Importance Of Life Skills Teaching In School - Satyam College of Education

By
MANISHA MANGLANI (B.Ed SEM-II)
MENTOR- MS. NEHA AGGARWAL
Satyam College of Education, Noida

Life skills Education is a new mantra of education, that is incorporated in the school curriculum with the aim of the development of educational support services, like social work, school health, specialized education, vocational, general guidance, counseling and psychological services.

No matter how smart you may be academically, If you don’t have proper life skills to go along with it, you are not able to cope up with the real-life situations. The Growth and advancement of a country rely on the development and improvement of youthful personalities. Teenyboppers are considered as the most productive members of society; they are not able to use their potential because of the absence of direction and inspiration.

The central vision of life skills is empowering youngsters to engage in and cope successfully with life and its challenges.

Parents, family, and teachers play a crucial role in molding children’s behavior.

“LIFE SKILLS ARE ART OF LIVING, WHICH HELP US TO DRAW A PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL SKETCH OF LIFE” – RAJEEV RANJAN

Life skills can change and Affect: Ignorance Awareness Concern Knowledge Motivation Professional skills Habits Lifestyle

What are life skills?

“Life skills are abilities for adaptive and positive behavior that enable humans to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of life”-WHO

Life skills have 10 core elements:

*PROBLEM -SOLVING*	*DECISION -MAKING*
*CREATIVE THINKING*	*CRITICAL THINKING*
*SELF AWARENESS*	*EMPATHY*
*INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS*	*GOOD COMMUNICATION*
*MANAGEMENT OF STRESS*	*MANAGEMENT OF EMOTION*

SOCIAL SKILLS-Interpersonal Relationships, Good communication.
THINKING SKILLS- Creative thinking, Problem-solving, Decision-making, Critical thinking.
EMOTIONAL SKILLS- Management of stress, Management of emotion self- awareness.

Each student has a unique way of dealing with situations. Some students are Extrovert and some students are introvert. Social skills train students in mixing great with society. Thinking skills that help students to cope up with the challenges of life include problem-solving and decision making. Students must know how to deal with their difficulties and make the right decisions to solve their problems. Thinking out of the box is again very important. A creative and practical way of thinking is encouraged. Emotional skills help students in controlling their emotions like rivalry, fear, outrage, pressure, competition, anger.

WHY DO STUDENTS LEARN AND DEVELOP LIFE SKILLS?

“Teaching children wellbeing and life skills in schools is the best way to ensure that future generations flourish!” -Viivi Pentikäinen

Life skill education= Positive pedagogy, Positive education, Positive psychology

After years of School, Some students find it hard to transition once the formal school is over.

It is critical to look into fundamental abilities, for example, joy aptitudes, quality aptitudes, goals abilities, enthusiastic aptitudes, cooperation abilities, relationship aptitudes, self-administration abilities just as compassion abilities at school. Along these lines, kids grow up to be mentally strong, and responsible young adults.

Life skills and work skills can be enhanced under teachers’ guidance. Life outside the school is nothing like a classroom environment, teaching these skills to help students become successful later on in their lives.

UNICEF defines life skills as “a behavior change or behavior development approach designed to address a balance of three areas: knowledge, attitude, and skills”.

Schools should focus on the building:

Content knowledge- Content knowledge is very important as it develops feelings of competence and confidence as learners. Whatever knowledge, attitudes, and skills that students acquire in the areas of academics, serve as the foundation for future success in their school and community and prepare them to be effective global citizens.

Learning and innovation skills- Which includes creativity, Communication, collaboration, And critical thinking.

Information media and technological skills -Student needs to be able to access all the available information, keep students up to date with all the Rapid changes in technology.

Life and professional skills- At the point when students enter the work environment, they should be both adaptable and ready to adjust to changes. They must develop skills of initiation of autonomy, social and culture diversity skills, productivity and accountability, leadership and responsibility.

How schools can develop life skills in students?

Life skills can be taught with the subject’s class or through some special classes.

Schools develop life skills by integrating them with the regular curriculum. In EVS subject students learn about their surroundings, they learn how to cope up with their own emotions and how they can connect themselves to the real world. Storytelling sessions can help students to think about society problems and develop critical thinking skills.

Having great SOCIAL SKILLS, a life skill is a key to success in life. Respecting each individual, connecting with people, sharing thoughts, self-expression is very important.

Schools can advance these aptitudes by urging small kids to distinguish and express their feelings to different class exercises, for example, dramatization, puppet shows, simulation exercises, role plays, excursions, projects, brainstorming sessions, case studies and so forth.

Which subject taught in class can be used to connect some of the other life skills for instance:

Language assists kids with creating relational abilities, by empowering perusing and composing. Science permits understudies to investigate interest, cultivate imagination, Discovery, critical thinking, and logical temper.

Connecting maths with real-life situations helps in developing cognitive skills.

Children these days need to be taught the value of money, which starts, from activities like saving money in the piggy bank to the development of an entrepreneur’s minds when they pass out school.

Social Studies assist students to become independent and effective in responding to life challenges and to be dynamic and dependable. It provides learning skills to relate positively with society and contribute to the family community. Social sciences inculcate high order thinking abilities like gender equality, and sex education.

Teaching children about health awareness which includes oral health, physical health, nutritional health, and mental health. Activities such as Yoga, sports such as basket calls, cricket, badminton, etc.and meditation (breathing exercises) are included in the school curriculum. These activities help in managing stress and anxiety, increase concentration, develop a competitive spirit, Time management, and habits to work in teams.

Schools should learn about the interests, needs, and worries of students. Give them a chance to speak!

Youngsters need models, not pundits. Kids must be urged to think and pose inquiries in the study hall. Educators may help understudies in creating individual objectives and helping them in the accomplishment of these objectives.

Life skills Education also strengthened bonds between teachers and students.

Schools carve the future of a nation therefore the integration of life skills in school curriculum children develops a positive attitude and become a happy person in any phase of life.

Today’s dynamic world brings new challenges and stress every day so the integration of life skills using the School curriculum can enable students to deal with these challenges effectively.