In today's society, children are faced with many factors that can influence their behavior within an educational or care context. These factors can sometimes improve a child's behavior and in some cases impair or damage the way a child learns behavior. When examining the factors that influence children's behavior it is important to take into consideration the nature versus nurture debate, MacLeod-Brudenell (2008) informs the reader that the term “nurture-nature debate” indicates two different perspectives; some propose views that genetic inheritance, also known as nature, influences children more than contextual factors or upbringing. The influences of the debate can be widely seen as some people believe that all children are born with the ability to speak or walk as this is innate knowledge. McDevitt and Ormrod (2010) reinforce this concept: “All children have a set of universal human genes that allow them to develop as reasonably capable human beings.” The other side of this debate is that some believe that if children are loved they will become people who can contribute to society, this however is not always true as some children grow up in situations of abandonment and do not always receive the same love. The study on “Genie” allows us to better understand the importance of education in a child's life, she was confined to a small room and was not discovered until the age of 13 to this point in her life that she had not experienced many social interactions. Cherry (Unknown) tells us that due to her inability to speak or communicate, it was difficult to assess her mental abilities, but in the tests she scored as well as a one-year-old. From his lifetime scientists have been able to look more deeply at the relationship between nature and nurture...... half of article...... development, About.com [online] Available from www.about.com Accessed 4 April 2014McDevitt, T and Ormrod, J (2010) Nature and Nurture, Education.com [online] Available from www.education.com Accessed 4 April 2014VideoBBC(2009) "The Secret Life of Twins" BBC: London , viewed 3 February 2014Channel 4 (2006) 'Mindshock: Feral Children' Channel 4: London, viewed 10 February 2014Channel 4 (2009) 'Britain's Challenging Children' Channel 4: London, viewed 24 March 2014PublicationsKids Matter: Australian Primary Schools Imitative (2012) How temperament influences feelings, Australia: Australian Government Department of Health and Aging, The British Medical Association (2006) Understanding Children's Behavior, Dorset: The British Medical Association, Pact's Point of View (2009) Interpreting Regression in Children, Oakland: Pact's Point of View