Many parents are bothered by whether 12 is too early to send a child to coaching classes for entrance exams. Education is changing in many ways- from by-heart learning to more objective and reasoning ability assessment types. This makes the competition every passing day. For them, it then becomes another pressure to become successful at a downer age than earlier. But much consideration should also be given to the development, emotional and social aspects before any such decision is made.
Reasons for enrolling children in coaching classes at a very early age
For parents, preparation at an early stage is perceived as a way to secure an excellent future for their children. The entrance exam will open many other doors of opportunities for further studies in prestigious institutions and colleges, a great achievement for the student’s future. It takes immense sacrifice to succeed in entrance exams and get into the admission process, which will require unwavering efforts from parents toward the students.
1. The developmental perspective:
A child’s age is significant and critical in development because 12 years marks the time when he enters the adolescent period. This is where major conflicts of opinion arise between children and their parents. There are several changes that happen externally, coupled with the questions that arise regarding one’s identity, and there comes the newly acquired taste for freedom and independence. While not supposed to, such develop issues become serious distractions from puberty, which is very critical in life, and affect growing up in the future. Such will disrupt the normal flow in academics.
According to child psychology, too much pressure in academics creates anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, as well as burnout. This child, at this age, does feel different and doesn’t feel like a part of society when all that pressure is put on them by school. Long hours of study that would constitute preparation for entrance examinations impinge upon the time children need for recreation and being with peers.
2. Balancing academics and play:
Education is one of the many things that’s important in life, and balancing academics with play is another. Corporate activities in play areas for children help him develop creativity, social skills, and physical activity. Early travels for coaching may disrupt this balance and engender improper all-round development as one of the areas that should be concerned for the improvement of his interest in play with proper classwork.
Parents could do well in taking this kind of all-encompassing view toward education. Such scenarios may sometimes supersede the rote learning of things and narrow teaching methods. Children, when doing what they enjoy, will find ways of making these academically stressful.
3. Interest and aptitude:
Every child has unique interests and aptitudes. While some children may take an interest in subjects lining up with entrance exam syllabi, others may be interested in other things. Forcing a child into a coaching class with no regard for his personal interests leads him to develop a feeling of being against that class.
This innate sense of curiosity should be carefully monitored by parents and teachers, as it is the interest and encouragement they provide that would nurture a child into a lifelong learner. A situation may arise when a child indicates an interest to prepare for his entrance examination preparations from an early age-coaching classes may then become an option but always as the child’s decision, not forcing the child.
4. Need for emotional support:
Emotional support is one of the vital necessities if a child has to face stress with respect to academics. Close rapport and an open dialogue between the parents and children are what would help the decision moving towards sending them to coaching classes for entrance exams during the 12th grade.
There should be a secure environment where parents and children can convey their all apprehensions, whether fear, anxiety, or depression, or the tensions they are dealing with. Parents should encourage an atmosphere where children express their thoughts about what they want for their future and how they want to pursue careers.
This regular talking combined with giving the child good quality time will gauge what the child thinks and also stress the child, which gives leverage to the parents to adjust their expectations from their child.
Some schools employ a counselor to guide each student in their career choices and the pressures of academic or extracurricular activities. Schools may organize workshops, campaigns, and guest lecturer series encouraging children into the fields. An astutely trained teacher will realize the signs of stress or impending burnout in students and might act promptly to assist the student in addressing the concern.
There are schools that also provide counselling to every student concerning career choices and stress management relating to academic or extracurricular activities. Schools may arrange workshops, campaigns, and guest speakers by energizing children in broad-ranging fields. A well-trained teacher should be able to detect signs of stress or impending burnout in a child and take prompt action to assist the student in solving the difficulty.
The impacts of pressure in academia from an early age should not be something one overlooks. From a very young age, academic pressure always comes alongside an array of negative feelings, including stress, anxiety, depression, jealousy, or any other type of feeling: bad thoughts and unhealthy competition. All these can end up causing a negative attitude towards learning or hatred for some particular subject. It becomes more of a burden than a wonderful experience in life.
There should be concern for such concepts as understanding, nurturing, responsiveness, and attachment to learning on the part of the students, teachers, and parents, for the sake of creating a life in which education has been brought positively to the mind of the child so that they reap all the benefits in their lives. In the future, problems regarding learners are to be attended curiously and critically, with fewer solutions attached to the problem. Simply put, the need to solve a problem should be minimized to memorize the lines of a syllabus.
Practical tips for parents:
- The question parents need to ask themselves prior to enrolling a child in study classes for entrance examinations is whether their child actually has an interest in the subject area concerned or is simply curious about the end product or result?
- Ensure that the schedule set for your child is balanced with play, rest, and socialisation. A fair routine can help create the general well-being of your child so that he does not burn out due to lack of time for everything.
- Parents should be open with their children and communicate effectively with them. Hear their child’s concerns and feelings regarding coaching classes and entrance exam preparations.
- Engage with faculty and child psychologists regarding how to approach the student’s academic and emotional needs.
- Propose that they learn out of interest and curiosity rather than solely for exams. This may cultivate within them a lifelong love of learning.
There can be no truly formed and final answer to the previous question. Is 12 too early for entering the child into coaching classes for the entrance exam? Neither can there ever be a solution which fits all. This is a serious decision to be made by the parents and the child, one that calls for deep consideration of age and stage, mental health, overall development, core interest of the child, and well-being.
While early preparation may be good, it should never infringe upon the joy and all-round growth of any child. By adopting a supportive and balancing approach toward education, parents, teachers, and mentors can gently steer their wards toward whatever success they desire. Candidly speaking, education is not merely about clearing examinations or getting good scores in subjects; it is all about nurturing the spirit of inquisitiveness and ever enthusiasm in line with their interests and preparing them to face the world and find joy, happiness, and confidence therein.
At Delhi Public School Warangal, we feel that the question of sending children to coaching classes at 12 needs to lead to a rethinking of priorities and goals in the field of education, for true learning environments should not focus on early specialisation, helping them flourish academically and for the larger personality.