The Power of Motivation - Nurturing Exceptional Children

Author: Hu Meishan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: Free and inspirational education began for Little Sedarz at the age of one and a half. At three, he could read and write freely. At five, he started learning physiology. At six, he entered elementary school and was assigned to first grade at 9 a.m. By noon, he had already advanced to third grade, completing his elementary school education in just one year. At eight, he entered middle school and, during his spare time, wrote textbooks on astronomy, English grammar, and Latin grammar. At nine, he improvised a solution to a tricky problem encountered by a professor during his doctoral studies. At eleven, he entered Harvard University and received his Ph.D. at fifteen. He had a passion for comparative linguistics and theology, possessing extensive knowledge in ethics, history, and other fields. He was also well-versed in national politics and constitutional law. The breadth of his interests and the depth of his knowledge were astonishing. Little Sedarz's outstanding achievements and success, apart from his natural talent, were mainly due to his father Sedarz's free education. Sedarz studied under William James, the father of American psychology, and was a psychology professor at Harvard University. He believed that a child's development and success were not only related to innate genetics and talents but also heavily influenced by postnatal environment and education, with the latter even playing a decisive role. This environment and education involved giving children freedom. Little Sedarz's friend Grantel's father, Hass, took the opposite approach to Sedarz, not giving his child freedom but imposing various constraints. Grantel was a child without freedom. From birth, he was bound and restricted. He was tightly wrapped in clothes, with his hands and feet unable to move freely. He could not nurse when hungry unless it was the designated time. When playing on the floor and soiling his clothes, he would immediately be scolded for being "naughty" or "dirty." His parents often argued over trivial matters, scaring him into crying, only to be beaten or punished. When relatives and friends visited, he had to behave with utmost propriety, or else he would be reprimanded. When adults talked, he was not allowed to interrupt at will.