Sounds like a familiar phrase?? I’m not talking about IT sectors here. It’s about education. Ages ago, education was service & basic requirement, and something that was restricted to women. Today, though it is reachable, it’s expensive — not only in terms of money but value. Looks like all of us are running behind education as luxury than necessary. “Let the child be child” is merely a statement now than an emotion. All work and no play makes not only jack a dull boy, even his teachers go dull. No use pulling points from Gen X and millennial eras while surviving with Gen Z is inevitable. Let’s see how the current generation can be given exposure to reality despite their over exposure to AI.

The foremost step to reduce screen time is to let kids go outdoors for play. Fearing weather and environmental conditions, people and pollution, locking them indoors only leaves room for phobias and stress. Enrolling them into additional skill development, just because the neighbour has done it for his child isn’t going to help in the long run when the child is not interested in that skill. Basic skills like table manners, talking to people, facial expressions, dressing and tidying up their rooms can be taught at home itself as kids learn by observing their parents. But remember that this process is slow and let the child be child. Eventually things will fall in place and he will behave as a well grown adult.

Next is the family talk time. Sounds so weird these days, right? When parents guide kids with simple considerations (rather than calling them “rules”) like keeping phones aside during mealtime or watching something nice, avoid phubbing, welcoming guests, letting kids get along with neighbours add value to the child’s growth. The more we talk to real people, the easier they grow. This will gradually enhance his personality and he will never have to face issues later in his life when it comes to decision making.

Finally, as teachers, we need to know something. While a mother is the first teacher, a teacher is the second mother. Shall we all stop the mundane pointless statement, “Shhhhh! Don’t talk, keep quiet, less noise please!” Let them talk, feel safe and comfortable sharing sensitive things with teachers. Classroom is a platform to learn from mistakes. Allow mistakes to teach them rather than the rules that tempt them with “what if.” Teaching from text isn’t education, letting them learn from real life is!