Education
Lack of life skills risk for youth
  • | Mot the gioi, dtinews | December 11, 2013 01:38 PM

An overall lack of life skills is among reasons attributed to risks for young people, such as stress, depression and even suicide, said Nguyen Thi Cam Tu, Headmaster of Ngo Tat To Secondary School, Phu Nhuan District, HCM City.


Extracurricular activities would help to improve the development of life skills in students

Children who are never taught how to deal with the difficulties of life, such as parental divorce, family financial problems or disappointing study results are more easily susceptible to these risks. If children are not taught about life value, they are more prone to belligerence, violence, criminal activity and even suicide, according to Tu.

Nguyen Thanh Nhan, a consultant from the Asia-Pacific Young Talent Training Centre, said students currently lack life skills, particularly those who live in big cities.

He added that, due to limited awareness of life and how to deal with practical problems, many students in secondary and high schools have the ability to develop passion for something they like, and that parents and teachers need to find ways to cultivate their interests.

Many in the education field have said that in a large number of cases, parents are too focused on earning money  and do not focus on the other interests of their children, adversely affecting the young person's ability to socially integrate. Meanwhile, parents often blame this problem only on schools.

Expert have said that many young people use video games as a way to relieve pressure from studies, causing the threat of "addiction".

MA Nguyen Thanh Mai, Headmaster of Viet My Secondary School, said extracurricular activities would help to improve the development of life skills in students, particularly the way they have to take care of themselves. Participating in these activities, students would become more confident and more actively participate in society, she added.

More field trips would also provide them with and increased knowledge of geography, history and biology.

Mr. Nhan said the Ministry of Education and Training should provide training courses for teachers on extracurricular activities and integrate life skill programmes into the education system.

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