Teach your child to think independently

With the economy changing so fast, what is the best way I can help my daughter prepare for the future? Sometimes I think schools and colleges, with their fixed curricula, cannot keep pace with ever-evolving technology and that it will have an adverse impact on our lives.

-Name withheld

The format that most schools and colleges now follow was actually designed for the industrial era. At that time everybody had to learn the same skills and learning by rote was a good way to prepare people for the jobs that were out there. At present, however, companies want people who can innovate, provide good service and work in an interdisciplinary team. This is not really what most schools and colleges prepare children for.

Education institutes too are realising this and gradually moving towards project-based, hands-on learning as well as updating the curricula. This, however, will take time and, currently, there is no optimum alternative to schools and colleges.

The suggestion I give students is to use school or college to learn what the institution offers — how to be disciplined, persistent, hardworking, to develop communication skills and work in teams.

But I agree that in today’s world it is important that students also take responsibility to learn on their own. You could encourage your child to develop a more open and learning-oriented mindset. One way is to ask her open-ended questions about how she could solve a problem differently. The answer is unimportant, the opportunity to think differently is the real learning. Additionally, instead of scolding her when she makes an error, you could ask her what she learnt from the mistake.

I sometimes think that we adults get so caught up in teaching children the right way to do things that we forget that it is equally important to teach them how to think independently, do things differently or to use mistakes as an opportunity to learn. As a parent, you don’t need a lot of resources to help your child grow in a holistic manner. You can just ask some open-ended questions and set her free to find different answers. Some questions you can ask are: What made you think hard today? What can you learn from your mistakes? How can you make a boring task challenging?

No numbers needed

I am a student of Class XI with physics, chemistry and biology (PCB). I would like to become a psychiatrist but some people have told me that I cannot study the subject if I do not have mathematics in Plus Two.

-Sharmi Bandyopadhyay

Psychiatry is a specialisation within medicine in which you study, diagnose and treat mental disorders. PCB is the perfect choice to crack the medical entrance exam. After completing MBBS you can do a master’s (MD) in psychiatry. You could also graduate in psychology and specialise in counselling or clinical psychology. You will need excellent communication skills, empathy and great listening skills. I don’t think number skills figure on the list.

Shivani Manchanda has master’s degrees in career counselling and child development. She has been counselling about opportunities in India and abroad since 1991. Mail your queries to telegraphyou@ gmail.com with Ask Shivani in the subject line