Leadership magazine Jan/Feb 2018 V47 No. 3 | Page 9

ence , technology , engineering and mathematics ( STEM ) curriculum is necessary so that students are better prepared for the high-tech jobs that await them .
This is all good for many reasons : higher salaries , upward mobility , the creation of a strong middle class , and entrepreneurship that leads to the founding of more companies , resulting in more jobs .
But there ’ s a dark side to work-focused , technology-driven education and its seemingly limitless opportunities . Today ’ s kids face obstacles for which they are not being prepared . These obstacles in turn translate into one of the most pressing parental concerns of our time : How do we keep kids grounded in their humanity in a world increasingly filled with high-tech distractions ?
While technology connects us across continents and provides instant access to worlds of information , it can also be isolating . Kids plug themselves into their phones and tablets , oblivious to what ’ s happening in the world outside . Even more troubling is the host of unforeseen challenges – cyberbullying , cyberstalking , digital destruction of reputations , easy access to inappropriate content , and new forms of overuse and addiction .
The disturbing paradox here is that while our ability to heal and our knowledge of what keeps us mentally and physically well have never been greater , we are seeing epidemic levels of preventable illness and disease in our youth : child and adolescent obesity , eating disorders , and diabetes , teen suicides and pregnancies , to name a few .
Despite all the advances of the 21st century , we are at risk of raising the first generation of young people who might not live longer than their parents .
The truth is , today ’ s educational system is failing far too many of our children . As it prepares them to work in an increasingly technological world , it falls frighteningly short of preparing them to live in that world . Living is about much more than work .
Education should prepare our kids to live full , multi-faceted lives , filled with confidence , good health , happiness and tolerance .
So , what is the educational pathway that will prepare our young people to not just succeed , but thrive , in every aspect of their lives ? The answer is Self-literacy .
Education should prepare our kids to live full , multi-faceted lives , filled with confidence , good health , happiness and tolerance .
Self-literacy means having a working knowledge of your body and your mind , and how the two work together to support your health , movements , thoughts and emotions . We may not all find a lifelong need for calculus , or gain personal insight from reading “ The Catcher in the Rye ,” but without a doubt , we all benefit from knowing more about ourselves .
Our humanity is the one thing we all have in common . We live in remarkably similar bodies ; our brains work more or less the same way ; and we are all guided by deeply felt emotional currents . Self-literacy is power . Knowing yourself makes you better at everything , literally – school , work , sports , friendships , life … everything .
For example , how do you learn best ? Are you a language learner , a spatial learner , an experiential learner ? Guided by this knowledge you can learn more efficiently , retain more information , and pursue the type of learning that suits you best . When are you at your best and most receptive to learning ? Should you study first thing in the morning or late at night ? When you understand how learning takes place and what methods your mind responds to best , doing well in school is not such a challenge .
What about sports ? Imagine the advantage of knowing how your muscles work to propel you faster and farther , how your body converts food into energy to fuel this process , or how your body ’ s healing processes work to repair an injury . Yogi Berra said , “ Baseball is 90 percent mental . The other half is physical .” Generalizing and deciphering the questionable math , the psychological is at least as important to sports performance as the physical . Top athletes report “ being in the zone ” when performing at their best . What is this state , and how can you achieve it ? Knowing the answers and how they apply specifically to you can help you master any
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