Nick Gibb the Schools Minister who said the worst possible thing about education that I,
not a formal educator - but as an informal educator, gasp at his words ::
“Social & emotional education is ghastly ….”
It makes me wonder about his emotional life especially in the current climate & emphasis on awareness of mental health -
AND
in context of 12 UK men committing suicide every day.
Ghandi comes to mind - when he was asked about his tough life
'What was the hardest thing you have experienced?'
and he said
'The hard heartedness of the educated.'
What bothers me is if education says that
SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL learning is ghastly -
not just not being 'in balance' with academic education.
I worry.
Where I am coming from is that we need education of the head AND HEART.
My own interest in emotional intelligence is on informal education - education of the heart.
I have seen so much disfunction and behaviour that I see a need for great emphasis on the inner not just the head.
Instead of bashing people we can love people into change - growth and development.
I believe it.
I see it happening.
I feel there is a strong case for helping children and adults to experience positive development in school and community-based programmes in social and emotional learning.
Instead of bashing the welfare claimants we need to create opportunities to help them get off benefits into creative work and worthwhile lives.
Families, under pressure in so many parts of the UK,
have few resources to bring to being successful parents
and being able to model a life style which can be holistically, and financially, good for the soul too.
Parents are often not the best teachers so we need to supplement them in communities, helping children, and their parents, acquire life skills like self-awareness, emotional self-management, confidence and working together with others.
So often, too often, the Heart of a child -
the social, spiritual and emotional,
are not even an afterthought in education
and at home too.
All this impacts on the
social and relationship skills for future life.
We all need Tools in our Life Toolbox
in becoming a rounded whole persons.
pipwilson.com
