OVEREMPHASIS ON FORMAL EDUCATION

The modern world is a highly competitive place where millions join the race to the top each passing day. The struggle to succeed involves a lot of hardship and misery, which has caused the fear of the future to become ingrained in parents. This fear coupled with the desire to make the child’s path up the greasy pole as smooth as possible is leading modern parents to focus on schooling to the exclusion of all else. This tunnel vision parents are trapped in is highly detrimental, is doing untold damage and should be discouraged no matter what.

The gravity of the problem of excessive emphasis on formal education is best exemplified by the situation in South Korea. Here children go to school at the crack of dawn for a full day and then head off to ‘hogwons’, that is to say private courses, where they have to do tests and solve problems. They are not allowed to go to bed until they have managed to solve all the problems correctly. The result is that they often don’t get to bed until midnight. Such kids are known to have committed suicide.  That this attitude to raising children and preparing them for the future is akin to torture goes without saying. Not being able to see the damage done to the child’s physical and psychological development is inexcusable.

A child who studies to the exclusion of all else will miss out on a lot of socialization and thus the acquisition of numerous social skills which will also have an undeniable role to play in determining his future success. These social skills can only be learnt through interaction with others in a social setting not through interaction with tests. It is a wonder such children are still able to speak their native language as they don’t even get practice in that. The educational value of the unending battle with tests that continue into the night is also highly doubtful as most educators should know full well. Concentration levels will drop as exhaustion sets in and hunger takes its toll. Couple this with lack of restorative sleep, unhealthy eating habits and minimal physical activity over a long period of time and the child’s growth and development will be stunted.  This is not the whole story however; the damage done to the child’s mental well being also needs to be considered.

A child who is unable to escape the grip of formal schooling will inevitably suffer psychological problems. He may be plagued with lack of confidence as he stays up well into the night completing schoolwork. He may become shy and withdrawn as he has minimal contact with his peers. He may not grow to be street-wise due to insufficient contact with the outside world. He may suffer from fear of failure, be plagued by guilt and be prone to nightmares. Conversely, he may become an inhuman zombie in whom all the qualities that make him human have been suppressed. Parents need to think long and hard about the path they are taking when deciding on the best way to raise their children. The system they are bent on applying amounts to child abuse.

Some may say that a good education is the only way to get ahead in life but a quick look at college application criteria will show that grades are not the only thing being sought by good universities. Club activities, individual initiatives, hobbies and interests and the like are also required. Incorporating all these into the child’s life and providing a more rounded upbringing is more likely to lead to future success as well as good physical and mental health. Parents should wish their children to be successful and happy as well. What is the point of having all the wealth in the world when you can’t relax enough to enjoy it?

A child isn’t the latest type of software; he is a human being with human needs which should not be ignored. Raising a child involves addressing physical and psychological needs. It also involves providing a loving home environment and time with peers. Only focusing on cognitive development to the exclusion of all else will do untold damage to the child and should thus be categorized as a crime.