What can we do to help our child succeed?
What does it take for us to succeed later in life?
Is success really pre-determined?
In this generation of social media where parents post everything their children do and achievements their children have accomplished, we can easily get pressured if our child doesn’t really do “that well”.
But will their good grades really help them become more successful in life?
Not really, no
A study published in the American Public Health Association actually revealed what it takes and how we
do in kindergarten can influence our success later in life.
The study involved about 800 children in kindergarten and they were tracked 13-19 years later to analyze how their ratings in pro-social skills were associated with how they became later in life.
These are what they concluded from the study:
It takes more than “smarts” to succeed
That’s right
Good grades are good but there’s more to it that can help one become a success.
While these test scores are important, there is more to it than what isn’t revealed in their grades: how they worked with a study partner, the discipline they have to prioritize studying over watching TV and even how they asked their teacher for help when they need it.
These non-cognitive skills are very much important for a person to succeed.
Sharing and cooperating pays off in adulthood
The study showed that children who were helpful and sharing in kindergarten are more likely to graduate in college and have a full-time job at the age of 25.
Children who had a difficult time in resolving conflicts And those who had problems with cooperating and sharing were most likely to have problems with the law, have issues with mental health or get involved with substance abuse.
And while the study doesn’t necessarily point out that poor social skills directly affect or cause these issues, it is a factor why these children have had trouble later in life.
It’s never too late to learn and “unlearn”
Can this really be true?
If your child has poor social skills, does that mean your child is doomed to failure in life?
Not really.
According to the researchers of the study.
Identifying these factors can help provide “early intervention” when you realize that your child does not excel in these “non-cognitive” skills.
Aside from giving them information, it also helps to teach them “emotional learning” not only through activities that could help them control their thoughts and emotions but by influencing them as their parents.
These behaviors actually come from their parents and demonstrating positive social traits could very much influence them to have these important “non-cognitive” skills.
In short:
A child’s social-emotional skills can help influence their success in adulthood (something that we may already know).
However, it is never late to teach these skills to them and having a balance between teaching cognitive and non-cognitive skills can help them become successful later in life.
