Model Answer:
Whether young school children should participate in various kinds of paid works or not has sparked heated debates in many nations. Some argue that engaging in paid work in early age is an efficient way of gaining valuable life experience; however, I believe it is harmful to put young students in paid works in any circumstances.

To begin with, children are not physically mature enough to take on paid jobs. A substantial of medical evidence has suggested that human body development requires a certain period of years to reach its maturity to be fully participated in heavy physical activities. When children are placed in paid work roles, they are expected to perform and complete some tasks that involve adequate body strengths and energy that are only appropriate for adults rather than children. Thus, it could be physically harmful to encourage children to work for paid jobs.

Apart from that, social scientists believe that the immaturity of children’s mental development could be a determinant factor that stops children from having a satisfactory experience in paid roles. They further suggest that working environment and relationships among colleagues are too complicated to be understood by young children. Thus, children may experience frustrations and anxiety when they are interacting with their adult colleagues. As a result, it could hinder children’s mental development, such as self-confident and self-respect development, in this crucial stage of their lives if they are in the paid role.

To conclude, children taking paid work may cause physical and mental stress that could impact on their development negatively. However, some age appropriate and well organised voluntary work experience are believed to be beneficial to young children, which should be largely encouraged in schools and local communities.

[ Written by - Huan ]