• Save

The need of the hour is holistic development centered on high-quality education.

– Aadesh Kumar Jain. S

In simple words, holistic approach to education is an individual’s social, emotional, physical, mental, and intellectual development. It is an invaluable asset for a developing country like India.
In addition to making learning more enjoyable, placing more emphasis on holistic growth will help the youth cultivate their natural talent and acquire new skills.

Focusing on a child’s growth in all areas, not just their academic development, is the goal of a holistic approach to education. The child’s general well-being is the most important factor to consider.

  • Save

Process of Holistic Development

There are three major processes of holistic development in children:
Cognitive Process: Thinking, intelligence, and language abilities are all part of the cognitive process. It is the process by which society’s newest members intellectually advance from simplistic to complex ways of thinking.
Biological Process: The biological process causes physical changes in the body, such as weight gain, physical growth, and brain development. It’s how tiny little children physically change from being children to being adults.
Social-Emotional Process: Personality, feelings, and interpersonal connections are all parts of the social-emotional process. It is the progression of people’s behaviors from immature to mature.

Key Elements of Holistic Development

  • Save

1. Cognitive

The expansion of a child’s capacity for thought and reasoning is known as “cognitive development.” Between the ages of 6 and 12 and 12 and 18, this growth occurs in a different way. This includes cognitive, creativity, and acquiring skills for learning. Cognitive abilities that contribute to holistic growth are memory, processing speed, spatial ability, and abstract reasoning.

Cognitive Development Throughout the Years

It happens differently in every child. If you have any concerns about your child’s cognitive development, you should always consult a child psychologist.

Early childhood

1. Develops and expresses personal opinions on a variety of subjects.

2. Gaining the ability to understand and reason about concepts, ideas, principles, and things that are not physically present or spoken about.

3. Starts to demonstrate formal logical operations in school, like solving mathematical equations.

4. Pays attention for however long it is required.

Middle Childhood

1. Start questioning more extensively.

2. Begin to consider the long term.

3. Start building their own identity.

4. Begins to form their own views and code of ethics.

Late Childhood

1. Begins to focus on their role as an adult in society.

2. Focus on their career and making decisions.

3. Increased consideration of more universal ideas like justice, history.

Role of Cognitive Development in Schools

  • Save

Cognitive development refers to a child’s capacity for thought, exploration, and problem-solving. Children’s ability to consider and comprehend their surroundings is aided by the development of knowledge, skills, problem-solving abilities, and dispositions.

1. Exposure to play: In the early years, it’s important to emphasize the idea of “play and learn.” Free play develops a child’s learning and thinking skills.

2. Encouraging children to express their ideas independently and share their beliefs by conducting friendly debates in the classroom.

3. Helping in re-evaluating poor results and decision-making.

4. Reading to children enhances their cognitive development by sparking their interest in a wide range of subjects and expanding their vocabulary.

Read about Piaget’s 4 Stages of Cognitive Development

Language

  • Save

Having good speaking skills is important. Children under the age of five learn and perform well in linguistics. A child’s ability to communicate clearly, comprehend others, process speech sounds, express ideas, and interact with others are fundamental building blocks for their development.

How to build linguistic skills in school:

1. Content-based instruction

2. Focus on language across the curriculum.

3. Cognitive-Academic Language Learning Approach

4. By utilizing a framework of valuable content, topic-based syllabi adopt an all-encompassing strategy

Check Out Our Post On 12 Effective Books On Mental Health

Social-Emotional Development

  • Save

What is meant by social and emotional development in children is how they begin to understand who they are, what they are feeling, and what to anticipate when interacting with others. It helps children to understand and express their emotions. Social-emotional development helps build confidence and curiosity and strengthen positive social relationships.
Important aspects of social-emotional development result from behaviors that promote positive relationships as well as abilities that help kids comprehend and express their emotions. These features consist of:

  • Self-regulation
  • Active listening
  • Cooperation
  • Effective communication

Social-Emotional Development in School

  • Save

a) Establish group rules with kids and teach them how their bad behavior impacts the kids around them.

b) Encourage students to share, take turns, eat meals together, and play together.

c) Use books and stories to make children more sensitive to others.

d) Engage students in cooperative learning which involves working with peers towards a common goal.

Physical Development

It is one of the major areas that promote holistic development. Physical development can be classified into two categories:

1. Fine Motor Skills: The ability to move by using the small muscles in our hands and wrists is known as fine motor skills. These abilities are necessary for us to complete important tasks in school, the workplace, and daily life. Most people do these small movements without thinking because they are so natural to us. For example, turning pages of a notebook, drawing, writing, etc.

  • Save

2. Gross Motor Skills: The ability to perform daily tasks with the help of the body’s large (core stabilizing) muscles requires whole-body movement. For example, sitting, crawling, running, jumping, throwing a ball, and climbing stairs.

  • Save

Physical Development in School

a) Offering a variety of sports to children like skating, cricket, basketball, football, gymnastics, etc.

b) Conduct drawing, dance, yoga, or aerobics workshops.

c) Engage in gross motor activities, or big movements, and explore ways to climb, jump, swing, and run.

d) Making children practice small movements, or fine motor skills, by doing things like holding a crayon, molding playdough, digging in the sand, or building with blocks.

Why Holistic Approach is Important in School?

  • Save

A holistic approach to education encourages self-expression, stimulates curiosity, and fosters social skills. Using their skills in intuition, logic, and creativity, holistic teachers help their students relate to a subject while making learning enjoyable and engaging. Young people need this kind of learning strategy more than anyone else.

Advantages of the Holistic Approach To Education

1. Encourages students to explore their passions and interests.

2. Helps understand themselves better.

3. Helps in the development of intellectual, emotional, social, physical, artistic, creative, and spiritual potentials.

4. Solves the issue of irrational expectations.

5. Helps students develop internal values, morals, and ethics.

6. Increases confidence and promotes self-identity.

Tips for Promoting Holistic Growth in Schools

1. Outdoor Classes: Conducting classes in outdoor settings can be refreshing for students as well as teachers.

2. Individual assignments and projects can help boost a child’s problem-solving skills and creative thinking.

3. Using new technology: Smart classrooms equipped with cutting-edge technology can pique students’ interest in learning in a modern and efficient manner.

4. Group activity: Cooperative learning helps in social-emotional development.

5. Learn and play: Learning through games encourages play, which promotes the holistic development of a child.

6. Encourage creativity: Being creative extends beyond just being artistic. Anything that has new ideas, including mathematics, science, and technology, includes creative ideas.

7. Building language skills: Learning a language helps kids express themselves, communicate, and interact with others. A child who can communicate is self-assured, eager to learn new things, and willing to explore new things.