The academic is not the only thing that matters: why we should give more value to the social and emotional development of our children

As parents, we want the best for our children and that is why since they enter school we look for the best options for them to receive an education that helps them stimulate their learning and prepares them for adult life. However, we must remember the following: Grades are not the only thing that matters nor do academic skills define the potential of our children.

Various studies have shown us that academics are not the only thing that should matter to us when our children attend school, and that we must give more value to the social development and emotional education of our children, especially when they are young. We tell you why.

Academic performance is not the most important

As parents, we all like to see our children reach their goals and continue to achieve through learning and performance in their schools. However, although we must pay attention to the results of their evaluations, It is also important that we understand that a grade is not everything.

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For sample, we have two studies in which we are shown that the academic, although it is important, is not what we need to look at as parents in terms of the development and school performance of our children.

The first study, published in 2015 in the American Journal of Public Health, found that social skills in preschoolers were more important than their academic performance, and that they were also a better predictor of their success and well-being in adult life.

The study concluded that those preschool children who demonstrated better social competence, they had better chances of finishing high school, attending college and getting a job, compared to children who had low levels of social competence.

And what do they mean by "social competence"? At social, emotional, cognitive and behavioral skills, which are a key piece to achieve a successful social adaptation and have a better relationship with other people.

Another study, conducted in 2011, found that children's level of self-control could predict success better than IQ that children would have in their adult life, although the latter has always been related to academic performance.

For this, 1,000 children were followed from three to 11 years old, through tests that measured their self-control. Upon reaching age 32, it was found that self-control and not the IQ, was the best predictor for future success, based on aspects such as health, wealth and criminal offenses.

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The explanation of this is that children who did not have good self-control were more likely to make mistakes in adolescence, which in turn would lead them to fall into harmful lifestyles or behaviors. An example of this is that children who were under self-control began smoking at age 15, dropped out of school and had teenage pregnancy.

The importance of emotional education and social skills

Although these studies show that educational aspects such as school performance or IQ do not have the last word regarding the success of children in their future, it does give us a clear message: not only the notes matter and we must give greater value to emotional education and social skills from an early age.

For example, if we begin to educate our children about self-control and the management of their emotions, they can begin to make decisions in a safer and more conscious way, which It will prepare them for adult life, helping them to have a better quality of life and with greater long-term success.

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Does this mean that grades and academic learning do not matter? Of course not, both are also an essential part of children's development and they tell us how our children are learning and where we can help them reinforce or support them.

But more than worrying and pressuring us because our children know the complete alphabet or know how to read at this or that age, we must worry about giving them the necessary tools to have a healthy emotional and social development, which will benefit you in all aspects of your life.

//www.bebesymas.com/desarrollo/esperamos-demasiado-de-nuestros-hijos-un-estudio-nos-dice-que-si

Video: What is the most important influence on child development. Tom Weisner. TEDxUCLA (April 2024).