Adults act, often unconsciously and well-intended, based on their own perspective instead of the perspective of the child.
Some cliches: ‘work hard’, ‘do your thing’, ‘have fun’, ‘just play’, ‘concentrate’, ‘you can do it’, etc.
We can all dream of them.
‘But, how exactly?’ I always asked myself. You rarely hear the ‘how’. I want to change that.
So, HOW do we create the right environment for children to realise more of their potential?
It is my passion to create better learning environments within sports and education for future generations.
This website explains why that is necessary and how we can achieve this.
Here you can find relevant information for:
– Organizations such as sports federations and educational bodies
– Professionals such as coaches and teachers
– Children who want to become the best version of themselves and their parents
BECOME THE ADULT WHO CHILDREN DON’T NEED
What I have observed as a professional football player, student, teacher, coach, and consultant is that adults who work with children often have the right intentions and are well qualified. However, despite their passion, their approach often doesn’t enable the children to realise their full potential.
As I have been lucky to experience first-hand how it is to be part of elite football academies, such as AFC Ajax, FC Utrecht, and the Dutch National Football Association (KNVB), I have good reference points within the field of sports. Besides having experienced youth football at the highest level, I have finished a Master’s in Business Administration at the University of Amsterdam in 2017. These are considered high-level learning environments for children and adolescents, however, I believe that there is still much room for improvement.
After finishing University, I lived in Australia for three years to challenge myself personally and professionally. As I learned more about the ideal learning environments for adults and children, I have bundled my approach under the slogan:
“Be(come) the adult who children don’t need.”
DISADVANTAGES OF TRADITIONAL APPROACH
Traditional education has its roots in the Industrial Revolution whereby it was designed to be efficient: teach the same skillset to as many children as possible in a limited amount of time. There was no interest in the individual developmental needs of children. Unfortunately, this approach hasn’t evolved enough over time. Still, default approaches within child education are often (unintentionally) centered around the adult instead of the child. This is the case within sports and schools.
The problems of the traditional approach:
- Adult instructed
- Constant environment
- Too much focus on short-term results
- Too dependent on the presence of adult
- Too much focus on external motivation (reward or punishment)
- Too dependent on the judgement of adult (appraisal or criticism)
Moreover, there is:
- Not enough focus on independence
- Not enough focus on ownership
- Not enough focus on creativity
- Not enough focus on mental health
- Not enough focus on physical health
- Not enough focus on nutrition
- Not a holistic approach
This results too often in unhealthy passive children, who develop themselves with a focus on external factors such as validation from others. These children are less likely to realise their full potential and, unfortunately, are more likely to pass their lifestyle on to future generations.
HOW CAN WE CHANGE THIS FOR THE BETTER?
The solution is an approach that is based on:
- Environment based on child’s needs and characteristics
- Focus on an understanding of processes
- Focus on internal motivation
- Ownership of the child
- Creativity of the child
- Helping the child to become independent
- Helping the child understand their mental health
- Helping the child understand their physical health
- Helping the child prepare for performances
- A holistic approach
This approach leads to more proactive children, who are intrinsically motivated, enjoy the process, are empowered, and more creative. This results in a healthier and more pleasant life. These children are more likely to realise their full potential and pass this lifestyle on to future generations.
Isn’t this what we all want? Click on projects to see how we can help each other.
Get in touch with via email or social media
jabbartels@gmail.com