Early education: the stage is set at home
About the article
This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from October 1986.
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Many of us have shaken our heads in sympathy with the child who, having been pushed through school and into a career of the parent's choosing, has finally ended up frustrated, trying to please, but really hating his or her life's work! Is this situation really fair?
You may be quick to point out that, in these days of enlightenment, many of us as parents know better than that, and we would never force our children when the time comes into such a predicament. Perhaps so!
However, if we should examine how we are treating our children's education in the very early years, it may surprise us that we are but setting the stage for channeling our little ones into life careers for which they may or may not be ideally suited.
The wise parent, then, should take time to study the child, and try to decide what is best for the child. Obviously what is convenient to the parent will play some part in the final decision-making, but even if the parent has to be inconvenienced to some degree, it is the child's welfare that must be given priority.
Many of us are aware that headstart programmes, nursery schools, preschools, etc. have filled the needs of special groups of children. We also understand that working mothers rely on such institutions for assistance with child care as well as early education in a more structured setting. For some families there is no immediate alternative.
For the rest of us I would like to point out that the greatest influence on the child's education is the home. Psychologists, sociologists, and educators have stated this fact repeatedly. Barry Taylor, Chief Education Officer from Somerset, England, and an Educational Broadcaster with the BBC states, "The home is the logical place to begin any consideration of the educational process. Obviously, it is a particularly strong influence - normally the strongest - for good or ill upon the underfives. But evidence suggests that the influence of the home and of the parents' attitudes, continues to substantially affect educational performance throughout the school years, and in higher education as well."
Dr. Ross Campbell, M.D., a well-known Christian psychiatrist who specializes in working with problems of children and teenagers, in his book "How to Really Love Your Child" reiterates this statement. He points out: "The influence of parents far outweighs everything else. The home holds the upper hand in determining how happy, secure, and stable a child is, how a child gets along with peers and different children, how confident a youngster is in himself and his abilities, how affectionate he is, how aloof, how he responds to unfamiliar situations. Yes, the home, despite many distractions for a child, has the greatest influence on him."
Fitting a child for life takes more than book learning, and our overemphasis on starting a child off early in a formal programme may be ultimately damaging. Home is the best place to start!
Next week, we would like to look at how we can help a child to learn at home while enjoying all the benefits from being in the care and nurture of those whose influence will "outweigh everything else."
