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I
n today’s society, considerable focus is often placed on the child’s
exceptional achievements in sport, culture or academics. The focus on
individual success is often overstressed. It is interesting to note that
most adults today will tell you from personal experience that their school
education did not entirely prepare them for the realities of work and life’s
demands. As much as we try to predict the world we are sending our children
into and as much as we try to prepare them for their future and the career
paths they may take, the reality is that even the greatest thinkers and futurists
cannot provide us with certainty regarding the best academic preparation, or
even relevant technological proficiency for success in life.
What is becoming clear is that our children’s ability to adapt, learn, discern
and navigate within the bigger picture in order to remain resiliently relevant
(and thereby a valuable contributor) is what will distinguish them both now and
in the future workplace. Critically, these abilities will become more important
than the mastery of a particular skill or a particular area of academic expertise,
both which may become obsolete. Emotional intelligence (EI) strengthens the
learner’s resilience in a rapidly changing environment. This makes it a vital
component of resilience which the educator and parent cannot ignore, but
rather should leverage off for better results and a happier child.
It is well known that emotions trigger a cascade of biochemical changes in our
bodies, that affect the way our bodies function and how we feel. Children who
can regulate their own emotions are sensitive to the cues of others, and able
to empathize, or feel something from the