'Schools nullifying innate qualities in children'

By Our Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JUNE 4. The innate qualities in children are being systematically nullified in our schools, according to Mr. Chandraprasad Sreedhar, psychologist.

Mr. Chandraprasad was participating in a `Meet-the-Parents' programme organised by the YMCA as part of its Skill Training Camp.

What most parents are looking for these days are `shortcuts to education'. What the job-givers are looking for are knowledgeable candidates who are confident, motivated and committed. Obviously there is a mismatch between the two. Interviews are now processes of elimination rather than selection. In interviews, candidates from Kerala are not sufficiently confident of their capabilities.

The problems of children here begin from home and as such the rectification process should start there. ``Many parents of today are over-protective of their children. This has become a major problem as this protective cocoon tends to rob children of their in-built inquisitiveness, tendency to explore and try and do things on their own. When such children grow up - if at all - they are ill-prepared to face real life. When a child commits suicide because of a poor show in the entrance examination, it only shows that he or she has not been exposed at all to suffering or setbacks in life and hence suicide,'' he said.

Even as this is going on in our homes, the teachers in the LKG and the UKG who are actually `mother substitutes' for the tiny tots are blunting the intelligence and gregarious nature of the children. What they are churning out is the `adapted child', a being who learns that exhibiting knowledge can be an unwelcome proposition.

What the teacher at the pre-school level does can be pivotal in deciding the future of the child. The reality, however, is that our schooling system is over-loading our students who are harbouring resentment and anger deep within. No wonder then such frustrations are manifesting themselves in all sorts of ways, he said.

Mr. Chandraprasad pointed out that while a child needs disciplining, this is not to be equated to administering punishment.

A child needs to be taught the a.b,c of a disciplined life by parents who themselves should have the discipline they are trying to teach their children. It is from the parents that a child should overcome the fear of failure that can prove disastrous to a boy or girl trying to find their feet in the world. The prime responsibility of any parent is to facilitate their children to be self-made individuals. For this what parents have to do first is to appreciative their child's capabilities, he added.

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Section  : Southern States
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