Introduction
The practice of developing a viewpoint through one’s own thought and capabilities rather than have faith on the word of others is called independent thinking. The capability to believe one’s own decisions, acting according to one’s beliefs regardless of mistakes or imperfections forms part of independent thinking.
The formative years of a child are the real time-period for shaping up their independent thinking. Childhood is considered one of the most critical and essential parts in life, which leads to development of independent thinking that can go a long way in shaping their individuality. At this age, children are at their creative best, energetic and raw. This encourages them to develop habits which ingrain a sense of self sufficiency, which can lead to fewer problems while growing up.
Importance of Thinking Individually
There are a lot of reasons that make it essential that children should be inspired to think independently.
Innovations in science or medicine have been made possible because of the courage shown by some children, who decided not to follow others. The real fact is, for developing and strengthening the mind, it is important to introduce independent thinking in early childhood. The end result of independent thinking is innovation and without the same, we would be a part of dark ages.
But, some parents end up shaping up their children’s minds the way they want like if parents are of the view that learning a set of questions are important to do well in examinations, then the same thought is forced upon a child without understanding that those answers will not help their children to face questions that do not come with ready solutions.
For development of creative thinking, the parents must encourage their children to do something new which would take their minds into creative thinking process without fear of being wrong or different.
To judge a student on the basis of failure or success, the pedagogy followed in school is ‘teach to test’. However, creativity needs to be considered as benchmark of independent thinking.
There are many methods that can be followed at home in order to develop independent thinking in children. First, they should be encouraged to talk imaginatively. Second, children must be taught to acquire listening skills so that they would respect various perspectives in life. In addition, parents should ask children to resolve their own issues instead of spoon feeding every time.
At last, children must be encouraged to write, i.e. putting words to paper for story or drawing something out of imagination can go a long way in improving their talent.
Encouraging independent thinking in the childhood is ideal otherwise children may fall prey to some unwarranted elements that may lead them into negative thoughts.
Parents must show flexibility towards children as they must not unnecessarily pressurise children and understand their limits. Another way to encourage their independent thinking is by asking for ideas in order to make plans. The creativity and eagerness of children is unparalleled and hence it can quickly translate into good planning along with providing motivation to their creative thinking.
The simple tasks for example cleaning study table, doing laundry, tying shoelaces or doing homework on own without parents’ help are common and important responsibilities for a child.
Individually thinking is also the source of information and knowledge. Another major advantage of independent thinking is that it supports children to learn and master many skills that are needed before they leave home for higher studies.
As we know, everything has pros and cons and encouraging children to think independently too early can have its own negative consequences. Sometimes, few independent people may find it difficult to work in a group or a team. Since there are chances that individuals turn out to be far more efficient and somewhat superior, a sense of pride with respect to their own self and a feeling of deprecation towards others are possible. However, apart from these demerits, encouraging independent thinking in a child is far more likely to produce quality individuals who can make a huge difference in the mundane scheme of things.
Conclusion
The saying ‘beginning well is half the work done’ can be best demonstrated with respect to encouraging independent thinking from childhood days. Children’s minds are filled with wonderful energy and if the energy is channelised in a fruitful manner through nurturing, it would result in developing individuals with better capability in addition to higher mental toughness. As the future of this world rests in the hands of generations who are growing up then it is the responsibility of everyone from parents, teachers as well as other individuals to ensure that the children will develop proper independent thinking to make a difference as these elements play a very important role in the growth of the children