“The greatest gifts you can give your children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence.” This quote perhaps encapsulates the goal of education. The goal of education is to help individuals fulfill their destiny. It has to bring out the true nature, yearnings, talents and potentialities of the human being.
This definition of education implicitly and explicitly means that independence in every form has to be the ultimate goal of education. Independence of physical movement, of the exercise of Will, of purposeful and intelligent working, of thought, word and deed.
Let us take a closer look at the definition of independence, particularly in the context of a child and therefore its significance to man.
Understanding Independence
A simple basic definition of independence with respect to a human being is the ability to fend for himself without being a burden to anyone else. It is the ability to take care of himself in the various facets of life physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual. Only this ability will allow him to follow his destiny.
How does one foster independence
How does one foster independence in a child? This is done in stages, as follows:
o Facilitate physical independence: In the case of the child, the child has to be helped in its journey towards perfecting his physical coordination so that he can take care of himself in his immediate world. This encourages him to be self-reliant.
o Facilitate intellectual independence: intellectual independence is the ability to exercise the power of will for a purposeful activity through the intelligent use of knowledge and information. In other words rational ability. In the case of a child, the child has to be helped in his journey towards intelligence by progressively exposing him to the various facets of intelligence and how the elements of intelligence combine to form the basis of judgment. This encourages the child to be confident of his ability to scan the environment and adapt himself to it as well as navigate the environment in the successful pursuit of his goals.
o Facilitate emotional independence: emotional independence is the ability to exercise his own power of choice with a sense of confidence in knowing right from wrong. True independence can only exist in doing what’s right. In the case of a child, the child has to be helped in his journey towards building his sense of values, his confidence and therefore his ability to make choices based on these. This is what will lead to inner peace and happiness. You cannot build character and courage without independence.
When there is physical, intellectual and emotional independence, the following three will automatically follow:
o Interdependence. This is the hallmark of social existence and progress. Interdependency almost follows independence.
o Moral Responsibility. Independence helps define a person’s moral code of conduct. This definition brings with it the roots of moral responsibility and integrity.
o Strong sense of identity and self-esteem. Independence enables a person to define his sense of self, giving him a distinct identity and a place in society. Self-esteem flows from this.
Understanding freedom
If independence is the capacity of a person to pursue his inner calling, then freedom is the “means” that will ensure that he reaches this end. Freedom is the necessary precondition for every individual to fully maximize his talents and potentialities.
This freedom is what fuels the learning process, helps in the growth of independence and the fulfillment of the goal of education. However, freedom does not mean freedom without limitations. Certain limitations are necessary for the healthy pursuit of freedom. Safety, correct knowledge of the materials/activity and correct usage of materials/knowledge are the three limitations that freedom stipulates. Otherwise, it would degenerate into chaos and purposeless activity. To this end, proper guidance also has to be provided.
So while freedom is conceptualized as a necessary precondition to independence, regulated environment and guidance are the channels through which the freedom is funneled.
Why freedom is necessary for to make the child independent:
o Written in human nature: Based on scientific and rigorous experimentation it has been shown that children learn mainly by teaching themselves. They do not always need to depend on the adults to spoon-feed them. In fact, they learn better and faster when they are left to be free to explore and learn. Children have a powerful desire to learn and when given the right conditions and freedom to explore, they reach remarkable levels of concentration and engagement. This is one good reason why freedom is necessary for independence.
o Reveals destiny: A child’s true nature is revealed only in a free atmosphere. This true nature provides the clues to his talents and potentialities and also his inner calling. In short they open up avenues to get a glimpse of his destiny. If independence is the ability to enable the child to reach his destiny, the freedom is what will help him recognize his destiny.
o Reveals progress: Only in an atmosphere of freedom, will the child be able to reveal his potential. Observing this potential will enable the adult to perceive where the child is on his journey towards independence. Only this insight will allow the adult to remove the obstacles to the child’s independence and set him up on the right track to gaining independence. Without an atmosphere of freedom, the child will not be able to reveal where he stands and how much he knows and where he needs help.
Progressive gaining of independence:
The gaining of independence can be thought of as a series of triumphs in the acquisition of new skills and abilities. One gains independence by becoming proficient at new functions, capacities and situations.
On the development continuum, there are essentially four stages, each of which comes with the awakening of a certain kind of developmental requirement and readiness for a certain kind of conquest. There is a distinct attainment of independence at each stage, which in turn necessitates a distinct form of freedom at each stage.
o During the first stage of development (0 6 years), when the child is essentially a sensory explorer, the most important independence that has to be acquired is physical independence. The child has acquire movement and neuro-muscular coordination in the pursuit of physical independence. This physical independence can be gained only when the atmosphere permits movement and encourages sensory stimulation by providing sights, sounds, smells and textures. Free exploration at this stage will enable better acquisition of physical independence.
o During the second stage of development (6 12 years), the child is ready to start its pursuit of intellectual independence and social behavior. To this end, the atmosphere should provide him the freedom to work with several different materials/activities and concepts, so that the child is progressively able to put together these isolated concepts into the elements of rational thinking, to start gaining intellectual independence. The second stage is also the stage for understanding social behavior. So the child should have the freedom to explore social interactions with peers and others and gain independence in the social context. Freedom at this stage has to be provided in the form of materials/activities/group interactions as well as proper guidance. Freedom at this stage will enable faster acquisition of intellectual independence.
o During the third stage of development (12 18 years), the adolescent is ready to start the pursuit of emotional independence. He is ready to get introduced to moral, ethical and cultural issues. Freedom at this stage has to be provided in the form of guidance as well as introduction to real-life situations and experiences. Freedom at this stage will enable faster acquisition of emotional independence.
o During the fourth stage of development (18 and above), the person has built a reasonably good definition of himself, his talents, his yearnings and his preferences. He is ready to start the pursuit of his destiny. Freedom at this stage is providing him with guidance for him to identify his true calling and guidance to fulfill his dreams. Freedom at this stage will enable faster acquisition of moral and spiritual independence.
“Help the child help himself” has to be the underlying philosophy behind making a child independent. Because true independence can only be gained when the atmosphere is free but supportive.
