It is believed that children, regardless of their age, should be responsible for helping their parents, while other people think that they should have the autonomy to enjoy their youth. Being involved in work from childhood can be useful in some respects, but I personally advocate giving children freedom to take pleasure in life during this period.
There are a lot of reasons why people believe that it is important to teach children how to work by helping their parents from an early age. Firstly, being involved in household chores can play a significant role in the development of a child’s view towards life, as childhood is when people shape much of their personality. To clarify, by giving additional responsibilities, such as washing dishes or caring for pets, parents can prepare their children to be hardworking and responsible people in life. As a consequence, a child starts realizing that being lazy and irresponsible are major hindrances to achieving success in any field, and if they work hard enough, they can achieve anything they want. Otherwise, children may grow up as indolent and negligent people who do not want to work and cannot add any contribution to the improvement of the society. For instance, in Japan there are no janitors at schools, so all pupils clean their classrooms themselves. In practical terms, this method has been able to make them diligent and organized people both in studies and life.
Although there are benefits to involving children in work, I believe that granting them freedom is far more beneficial, for childhood offers the best opportunity to enjoy life. As in adulthood, no matter what, people have to work to lead a good life, and additionally, their responsibilities increase by starting a family. In other words, mostly in childhood, people have more chances to pursue their interests and challenge themselves in a lot of fields. In turn, when children entry into adulthood, it will be easier for them to make career plans because childhood exploration allows them to discover their talents and preferences. Furthermore, they will not regret missing out on their childhood. Alternatively, if people do not build friendships by socializing when they are children, then there will be no time to live mostly for themselves due to the responsibilities both in life and family. For instance, according to the results of the survey conducted by UNICEF, almost 70% of adults complained that they had been working since they were children and regret not spending their childhood enjoying life by spending time with friends or joining different clubs regarding their interests.
In conclusion, while some people are of the opinion that children should be made responsible for doing chores at home or work, I strongly support the idea that childhood should not be dominated by work, yet should be a time of freedom, learning and growth.