Positive Parenting

By Dickson Tumuramye Our children are ready to go back to school next week. Others are reporting this week. It's mostly the final term of the year and a promotional term. Every term may come with its own fears and anxiety. As a parent, you need to sit with children, check their concerns, and give counsel at the beginning of the term. We have candidates doing their final exams at any level of their academic journey. Soon they will start their vacation. Such counsel speaks to their mental well-being. Whether a child is a candidate or not, they are all expected to excel in order for them to go on to another class/level. This requires them to work hard, concentrate and stay focused. Please remind your child that this term is so short and it calls for serious revision and concentration.  If the performance was not to your expectations the last term, give an encouraging talk that inspires a child’s confidence and hopes that "yes, I can make it.” Don’t remind a child how dull s/he is...

By Dickson Tumuramye Most universities are calling for applications and I know our children are applying to different universities so as to get where they can be admitted as the new academic year will start soon (August/September). However, the biggest challenge we still have in the Ugandan education system is our children aiming to get a qualification or a paper after graduation than doing what one wants to be in the future.    It is evident that most learners apply in different places for courses that may not necessarily be in line with their dream career. Such a thing didn’t just start today but has been a common trend for many.   Choosing the right career can be more difficult than you may think. However, if your child has a defined career direction, it helps them plan and prepare accordingly and both of you can support each other to harness your child’s dream.   During my school days, I had many dreams but they kept changing as I progressed in my studies....

By Dickson Tumuramye Maintaining a good work-life balance and creating time for your loved ones sometimes may be the hardest, especially where you have very tight schedules with competitive tasks.  Also, parenting comes with a lot of challenging responsibilities yet our desire is to make it our primary role. It is worse when the two of you work and don’t get home early enough. At some point, you plan your time but other demands crop in that dictate much attention. Amid all such circumstances and in your busy schedule, taking time with your family; wife, children, parents, and siblings, should remain your number one priority.  Even when you plan and other issues disrupt your schedule, be flexible and plan for another time. When it comes to parenting, it’s intentional and, therefore, you have to choose and be deliberate to create time for them. There are other people who are not yet parents or married. They too have families. They are also busy and have no time for th...

By Dickson Tumuramye The last few months have been awash with media video clips and a lot of things that our school-going children are doing at school that has left the public in shock. The outstanding ones were the bus incident involving students of one of the secondary schools, a student in another school proposing in front of schoolmates, the kids who were found in Entebbe trying to escape for work, and very young kids dancing together, one trying to commit suicide because he was told to shave his hair, to mention but a few. We also read a story involving 13 students in lesbianism in a girls’ school and many other scandals in most schools. These could be among the very few incidences that we learned from the media, but many more that don’t get to be seen or read in the media are there. I would not want to rush into judging  the  schools or parents for failing to do their part in raising a generation that is sexually and morally pure. You cannot sit back and think th...

By Dickson Tumuramye Conflicts are prone to happening everywhere and at any time in life. You may never intend to be part of it or an initiator, but they still come and you face them. A conflict is a serious disagreement or argument, typically a protracted one. Conflict management is any process of ending a conflict among disagreeing parties or individuals. As we parent our children, chances are that not all of them will get along with each other, even among adults. Age may not matter when a conflict may arise. Some conflicts are part of their development into adulthood.  Many times, siblings are supposed to be at least friends since they share the same blood and suckle the same breasts. These are mostly people that have been raised together. They are expected to be a bit closer to one another. But some of them fail to be compatible with each other along the way. It could result from individual temperaments, concerns with fairness, poor parenting skills, failure to understand each ...

By Dickson Tumuramye Public speaking is a vital skill that everyone should master. In this digital generation, you can’t afford to raise a child who can’t ably express him/herself. Gone are the days when such skills were not important. But these days with a lot of exposure, social media engagements, and virtual conferences, a generation where schools no longer select leaders but children campaign even to be a class monitors, schools and churches have a lot of activities that involve them, among others, your child/ren need to be on top of the game. Public speaking is not only a challenge for children but also for adults. There are some old people that even giving a prayer in a small meeting is a hassle. Public speaking promotes skills like communication, presentation, self-confidence, leadership, self-esteem, negotiation, networking, and interpersonal and reduces the chances of your child being bullied by other children/adults. It has now become a career for some people and th...

By Dickson Tumuramye Every marriage prospers well when a couple lives together without anything separating them at any moment. But certain circumstances may be beyond their control and they end up staying apart for some time. The common reason for this may be a far way job, career advancement, and health issues, among others. Whatever the reason for it, it leaves one feeling lonely and physically missing the partner. It can be challenging if a couple is not in touch. Out of this, some may end up in infidelity, as we have heard about such circumstances happening. But if well managed, the marriage relationship may remain flourishing. One of my friends experiencing it told me that long-distance  marriages are indeed a very great challenge for both  spous es. This creates a gap that may never be easy to fill. It affects your relationship and that of the children if you have any.  She added that with e ach passing day; the gap grows bigger.  It also affects  a great ...