The rise of digitized learning or online learning/e-learning was triggered due to the sudden outbreak of the global pandemic ie. Covid-19 is enabling students to learn anytime & anywhere. But simultaneously, it is also seizing the opportunities of learning important life skills from their hands that they are supposed to learn only in school ambiance with their classmates under the guidance of teachers. The development of essential skills in children is now a matter of concern for parents.
Since children spend most of the time at school, they experience several events that make them take a deep insight about themselves and conduct a quicker personality assessment. Additionally, some of the best schools in Jaipur have already acknowledged the importance of life skills in their curriculum. Apart from this, learning life skills at schools has also a future perspective as most future employment opportunities will be based on a person’s ability to think, solve a problem & take decisions. It's pretty clear that the more a child is good at life skills, the better they can develop confidence and catch up with life events without any threats.
In this blog, we have listed some of the essential life skills that every child should be learning at school. Let’s have a look:
- Problem-solving & Critical Thinking Skills - Teachers can twist childrens’ thinking level by getting them engaged in asking & answering questions on their own. It means, children will ask suitable questions according to a situation & answer them also by finding a possible solution. This process will have a vital role in evaluating how far they can think & access their intelligence level to come up with a solution. Ultimately, it will boost up their critical thinking & make them a problem-solver.
- Time-management Skills - This is one of the most essential skills that every child is supposed to learn at school. Be it submitting an assignment or finishing an exam paper, proper time management has a vital role. Teachers can give project work to students & ask them to complete it before the deadline. It brings discipline in children regarding a task as well as teaches them the importance of time in life.
- Self-control/Emotional Management Skills - We are bound by our emotional state. Each of our decisions, no matter the situation, gets influenced by our mental state at a particular moment. If we are scared, demotivated, or frustrated, the chances are higher to end up with the wrong decision, or even if we are happy at a moment, we often get too lenient when it comes to making important life decisions. So children need to understand that they should avoid reacting or taking any decision when the mind is unstable. Controlling & managing emotions is important to take sound actions backed with deep thought.
- Communication Skills - The degree of success in any phase of life, be it professionally or personally, highly depends on how we communicate & express our thoughts to others in a pleasing, appealing & easy to understand way. Whether in school or outside of school, children need high-touch communication skills to set & adjust among people around them socially. Thereby many top schools in Jaipur are focusing on teaching good communication skills to children.
- Collaboration Skills - Good & strong collaborative skills are necessary to make children understand how much coordination is important while working as a team to achieve group goals. They need to understand how to communicate with others & try to cooperate with them to be a good team player. This will not only enable them to take an insight into their strengths but they will also learn to apply those skills to help others.
- Creativity Skills - Creativity is not only an important tool in the class but it also has an important significance in terms of future employment opportunities. Good creativity skills help students to think differently in a situation & enable them to come up with a creative & out-of-the-box solution. Thereby, both the teachers & parents should create a creative learning environment for children.
- Decision-making Skills -Education, course, career goals, children have plenty on their plates when it comes to deciding anything in life. Then, why don’t children start inculcating these skills at an early age at schools? Teachers can help children learn these skills simply by asking them to choose between any two activities or games etc. This way, they will understand the consequences that cause each decision. Guide them throughout the process and make them aware of the pros & cons of each while deciding.
- Money Management & Basic Budgeting - Now, this is an important life skill to be learned by children at schools. Teachers can organize a fair at school, ask students to run their own stalls of different items and motivate them to sell their products to make money. This will enable children to learn not only the value of money but will also to develop budgeting skills. Guidance to save money and wisely spend it is also essential.
Related Read: E-learning and distance learning – a boon or curse - Engaged Learning - Teachers are playing their role of teaching children in schools but what about when they get home. Usually, they complete their homework and get involved in routine tasks like playing, watching TV, or playing video games. Though these activities are also important to refresh minds, they should also learn to be self-learners. It doesn’t have to be reading school stuff, rather they can read anything of their interests like fantasy or stories, etc. It will help them develop an interest in reading.
- Technological Expertise - As more & more schools in Jaipur are becoming tech-savvy and are adopting the use of online learning tools & technologies to transform their regular classes, children should also be exposed to these technologies at an early age in schools so that they could be prepared to accept them later. Teachers should focus on developing children's interests in different technological fields such as AI, Robotics and Machine Learning, etc.
Time is changing. Both parents & teachers should be focused on developing these essential life skills in children to prepare them for a better tomorrow.
