Mentoring is a tool to support teenagers. Commentary for LB.ua

In times of war and changes in the childcare system, mentoring is becoming even more relevant. This was stated by Daria Kasyanova, Chairman of the Board of the Ukrainian Child Rights Network and Program Director of the charitable organization SOS Children’s Villages in Ukraine, in a commentary for LB.ua.

“In principle, it is very important to work with teenagers. And there should be various social forms of involving children, especially now in times of war. I think it’s a good time for mentoring, because the number of children in institutions has actually decreased, and there are many teenagers. Out of 23 thousand, 70% are children over 10 years old. They need (I’m not talking about a significant adult) help, knowledge of how to integrate into this life,” Kasyanova said.

According to her, there are many people who sincerely want to help children and change their lives. But they often face barriers in the form of a closed system.

“There are really motivated people who want to change something in the lives of these children. The main thing is that they don’t run into the walls of institutions again,” Daria adds.

Kasyanova also emphasizes that mentoring can be one of the ways to detect violence in orphanages. After all, by communicating with a child, a mentor learns about what really happens behind closed doors.

“Because you come to the institution, and there are these people sitting there: the director, the staff-they are not bad, but they realize that the boarding school has a life of its own. This includes the violence that exists there, as a system of controlling children.

You want to give the child something good, and they tell you about what is happening in the institution. And this, by the way, is why I generally support the idea of any mentoring, because I believe that this is one of the tools for monitoring violence that allows it to be detected. Another thing is whether there are resources to work with this further. There is a very natural desire to protect the child, but you don’t have that opportunity. Nothing happens. Because it starts: children tell lies, don’t fall for it, you know what kind of children they are. Plus, children are often taught to manipulate adults. And if you’re not ready for that, your wings fall off.”

Support for adolescents should not stop at “positive meetings” – systematic work is needed to ensure that every child is not only safe but also has a chance for a decent future.

Read the full article with stories about mentoring on the publication’s website.