by Kit Nemenzo Balene

Allow me today to talk about Bohol Child Head Start, our school.  Most of the time, I am asked why we use the tagline “where healing meets learning”. For some, it sounds like the school is associated only with kids with special needs.

I cannot fault them.However, from my point of view as a psychologist, learning is holistic. Learning does not only refer to an increase in what we know. It mostly pertains to the blossoming of the whole self.

A child can literally be a walking dictionary but fail to use this knowledge to better his engagement with others or still carry on after a failure.

Children today are smarter than their predecessors. Research indicates that kids now have higher IQs compared with the previous generation. But it comes at a price. While they are smarter, most children nowadays are also more impatient, impulsive, entitled, and have low frustration tolerance.

Is this something to worry about? I believe so. It is so disheartening to read news about child prodigies who grow up not living up to their potential or worst commit suicide. There are many of them.

How do we activate healing in school? In CHILD, wetell our teachers to get genuinely interested with their pupils. When a child knows and feels that he belongs and is treated with relevance, he will flourish and will develop a healthy sense of pride.

We can easily do this because of the existing small class size. In such an environment, everyone can have ample opportunity to be recognized, helped, listened to, facilitated, disciplined, and so on. Such personal and intimate connection with teachers and classmates enhance learning all the more.

We also educate and work side by side with our parents. We give them parenting tips. Take for example the issue of praising our children. We tell our parents to use praise genuinely and effectively.

Praise can be damaging if not used correctly. I know of one parent who seems to be obsessed with showing how her son is accomplishing a lot of things. To her, it is important to lavish her child with praise at every opportunity.

This can be dangerous. If we praise for accomplishment and achievement, the child may grow up believing that his worth is attached to what he can do. Hence, chances are, he may not be motivated to do something beyond his comfort zone for fear of not being able to live up to the praises of his parents.

But more than achievement, we tell our parents to focus on effort. When we praise effort, we reinforce our children to work harder and give their best shots without the fear of failing. Because even if they fail, they know that they can always improve their efforts next time and continue the challenge.

In CHILD, we have nature as our ally. We surround ourselves with greenery and quiet, far enough from the bustle and noise of the city but still very much accessible. When children are overwhelmed with so much unnecessary stimulation, they cannot blossom well.

These are just some of the reasons we continue to use and be guided by our philosophy as expressed in our tagline “where healing meets learning”. To me, even the so called “regular” children, need to consistently experience healing moments to make learning more facilitated.

P.S. For inquiries about Bohol Child Head Start, please call or text 416-1248/09295571136.You can also visit www.boholchild.com or search us on Facebook.