When an academic year starts, kids reach a new atmosphere. Mind is filled with a lot of hopes and dreams. Dreams have different colours and shades, of choosing a career they like and an enthusiasm to reach success through opting the right career and path. But present educational system is not appropriate to fill all columns of their wings of dreams with colours they like. Now kids are just vehicles chosen to run through pre-decided roads to reach exam stops at right time. They are bounded to some limitations and are tied to some chains to do everything as a pre-written script, nothing new to be added!
Now educational system is without a feedback
If we deeply go through the present institution system of our country, it’s really painful to know that everything is just official, with aims to achieve certificates and badges only. Many controls are strictly implied on kids as if they are just slaves of present education system, without giving importance to his ambitions and imaginations. No doubt, parents are equally responsible for such a condition rather than giving all blames to educational system only. Modern parents want their kids to make their future secure by giving best education they can, so that they can earn a 5-digit salary in some multi-national company.
From 9am to 4pm on working days, a fixed time table is being allotted for kids at school. Till 9 o’clock they enjoy a good morning in the company of their friends, engaged in some chat or play and with the second bell at school, the whole mood is changed. A teacher enters the class and till evening, kids need to spend a day as per their tutor’s instructions. Only a few kid really enjoy such moments and lion share of a teacher’s period is spend for maintaining discipline in the class.
What’s the reason? Studies are now exam-oriented and all its attributes are tuned to reach that target. Very often, practical knowledge, creativity and imagination of kids bend their heads before the exams, exam fears and uncertainties of ‘pass and fail’. Today’s educational system works without any feedback. Such one-way paths destroy the real aims of a good education system forever, digging big pits for it.
Both should change – home and school
Aims, a mind to achieve those goals, dedication, grasping power and concentration – these are the secret mantras of true education. If you want success in education, you need sincerity and a curious mind to conquer every piece of knowledge. Such things can’t be planted in a kid’s mind in one day or two. Such thoughts should naturally come in a kid’s mind and for that, parents should be able to create a peaceful atmosphere.
Both school and homely atmosphere should change in accordance with it. If so, kids will love to read lessons instead of going too far from books. Kids should like mother’s presence while studying. In the same way, they should love their teacher’s presence too. For that, communicate with them freely instead of compelling and punishing them with sticks and words repeatedly.
Home and play ground – kids love both these places. So, keep them in a pleasant manner so that kids love to learn. If school condition is also maintained in the same way he will learn sincerely, aiming good things in life. Otherwise he will see books as ‘just aims of parents’, not theirs.
For parents’ note
Give them fresh topics and activities always: Very often parents ask kids to read lessons repeatedly – an action that has no freshness. Such boring procedures will make them hate their studies more. Such poor teaching strategies will deteriorate their learning interests. Education and studies should always give importance to new knowledge, new experiments, new lessons and fresh thoughts through new paths, never travelled before. Instead of giving importance to exams parents should be able to give preference to the learning of a subject better. See a topic or subject in terms of future perspectives rather than short term exam benefits. While reading a book, ask him to understand the inner meanings hidden in those lines to make reading full effective.
Reading habit from early ages: Give him good books instead of chocolates and toys as gifts. This helps him to develop a reading habit at his early age itself. When he is a kid of four or five years, give him books with pictures and read short stories for him. If stories chosen contain some moral messages, it’s really nice. When he reaches six or seven ask him to read small stories. This will increase his language knowledge, concentration, grasping power and better development of brain. Kids who start reading such story books at an early age will surely love their learning books later. So, it’s the duty of parents to promote reading habit in their kids.
You can ask them to read small stories for you and appreciate him when he does so. Give a little time every day for reading such books too. Slowly, you can add other knowledge acquiring books to his collection. If possible, ask him to collect things to create small picture albums as hobbies. He can collect interesting pieces of information too. It will surely increase his knowledge beyond books, reaching the vast sky of information. If possible, arrange a small library for him at home.
Kids should read without compulsion from others. If so he will love studies and remain attached to books and their real aims. Then only he will see the real world hidden behind words, instead of staying as a frog in a dark well.
Identify their hidden talents: All kids have some hidden talents. Some kids are interested in science subjects, while another group of kids in arts. Some kids are interested in dance and music while some others, in sports and games. Without knowing their real talents never try to make him a doctor or an engineer. A society wants people belonging to all groups, not only doctors and engineers. Then only it’s perfect. When parents choose a wrong career for their kid, they are giving a wrong citizen to the society who never loves his profession truly. Also, such education that suppresses a kid’s creativity will result in a failure for sure.
Use psychometric tests to test their tastes: After primary education, through psychometric tests try to find the real talent of your kid. If very parent is willing to do so we can give a lot of geniuses to the society, who can do great wonders in the world. When kids choose career according to their tastes, they give the best to the world, touching deep blue skies of success. When they get success in their career it deeply influences their personal and family life too. Thus a society will improve as whole.
Earlier, a lot of geniuses were there in this world, who have given many contributions to the world. But now such geniuses are rare. It happened due to modern education system, where marks and grades are given more importance than creative thinking. Earlier kids were freer with their thoughts, no one imprisoned them. But now, when parents and society interfere much in kid’s decisions for future a true genius is dying early in every kid’s mind without getting proper nourishment or attention.
Leave decisions to kid’s dreams and imaginations: Time demands change always. Try to find new skies for your kids according to their dreams and imaginations. An education that fully depends on a pre-set timetable or a set of text books will never achieve those skies. When tastes and interests of kids are not given preference, an education system will destroy a kid’s talent rather than promoting his thoughts. Parents should always be aware of the fact, if they want to see their kids remain happy and satisfied with their life and career, leave those 5-digit salary dreams. Instead develop them as true citizens of a nation who contributes something nice to the society. A satisfied life will surely bring those dreams of parents for sure, though it takes a little more time.
Never refer old question papers: Most of the parents are interested in referring old question papers and to give extra training according to it. Leave that ‘old’ habit. Let kids study freely as they like. Parents should abandon the thought that their kid should always remain slaves of such question papers.
A systematic approach to studies: Allow them to choose a career they like. Yet maintain a systematic approach and provide all helps that you can give him. When a kid achieves success in the career he chooses, he will feel self-respect as well as self-satisfaction. Something achieved through self-striving tastes better for sure.
Give new directions to studies: Give new directions to studies, exams and career. Text books should pave way to reading with self-interest. Kids should be able to understand the true meanings of lessons rather than mugging up and vomiting them in exam sheets later. Such kids though score 80% or 90% marks and get good salary jobs, will never taste the real aims of education.
Give less importance to memory power: Present education system gives emphasis on memory power – what they are able to remember from their books to be reproduced later in exam sheets. That system should change; instead give importance to intelligence and practical knowledge. Make lecture classes short. Instead allot that extra time for group discussions. Give importance to workshops, case studies and projects.
Don’t ask them to study always: Parents have a bad habit to instruct kids to study always. Kids can’t bind themselves to studies with full concentration for more than one hour. Instead ask him to play a little, engage in a few hobbies and read a few books so that his mind will be refreshed. Only a refreshed mind can acquire knowledge fast and a good parent should be able to ensure such conditions for his kid.
Conclusion
Success in life doesn’t mean a high salary job in a good company, but it means a satisfied life where one can find interest in his career. A parent should be able to ensure such an education and family situation where he feels interest in his books and studies rather than seeing it as a burden. Then only a good education becomes effective in all means. Also, it’s the duty of a kid to develop love in books rather than studying from surface. Go deep inside the books to know the real subject if you are a true student.