One of the most challenging tasks today whether at home or in school is filling in the gaps particularly in early childhood education. There are many ways in which a child could learn and this lifetime commitment covers many aspects in their holistic development. Though the process can be best described as gradual, there are many factors that hinder the flow and one concrete example is generation gap.
When you are a parent or a teacher, it is a must that you comprehend a little about culture and you must always remember that there is a huge age gap between you and your child or student. Most adults impose discipline the way they were brought up and in most cases, this is not effective because humans evolve from time to time; hence, what you consider as effective ten or twenty years ago may not be as pleasing or acceptable today. In order to shed light on this seemingly myopic view, here are some clarifications to consider:
- Genetic Factors
Every human being, young or old, is considered unique in many ways. The question is: how does it contribute to learning gaps? It should be clear that brain functions may differ from one person to another. Practically, what you think about something may greatly differ with that of a family member or a colleague. In this case, ideas and opinions may differ even for school age children when they share their childish stories to either a parent or a classmate. The parent or teacher’s ability to listen to a talking child likewise affect or contribute to certain levels of acceptance which in turn affect emotions and then results in building either self confidence or inferiority in them.
- Birth abnormalities and defects
Humans are considered as rational beings; yet, not everyone is born physically or mentally sound. Imagine asking a normal child to sit with a differently-abled fellow in a classroom. From the looks of the subjects, you can already deduce from your point of view, who is likely to perform well academically. This example meant no offence but to explicitly paint the scenario of what this article is trying to say. It is sad to note that human limitations would dominantly assess what the eyes could see instead of what the heart can tell.
- Family background and orientation
A child could either look exactly like the father or the mother in resemblance; but one’s intelligence could also possibly be attributed to heredity. A grandfather or a grandmother in this case is also capable of passing on physical or mental characteristics from one generation to another. This means that with the idea of understanding differences in early childhood education, knowledge and skills may also differ for every child; thus, creating gaps in many possible aspects or angles.
- Language
We speak a variety of languages around the world and in some regions, they have what they consider as a dialect which is spoken by a few members of the population or a community. Children may have a different way of communicating but there will always be communication gaps wherever you go. At home or in school, administrators, teachers and parents must devise plans of bridging communication gaps.
There are a lot of other things not mentioned in this article including but not limited to mode of dressing, courtship, relationships and other academic factors contributing to creating gaps to early childhood learning which are self explanatory in nature. Bring your kids to early learning available at The Gap to help them overcome the challenges in learning at an early age.
