Cognitive learning without emotion is an empty shell
The system demands children to be in a state of competition
Ask any parent what s/he would want for his / her child and the answer will likely be, “Good Education”. The underlying operative assumption here is that “good” education is a pre-requisite for a “good” job and further a “good “life. This narrative has guided much of the educational policies around the world.
The emergence of the modern school and education system over the past 300 years has been solely to cater to the growing demand for skilled workers – largely to drive the industrial revolution.
But the world is a very different place than it was 300 years ago. The human population is at 7 billion and is expected to increase to 9 billion by 2050; a size unprecedented in human history. Climate change and massive biodiversity extinction are now a reality, caused by unsustainable human activities; activities which to a large extent drove the economic growth over the past three centuries.
Compounding these ecological changes, we have a growing social divide. Moreover, the divide between the rich and the middle class seem to be getting bigger. This disparity has led to two outcomes, both of which are unsustainable. The first is the increasing global unrest and violence, which we are already witnessing across many countries. The second is the catalyst for a rat race, whereby every individual aspires to be part of the top 1 percent therefore pushing themselves to focus entirely on acquiring the skills required to achieve this wealth.
I will focus on the second outcome. The fast changing, evolving and increasingly competitive job market is making our traditional education systems obsolete. How will a system focused on preparing students for a job market cope with the reality on ground, given that the most sought after jobs of today did not even exist 10 or even five years ago? This is translating to growing frustration of unrealised expectations among the youth of today and the consequences of this is being witnessed through increases in mental health issues caused by anxiety, fear and a sense of hopelessness.
The overly competitive education system demands children to be in a perpetual state of competition; a similar fate a mouse finds itself when in a Ferris wheel. While the precise relationship between educational pressures and depression is still uncertain, the signs are strong. For example, in India, 20 students committed suicide when the Board of Intermediate Education (BIE) released the exam results; of the 1 million who sat for the exams, 350,000 failed . Reports such as this surely indicate that something is wrong, that the system is unsustainable and clearly does not align itself to what we are setting out to achieve in SDG 4.
Integrating character building within our education systems seems to have taken a backseat. Just focusing on the cognitive aspects and building skills for the job market is insufficient. Just reading about Gandhi in a course on non-violence or peace will not make one to be as compassionate and understanding as Gandhi. It has to be practised.
The recent research from the neurosciences of learning shows promise of initiating such positive behavioural change. The development of social and emotional competencies such as selfregulation, attention regulation, emotion regulation, empathy, perspective taking and compassion through well-structured courses in schools can train the brain to be emotionally resilient to care for oneself, the “other” and nature. A short 10 week course with a combination of cognitive and emotional interventions by the UNESCO MGIEP conducted in 2019 across 5 schools in 10 countries, showed changes in the social and emotional dimensions as well as an increased awareness of global contemporary issues such as migration and violence.
The good news is that many schools are beginning to introduce social and emotional learning (SEL) into their curricula. The not so good news is that it is yet viewed as a stand alone activity and not integrated across the school system. Since SEL is about character building, a class on the topic will simply not be sufficient. SEL must become part and parcel of daily school life and an integral part of the learning process.
In short, if we continue with the present education system, improving its quality and making it inclusive and equitable will do more damage to the wellbeing of our younger generation while also putting humanity on a collision course with nature.