by Purple Doodles

Created on: February 05, 2009   Last Updated: February 14, 2009

We've made an industry out of education. That is why we want to start schooling a child at 6 years. That is the only way we can make it easier for ourselves to teach children.

Teach children! Indeed. Don't they walk into the school and show that they have already taught themselves a whole language without anybody actually teaching them? Don't they show how they have mastered the science and art of their human body towards survival? Don't they show that they have already learnt a whole host of social graces?

Hmm. Waiting to begin education till the child has turned six is pandering to the education industry. It is not befitting to the child. It wastes his potential. And it makes it harder for us adults to sow the right seeds in the minds of our future generation by missing out on the most fertile stages of a child's learning curve.

Of course the vision of education should not be that of children giving exams and getting certified. The purpose of education should be to help the child evolve into what he was born to do. While, this is certainly a very noble definition of education, perhaps very broad, it has a very simple starting point. Start early. Start at birth. And cover as much ground as possible during the first six years.

We need to fully recognize the importance of the early years. We need to understand that what the child learns during the early childhood days will stay throughout his lifetime. The blueprint for the adult is laid during the early childhood stage itself. Children have a psychic life and nature has bestowed upon children all that they need to learn in their pursuit of their inner calling. Education just has to be a process of uncovering that inner calling.

To this end, the purpose of education during the first 6 years should be to lay the right foundation for the building of the adult. The purpose of education during the first six years should be the following:

-Instill physical independence. Get them to stand on their own two feet. Literally. This should be the first facilitation we should do for children so that they become more active in their own search for their learning.

-Expose the child to a vast multitude of sensory stimulus, so that the child is able to build a repertoire of memories and experiences. This is the stage where the sensitive periods are most active. The sensory organs are the gateways to intelligence. So the child should be given as many opportunities to explore materials, activities and sensory stimulus as possible, to build a wealth of information and memories, which will serve as the foundation of the elements of intelligence, during the subsequent stage, where rational thinking and conscious learning are awakened.

- Instill the joy of exploration and learning through self-discovery, so it continues to be that way throughout life.

- Instill a sense of independence, self-reliance and self-confidence, so the child has the right mind frame to take on bigger learning challenges.

- Allow a child to reveal his true yearnings, interests and preferences, so the child can be helped along its path to self-realization.

- Build self-esteem and dignity in the child, so that it grows up ready to take on the more complex life's questions around moral, cultural, philosophical and social issues with the right set of values.

When the purpose of education is defined in this way, it becomes a tool in the process of revealing the true destiny for every person. Isn't that the best formula for well-being?

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