Heal the Mom, Help the Child: Infant Health, Development, and Earlier Education

• In Event: What Is the Black Maternal Health Crisis and What Is It Doing in a Nice Field Like Education?

Abstract

Objectives/Purpose
Black mothers’ mental and physical health has implications for the education and development of the child, from infancy and beyond (Currie, 2011). I center the Black infant/child and its physiological and overall development and educational preparedness within the discourse of Black mothers’ experiences. Conceptually, this approach captures how the mother and child’s relationship is dynamic and represents integral components of how a mothers’ healing is central to the education and development of the child.
Background
The surge of preterm births (PTB) among Black families is rooted in sociohistorical and racist health care practices (Ajayi & Garney, 2023). Even college educated, Black mothers with high-quality prenatal care do not have the same level of protection against preterm delivery compared to white women (Rowley, 2001). As Black mothers search for ways of coping with the trauma associated with a PTB, during and beyond NICU, a larger question emerges: What becomes of Black babies over the life course and how can we create a space of protective factors that support their overall development and education? Indeed, children born preterm may struggle with schooling, and are more likely to be at risk for neurodevelopmental delays and lower academic performance (Martínez-Nadal & Bosch, 2021). There is evidence that preterm infant’s neurodevelopment benefits from breastmilk (Belfort, 2017; Deoni, Dean, & Piryatinsky, et. al., 2013), but unfortunately, Black preterm infants are less likely to receive breastmilk or donor milk. Black mothers who have had to witness their babies enduring the NICU experience a myriad of emotions. Yet, their personal healing, and the wellbeing, development, and long-term health of their child/children—beyond infancy—is paramount.

Perspective/Theoretical Framework
The Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems Theory (PVEST) serves as a guiding theoretical framework (Spencer, 1997). PVEST views human development as inclusive of all humans, including members of society who are more diverse. PVEST begins with the premise that context matters in addition to acknowledging that biological, socio-emotional and cognitive processes are significant for learning and coping. The productive justice framework—created by women of color—provides additional insights about the mother and child’s experiences, particularly of Black women.
Methods/Modes of Inquiry/Data Sources
This conceptual paper reviews literature related to Black mothers who birthed pre-term babies, the implications for mothers’ healing, and the babies’ wellness, health and educational development. I also situate my birthing experiences and child’s development within this scholarly conversation. Ultimately, the paper asserts the importance of situating such experiences within culturally relevant frameworks that attend to systems, and values Black mothers’ lived experiences, perceptions, and healing while they strive to birth, raise, and educate developmentally healthy babies.

Arguments/Conclusions/Significance
Rather than scholarly conversations about school-readiness beginning in early childhood (e.g., pre-kindergarten), we must begin sooner. Infant health and development--while in utero, during the early stages of birth, and postpartum--are key periods in the education of Black children. This shift away from education as being associated with formal schooling institutions to focusing on earlier infant health and Black mother’s healing places the child, and Black mothers, within a larger ecological and educational context that fosters multi-directional and dimensional exchange and transformation.

Author

• Mary Muse, Rush University