ad info

 
CNN.comTranscripts
 
Editions | myCNN | Video | Audio | Headline News Brief | Feedback  

 

  Search
 
 

 

TOP STORIES

Bush signs order opening 'faith-based' charity office for business

Rescues continue 4 days after devastating India earthquake

DaimlerChrysler employees join rapidly swelling ranks of laid-off U.S. workers

Disney's GO.com is a goner

(MORE)

MARKETS
4:30pm ET, 4/16
144.70
8257.60
3.71
1394.72
10.90
879.91
 


WORLD

U.S.

POLITICS

LAW

TECHNOLOGY

ENTERTAINMENT

 
TRAVEL

ARTS & STYLE



(MORE HEADLINES)
 
CNN Websites
Networks image


Morning News

White House Hosts Conference on Challenges of Raising Teenagers; Parents Seek Flexibility at Work to Juggle Tasks at Home

Aired May 2, 2000 - 10:01 a.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The mere words may strike fear into the heart of even the most confident parent: the teenage years. It's a time when your child confronts adult issues and you are relegated to the sidelines. Or are you?

CNN's Eileen O'Connor at the White House this morning for a conference on the parenting of teenagers, and it's being led by the first lady, who knows the issues first-hand.

Eileen, good morning.

EILEEN O'CONNOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.

Well, with the rise in violence in the schools and some of these school shootings, although there are, overall, less violence in today's schools, there's a lot more attention focused on them. So the White House wanted to bring together some experts from school communities, doctors, counselors and parents to talk about the problems they're facing in raising today's teenagers.

And many parents surveyed say that they believe their children are growing up in environments far more different than the ones they faced. There are more mothers working, new technologies and new media to deal with. And while parents say that they believe they're spending enough time with their teens, it's surprising, though, that teens say they're three time mores likely to say they don't believe that parents are spending enough time.

Now, the experts say that the more connected teens feel to their parents, the better they actually will do at school and socially.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELLEN GALINSKY, FAMILIES AND WORK INSTITUTE: Our studies find that parents spend less time with kids the older that they get, and yet it's -- kids are really wanting more time. But they don't want time for, say -- I mean, they don't want time where you're yelling at them, fussing at them, being nasty with them, you know, they want time where you're really paying attention to them, responding to them. They want time just to hang out.

(END VIDEO CLIP) O'CONNOR: Now, a new study that was done by the YMCA, a survey of teenagers aged 12 to 15, show that while 61 percent of their parents say that they believe they are discussing values, beliefs enough with their teens, 41 percent of the teens say that their parents don't actually discuss these issues enough.

But the good news, the White House says, is that 78 percent of teenagers say that, in times of trouble, it is their parents that they are most likely to turn to.

So, the White House today looking for strategies to enable parents to spend more time with their children -- Bill.

HEMMER: Eileen, what are the experts saying? Any practical solutions out there?

O'CONNOR: Well, one of the things they're looking at are some of the school-based and community-based solutions. One program they're looking at is in Dallas at the YMCA. The head of that YMCA has organized programs specifically designed to lure teenagers into the YMCA, and also to bring their parents with them to workout together.

And another group that they're going to focus in on is really corporate America. What they'd like to do is see corporate America allow parents during the teenage years -- not just for maternity leave -- but during the teenage years to take time off and spend that time with their children; also, perhaps, to harness new technologies enabling parents to work online from home later in the afternoon, which they say would enable parents to spend dinner time with their teens.

You know, Bill, one survey shows that if parents spend just spend a family meal with their teenagers, their teenagers actually do better on test scores -- Bill.

HEMMER: That's a lot of green beans. Eileen O'Connor, thank you.

Now to Daryn.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Among parents of teenagers, the most longed-for luxury may be flexibility, a lot of working parents trying to juggle the demands of their jobs with the challenges of shepherding their children into adulthood.

Our parenting correspondent, Pat Etheridge, takes a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAT ETHERIDGE, CNN PARENTING CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When it's time for 17-year-old Brian (ph) Fisher to play ball, you'll find his mother on the sidelines. She never misses a game.

MARCIA FISHER, MOTHER: He can look up and see that I'm sitting in the stands, you know, cheering him on. I think it means a lot to him. ETHERIDGE: How does a single mother with a full-time job pull that off? Marcia's company offers an array of flexible work options. She works three days in the office, two days at home, and she can arrange her hours around family needs.

M. FISHER: Just because they're older and can make their own breakfast and lunch and drive a car, I think it's still important that a parent is involved.

ETHERIDGE: Like many parents, Marcia has discovered that having a teenager means that being there is more important than ever.

ELLEN GALINSKY, PRESIDENT, FAMILIES AND WORK INSTITUTE.: There are a number of studies that show that there are a series of societal problems that can happen between the time that school is out and parents get home.

ETHERIDGE: Ellen Galinsky is president of the Families and Work Institute.

GALINSKY: The advice to parents that I always give is think about: Will you regret this decision in five years? And if you will regret it, then change.

ETHERIDGE: Corporate America is waking up to this new notion of "adolescent leave" and that it can be as crucial as maternity leave.

M. FISHER: The stress level is not there.

ETHERIDGE: Cigna HealthCare, where Marcia has worked for the past 12 years, estimates as many as one-fourth of its employees opt for flexible work schedules.

SUSAN THOMAS, CIGNA CORPORATION: And I think what really has given us the impetus is the fact that we discovered that this really helps not only the employees, but it helps the business. Turnover is extremely low. The employee will put out more than 100 percent because the employee feels like, hey, look what you're giving them.

ETHERIDGE: Brian says things go better for him on the field when he knows his mother is watching.

BRIAN FISHER, TEENAGER: I always know that somebody's watching me and their supporting me, so that makes me feel better as a person.

ETHERIDGE: And mom says times like this are bittersweet. Her son is on his way and she wants to look back with no regrets.

Pat Etheridge, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com

 Search   


Back to the top  © 2001 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.