How to accurately zero in on passions of school children and actively encouage them
Marriage of passions and careers is the best thing that can happen to any human being. Passion is all about intimate and involved liking for doing something. Some of them are careers where there is a maximum amount of uncertainty. Examples are writers, playback singers, and painters who want to become professional artists. Irrespective of the risks or challenges or whatever, passions need to be spotted and encuraged at a very young age. The "how" of getting this done is sought to be discussed in some detail
Introduction
Whatever references or real-world case-studies are discussed in this article do not pertain to the child prodigies. They are totally different. They are special people, where the talent starts showing up so early in their lives, often before the age of five or six.
However, even in the case of others, God would have given some natural ability to people. At some stage, the child, normally before the age of eight spends too much time on his or her passion and would go to any length to hang on to it. This will naturally annoy most parents. More so, if the field is highly competitive. They would hence keep goading the child to study and settle in a good job and then pursue his or her passion, on a part-time basis. In very few cases does it happen that the parents keep on engaging and encouraging the child to chase his or her passion and also live it; the child will study through distance education and still be powerful in terms of becoming a professional. However, in a short span of two decades, the individual would have saved enough to manage to live a very good life thereafter, even when he or she quits the game. Cricketers are the best example.
Be that as it may, the exact steps to be followed are a) Get the teacher/parent to spot the passion b) Keep on giving positive strokes c) Encourage special training in that passion d) Keep education as a secondary preoccupation and e) Keep encouraging a pugnacious spirit in children.Get the teacher/parent to spot the passion
A very famous television artiste, now Chennai-based, but having an ambition to even act in Hindi movies, was all praise for her parents. When she expressed a desire to become a television artiste, she got the first break when she was asked to compere a few famous film-based shows. Everyone noticed this chirpy girl called Nakshatra. The chance to act in television serials happened so naturally. Her real break came so recently. He acted in a famous serial called Nayagi in Tamil and was noticed for her superb acting talent. She paired up with Krishna, an extremely talented hero, whose expressions are a treat to watch on television. Nakshatra is among the busiest of television actors today, and she is so busy on Sun TV, the best channel with the widest reach in Tamil Nadu.
This is exactly what passion is all about. One should encourage passion. After all, acting is another profession. The kind of entertainment that actors provide to the public on television and cinema screens can never be calculated based on only money.Keep on giving positive strokes
This is important too. The teacher and the parent and special coaches have a big role: they ought to keep encouraging the child
Another example is the world-class actor, who has won several National Awards and has been acting for the past sixty years. Kamal Hassan. The name just spells magic. The family ecosystem has given to the Tamil movie world, such a brilliant actor. Of course, he has also acted in Hindi and several other languages. Today, he is above sixty but is still recognized for his acting prowess. Encouragement and nurturing of the passion can be done when the parent or the teacher spots a single activity that comes naturally to the child. This identification and further nurturing has to happen so naturally. There is no other option. When the child goes on receiving positive strokes, that is, the patting on the back, the psychological effect that it can have on the child is stupendous, to say the least.
Hundreds of people miss out so badly on chasing their passions because of undue family and parental pressure. When this happens, the person loses interest and gradually retreats to a world of his or her own, virtually doing something for a living but uninterested in doing it.Encourage special training in that passion
Chennai is the fourth largest city in India, in terms of area. It is also the citadel of Carnatic music. Hundreds of parents spot the natural passion in their children and move as close to Mylapore, the centre of all Carnatic music with a big organization called the "Music Sabha" to promote Carnatic music in a big way. There are hundreds of specialists who have made the entire world proud
One of these and easily the most famous of these was the late legend MS Subbalakshmi. She had produced a generation of Carnatic music experts and in each case, special training was given to the young exponents by the parents of such children. One has to just go over to Chennai to observe how this happens. The same kind of passion, it has been reported, is famous among Hindustani Music experts as well.
Hence, passion should be further encouraged through special training. This has caught on even in small towns and it is encouraging to read many stories of parents who nurture their sons or daughters in their passion for cricket, football or even hockey. This kind of encouragement is vital to nurture the passions of children at a very young age.Keep education as a secondary preoccupation
When a child gets to play at the district level in say, Cricket and gets noticed for his performance, he will likely graduate to even play for the district in a State-level cricket tournament. Today, the TNPL has nurtured such a brilliant Natarajan, now called Yorker Natarajan. His real-life story had a big twist when his not-so-educated parents made him play cricket and pursue his bowling skills. After TNPL, it was the SRH team that proudly owned him. Today, he is a member of the Indian National Team and within a couple of years, he is bound to play Test cricket. He has constantly thanked his parents for their constant encouragement. Given the facilities for distance education, this cricketer can easily acquire a degree within a few years. Recognition comes one's way, only, as the IPL Management calls it, "talent meets opportunity". When left to choose between a formal course of study and a big opportunity to pursue one's passion, it is fine to pursue the passion first and then get educated when he or she gets recognized at the National level.Keep encouraging a pugnacious spirit in children
A few years ago, a very ordinary girl, who had a good voice and could sing film songs so well, from a village near Tiruvarur, was spotted by her teachers and encouraged all the way. The girl crossed so many barriers and finally won the title in the Airtel Super singer contest that year. Of course, the public also had a big role in choosing the winner, but the impact was tremendous. The television show, live on Vijay TV, is a super-duper hit and has produced so many playback singers. The teachers of that school were praised by all for encouraging a pugnacious spirit in the girl. This is exactly what is important. Everyone fails somewhere on the other. For example, only one team can win the IPL title, but the pugnacious spirit is what matters. The seed for such a spirit in children who need to follow their passions, has to be sown, only during the childhood phase, when he or she is very young.
It is the learning in the formative years that makes a vital difference to the success of anyone wanting to pursue one's passion. It should be a spontaneous affair, with active support from significant others in the form of parents and teachers. Conclusion
Based on several real-life observations, published data, and some real-world experiences, based on feedback from so many quarters, I have tried to highlight some basic steps in the process of identifying passions and encouraging them. It is quite obvious that parents and teachers have a vital role in this process. It is a long-drawn process and those with a burning passion need all encouragement, at any point in time, to pursue whatever passions they have. The nurturing of all such passions, with active external support, will make a vital difference to our society at the macro level.
This is one nice article on generation of the requisite passion in a child which can guide him in real life situation. The mind of a child is like a blank slate and it is up to the parents and teachers what to engrave there and what not. Another thing is the environment where child is growing, the society where the parents are residing, the friends and circle where the child is moving etc. So there are many factors which govern the inculcation of passion and devotion in the child and all are not within our hands as external factors are also there and are equally important. In general, parents are sentimentally attached to the child and may not be strict which might be required sometimes essentially to bring the child back to track. Teachers can do that better as they can be rough and tough with the students depending upon the occasion. So monitoring the child and observing his interest area and then encouraging him in that is the main thing that has to be somehow achieved by the parents and teachers in conjunction. In the matter of child's growth a small slip can be a fatal thing and that is why it is so crucial to carry out it in a delicate and balanced manner.