Madhav Prasad Dahal

The present-day school and college curricula always have their focus on improving the students’ test scores. Higher digits have up to now given the teachers, parents and students the best emotional satisfaction. Higher the digits on mark slip, the more is the satisfaction.

The efforts made by stakeholders are all to obtain better digits. What all they work, hope, pray and wish is to have certificates with better percentages. But when we look upon the test modules and the types of questions asked, they are less constructive so far. Choosing one answer from multiple choices adds no interest to examinees. Thorough, monotonous rote learning compels the learners to study only during the exam but as soon as the exam is over, the examinees, in retrospection, feel what a hellish job they came through. The multiple choice questions are not flexible at all. The students find no place to reveal their multiple inner potentials. Even the teachers find the curriculum to be a barrier to teach students the multiple skills they need for their later life.

Impact
For everyone, emphasis on human relationship, development of intellectuality, ability to express the ‘self’ on public, ability to tolerate, sense of humour, etc, are the vital parts of life. Many school children today suffer from a nasty habit of sitting alone, ignoring guests, dinning on sofa or bed, disobeying seniors, etc. Many distinction holders working in different sectors show typical behaviours. They lack feelings for others. They are ego-centric, less interactive and terribly selfish. They tend to show no feelings or responsibilities for their parents, elderly people, physically handicapped, helpless and sick people. Utter individualism has made the university graduates irresponsive towards mutual relationship. They have never learnt the fact that maintaining a good relationship with the people around them is the only way of success and happiness. What they need abundantly is the heap of facilities, comforts and luxury.

Parents are tired of the stubborn nature of their children today. They may be very good on I. Q. scores, but because of lack of wider socialisation, they cannot express themselves on public. They enjoy the company of minority group. Making a secure and safe corner for themselves for their livelihood, they have forgotten the entire nation, nationality brotherhood and humanity. The curriculum-based and high-score oriented teaching learning system has, in fact, crippled students today.

Now it has largely been felt that classroom-based teaching alone cannot develop children's multiple skills. A teaching system inside an enclosure cannot produce human resources as per a nation's expectations. Children must be taken outside to mix up with society on all social events like celebrations of festivals, campaign against drug addiction, violence against women and child labour exploitation or superstition. Together with the teachers inside the classroom, the students now should also learn from social predecessors of all walks of lives. When they mix up in the society with people of various walks of life, they learn widely about the most important values of life-like leadership and cooperation. We sometimes hear about violent bomb attacks on school or college caused by students. The psychotic behaviour like this will be eliminated if more importance is given to social and human relationship.

When a student converses extensively with multitude of groups, the outcome is always good. There are many bodies in schools and collages whom students need to work with. Besides teaching staffs, librarians, administrative employees should also teach students about the way to behave with others. Even canteen staffs should also be very sensitive in the way they behave with students. Students learning in different levels today will come out as teachers, doctors, engineers, administrators tomorrow. Whatever field they choose, they must learn about the basic emotional skills that are the essentials for all professionals. No professionals can get success without knowing the fact that human relationship is an important part of our career. Talent alone may not work unless a cordial relationship is established with the community members.

Much of the learning according to Lev Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, is relational. He also emphasises on the role of community that facilitates the learning process. Similarly, philosopher Martin Buber also says that consciousness arises through relationship. Teaching relationship does not mean to let teachers know all students or all students know their teachers. It is more than that. Knowing each other certainly facilitates teaching-learning but the best thing a student should learn is to link and make connections with people around. Teaching through relationship describes the complex social environment in which students and teachers converse, share experiences, and participate in activities together, make for engaged learning to connect their learning with other world.

Focus on emotional skill
The research conducted in the universities and elsewhere has proved that success in business or professions of a person depends on his/her relationship with others rather than on an ability to score better marks at an exam. Life is all about relationship. It is a matter of emotional skill that is countable in life. Social skill does not necessarily mean sociability alone. It is an ability to recognise and understand our emotions in ourselves and in others and a capacity to use this awareness to manage our behaviour and relationship.

The more sensitive we are in understanding others, the better is the success in life. Our accountability, honesty, ability to communicate with others, a habit to think positively, our decision-making power, flexibility, power of convincing others and becoming a good listener, etc can make us truly successful and happy in life. So, the cases of students shooting their own classmates for no reasons can be addressed better if educational institutes shift their focus on improving emotional quotient (E. Q.) rather than intelligent quotient (I. Q.) scores.

(The author is an Assistant Professor at the Tribhuvan University. mpdahal076@gmail.com)