It is so rare these days to come across kids who think learning is fun and enjoy the experience of learning, are excited about learning new things. The problem lies with the way our education system works, the way we teach; and we know it by now. Parents i.e. we often fall prey to the pressure that the modern education system brings, the race and comparison mentality, following the herb, do as told mentality and as a result our kids become victims of our follies, we chop their wings of imagination sometimes unknowingly, and sometimes knowingly. It kills their spirit and cuts their wings and thus chopping the possibility of their ever imagining to fly. So they walk, they race, but don’t dare to imagine the possibilities.
Those who dare to take their own path excel in life; in personal and professional. They manage to find their own spaces are the coolest kids! They experience the fun of learning and thus are better products than their counterparts who do as told. Let’s discuss some doable steps that we can take at our level to improve quality of life and learning for our children.
Instead of encouraging your child to mug up or handing him or her with readymade answers, nurture an active and natural intelligence that inculcates in them the habit of searching, seeking and looking at things in multiple ways; this will open your child’s mind and he will experience the joys of wondering about life.
Remember to raise a cool child is a tough and fulltime job.
Raise a child to be a non competitive adult. Ensure that his fire or competing spirit is not driven by insecurity or even slight negativity. It is for the parent to understand the concept clearly before s/he attempts to inculcate the characteristic in kids via theory. The parent will have to unlearn many old lessons, and learn new. How much ever complex it may sound, it will have to be done. Child should constantly be reminded to excel rather than compete. Over years it will get programmed into his psyche that whatever s/he is doing she has to stretch and do it to its fullest, thus nurturing the genius in her.
Teach them not to compare one over the other through demonstration. Let them know that you think whether it is driver, domestic help, cook, gardener, teacher, instructor… everyone’s job is equally important for us to function to our fullest and make our life complete. That job of a domestic help is not lower than anybody’s! Set up an environment like that at home. Not easy I know. But if it sounds convincing and doable why don’t you try! IT’s a huge step in the right direction.
Raising kids in environment where they are enjoying the knowledge they are absorbing and learning to apply it will make them better equipped to deal with life in general. And such a shift is not impossible. It requires a shift in thinking and perceiving life and its various issues and so called pressures.
English