Children are Smarter than You Think

You should know that I have always believed in the innate ability of children to learn and the limited value of statistical assessment in education.  I also have long affirmed the inherent value and importance of intution and imagination for our human psyche as well as for the learning process.

Now, with that understood, Gryphem presents an excerpt from an article about how young children learn, from philosopher/psychologist Alison Gopnik, entitled “Babies are smarter than you think.”  The entire article can be found at www.cnn.com/2011/10/23/opinion/gopnik-ted-children-learning/index.html?hpt=hp_c2.

"When parents or... policy-makers hear about how much babies learn, they often conclude that what we need to do is teach them more. Parents spend literally millions of dollars on ‘educational’ toys, videos and programs, that they hope will somehow give their children an edge.

"Parents and policy-makers pressure teachers to make preschools more and more academic, with more reading drills and less time for play and pretend. But the science suggests this is also wrong. Very young children learn best from their everyday experiences of people and things, and from being able to playfully explore the world in a safe setting with people who love and care for them. Those settings can't be mass manufactured or provided on the cheap, and the learning they lead to can't be simply measured on standardized tests.

"The science of early childhood is constantly surprising -- who would guess that 2-year-olds can use statistics to test hypotheses? But actually the policy implications fit what most preschool teachers know intuitively: Children thrive when they are loved, and they learn when they explore.

Thank you, Dr. Gopnik.  I couldn’t have said it any better myself.

Sometimes the the best thing a parent or teacher can do for children is to stand aside and allow them to learn naturally through exploration and play.

We do not need to drive the children to learn, because they themselves instinctively seek to learn.  They are just learning in a less formal, more natural way.  Wouldn’t it create a revolution in the world of education if we could tap into that natural curiosity and desire to explore that is already present within our children?

This article presents evidence which I think might support less homework, fewer organized sports, less television, and limited standardized testing at school.  It also might encourage us to enjoy unstructured free play and embrace summer vacation with gusto and without guilt. 

After reading this article, I am more convinced than ever the we adults should give up our compulsion to direct the kids’ behavior long enough to get down on the floor and play with them…  maybe even let them direct us for a little while.

As we care for and educate our children, we might consider relying more on their natural desire and ability to learn, and on our own natural instincts.  Let’s place less emphasis on the educational fad or program of the moment, and greater emphasis on and the relationships we build with our children.

The children have resources that we adults do not often recognize.  If you allow yourself to get involved with the children, you will learn wonderful things and discover amazing places together.  The children will let you into their world, to share their sense of wonder and their fresh, vivid perspective, if you let them.  Each child will love being able to imitate and role play with an important person in his or her life (which is a big part of how they learn), and all will build a stronger relationship based on lots of caring and fun.

Believe in them, and their innate intelligence, imagination, and drive to learn.  Believe in yourself, and your ability to do the right thing for them.  Love them, guide them, listen to them, explore with them.  Everyone will be wiser and richer for the experience.

Gryphem