality for some people. But i would never give up my freedom and independence to move back home unless i had no other choice.
Hope this insight helps :)
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30 Oct 2008
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Vickiii
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Hi Olga,
I also left home at 18. I was from a small town so had to move away to go to university. I lived in the hostels for the first year (1000, eighteen year olds all living together with about 20 adults providing supervision).
It was an amazing experience - most of the people i know managed to pass their studies - although here was a lot of irresponsible activity going on - it was incredible fun.
Most people supported themselves through loans but many had parental help.
I think it is quite normal to leave home at 18 but continue to get some financial support and a huge amount of emotional support from parents. I could not imagine remaining at home past 20 years of age!
Regards
Vicki |
30 Oct 2008
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Zora
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Hi, I grew up partly in Spain and partly in Canada.. I was a bit of a globe trotter for a while and the truth is that kids in some parts of Europe don�t have the mentality that many English speaking countries do. For example, it is practically unheard of that a student aged 16 has a job after school and works on the weekend. Yet, in Canada this is quite normal...
Having a job and responsiblities at such a young age gives kids a sense of pride in having achieved things for themselves as well as, teaching them that money isn�t that easy to come by thus giving them a maturity that most kids in certain parts of the world may not have. For example, it is quite popular in Spain for parents just to hand out money for whatever the kids might want. Whereas in Canada, a lot of teenagers are told that they must "earn" their money... whether it be doing chores at home or getting a job after school.
In other words, being 18 in Canada and moving out is quite normal because the maturity level is there whereas in Europe 18 yr olds are still children in some respects.
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30 Oct 2008
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ichacantero
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Hi Olga  !!
I live in a very conservative, close-minded country, where people can be judged horribly because they move out at a young age. In fact, when I wanted to move out at 21, it was like if I had just said that a was going to go to the evil side, or something like that... jaajaja. It was so strange for me not to have the support I wished for, especially after having studied in a very open-minded country, Denmark, the total opposite of mine. I still decided to go live on my own, against my families will. I think it turned out to be better for me. I learned how to take care of myself, and became independent. I hope my experience is useful for your debate 
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30 Oct 2008
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manuelanunes3
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Hi!
In my country young people tend to stay at home longer than they should and in most cases (and this is more common nowadays) they tend to leave home at the age of 30!!!!
I think it is because our country has been facing more difficulties and for this reason the idea of having an independent life in Portugal is almost a dream.
If you try to leave home here, at the age of 18, and try to be independent and get a job, your income will be to pay a rent, you won�t have enough to eat or dress or whatever!
Manuela |
30 Oct 2008
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frenchfrog
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Zora, things are not that simple!!
I totally agree with you about "Having a job and responsiblities at such a young age gives kids a sense of pride in having achieved things for themselves" but the thing is, it is almost against the law for an employer to hire a person under 18 in France (the rules and regulations are quite strict). But I am sure many of my students would prefer working to going to school!!!
I am not that sure about your last sentence ("in Europe 18 yr olds are still children in some respects"). I would not say they are considered as children, but there is no denying that they are less independent than American, Canadian and British teenagers.
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30 Oct 2008
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Zora
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Yes, frenchfrog... it might be "almost against the law"... but that still doesn�t stop children from cleaning, cooking or helping out around the house ... or cutting the neighbours lawns or helping look after kids after school, or tutoring others that might need the help for some extra cash.
Those things, tend to be very common among teenagers in North America. For example by the time I was nine, I could bake a cake by myself and had won a few bake offs. My cousins and a few of their bestfriends, at the age of eighteen, travelled around the world, working there way through countries all over the world... That is the type of maturity that I am talking about, it�s a life skills thing and how people are taught to deal with simple situations like going grocery shopping, paying bills, talking to a bank manager, going for a job interview, etc...
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30 Oct 2008
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