Respond to: Caring Connections: Mentoring relationships in the lives of urban girls

“Until the basic resources in urban communities are improved—the schools, neighborhoods, health and child care settings, employment opportunities, and so forth—the influences of adult supports or any other supplementary resources on the life trajectories of most youths will remain limited.”

Although the title specifically refers to urban girls, the article actually mentions the benefits adolescents regardless of their sexes will gain when they form a relatively stable relationship with their mentors. And it also emphasizes the advantages of naturally formed bonding between a non-parent adult and an adolescent than an arranged bonding. Which I surely agree with. But what strikes me the most is the description I quoted above. Which reminds me of the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs indicating that without fulfilling the fundamental needs, such as protection, safety and love, students won’t be motivated to learn.

As human beings, without being taken good care of at home, at school and at their neighborhoods physically and mentally, and not foreseeing their future on a better track, how could a person especially he/she is undergoing a series complex and intense process of physical cognitive, and identity development, will be able to truly trust and convince by what his/her mentor intends to convey. Living under such an insufficiency in every sense, I could imagine how hard the mentor has to try to shine light into the adolescent’s life. Especially, if the bonding between them is formed through a third party and they could only meet up once a week or even less. The endeavor put in knowing each other and keeping the bonding could already be very exhausting. Putting our feet in their shoes, gentrifying their living environment should always come first.