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Bringing out the best
B. MADHU GOPAL
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What is it that makes for good parenting? The participants of the "Art of parenting" workshop held recently in Vishakapatnam found out just that.
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Parents in the schoolroom...
A good child is an asset to the family, society and the nation at large. Grooming children into better citizens is the responsibility of parents as they are the "first teachers" and children learn the most in their formative years. Parents exercise tremendous influence on their children. These are the broad views expressed by the speakers at a seminar "Art of Parenting" organised by The Hindu as part of its Newspaper In Education programme, in association with the Indo-American School in Visakhapatnam recently.
In her presentation, "Dealing with children more effectively", Prof. K. Hari Lakshmi of the Department of Psychology, Andhra University, said that the concept of "punishment and reward" should be ingrained from childhood to inculcate discipline. Parents should learn to ignore minor tantrums of the child. For example: some children may like to wear only certain type of clothes and make a fuss when parents ask them to wear something else. Respecting their likes and dislikes, to a reasonable extent, would develop independence and assertiveness in children.
The Chairman of the Indo-American School, V. Pujari, asserted: "The future of tomorrow's nation is in the hands of today's parents. They need to re-look the methods of dealing with their children in tune with the changing world."
Dr. Varma Vegesna, managing director of Lazarus Hospitals Ltd., pointed out that "learning starts very early and by the time the child is a year old, the child's physical and mental skills would be phenomenal."
Mr. T. A. Venkateswaran, Regional Manager of The Hindu, gave an overview of ancient Indian culture, which encompassed every aspect of life and "is relevant for all times to come, in view of its inherent corrective mechanism to adapt to changes." A right balance should be struck between love and discipline, he said. In his message, read out at the end of the seminar, Sadguru Sivananda Murty of Bheemunipatnam underlined the importance of the family in moulding the character of a child. "Parenting is encouraging the good qualities in the child and removing or discouraging the bad through teaching," he said.
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