Emotional Development and successful learning

Although the educational applications of emotion research are still quite tentative, several general themes are emerging – and they tend to support a perspective that

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many educators have long advocated (Sylwester, 1994:65). There is, therefore, overwhelming evidence that shows the relationship between emotional development and successful learning. Body et al (2005:1) indicate that children need a combination of intellectual skills, motivational qualities and socio-emotional skills to succeed in school. They must be able to understand the feelings of others, control their feelings and behaviours and get along with their peers and teachers. This implies that children with good social and emotional skills can get along with others, follow directions and pay attention, and demonstrate self-control. All these skills help children to get the most out of classroom instruction. Similarly, Hart, Brinkman and Blackmore (2003:24) also indicate that a child with good emotional maturity will tend to have good concentration, often helps out other children and almost never shows aggressive, anxious or impulsive behaviour.

Added to that, Barbarin (1993:381) also highlights that the success of emotional development is typically conceptualised in terms of psychological maturity, autonomy, a range of pro-social behaviours, such as altruism, sensitivity to interpersonal cues, a favourable self-concept, a capacity for intimate social relations, and the ability to aspire and work towards long-range goals. All these aspects must be exhibited by children for positive learning to take place. On the same subject, Zins, Weissberg Wang and Walberg (1990), cited by Barbarin (1993:468) noted that student‘s social-emotional competencies foster better academic performance in a variety of ways. For example, they reported that students, who become more self- aware and confident about their learning abilities, try harder, and that students who motivate themselves, set goals, manage their stress, and organize their approach to work to perform better. Additionally, students who make responsible decisions about studying and completing their homework and use problem solving and relationship skills to overcome obstacles, achieve more.

All this is made possible if the teacher engages in teaching approaches such as co- operative learning and proactive classroom management as well as caring relationships between students and teachers that foster commitment and connection to school (Zins (1990), in Barbarin, 1993:469). For example, Sylwester (1994:65) suggests that schools should focus more on metacognitive activities that encourage students to talk about their emotions, listen to their classmates‘ feelings. Furthermore, activities that emphasise social interaction and that engage the entire

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body should also be encouraged Examples include games, discussions, field trips, interactive projects and physical education. These can be made possible by the adoption of key teaching strategies that foster respectful, supportive relationships among students as well as supporting and rewarding positive social, health and academic behaviour (Wilson, Gott, Fredson and Najaka, 2001:54).

From the above, one can observe how performance varies directly with a person‘s level of perceived Self-Efficacy. In general, the more Perceived Self-Efficacy a person shows, the greater is his/her performance and accomplishments. High PSE in any given condition will help an individual to cope with or face problems. According to Bandura (1982) in Tadesse (2003:19,) there are four major ways to raise perceptions of Self-Efficacy namely, direct action, observing others, verbal persuasion and the perception of one‘s physical state. Bandura‘s (1982) PSE model depicts children who have lost their parents like any other human being, ought to get support from the people around them so that they can use their own cognitive and motivational states to face the changes. Teachers, as agents of school socialisation, are bound to do a great job of developing children‘s PSE.

Bandura (1989:1175-1184) further states that people‘s self-efficacy and beliefs determine their level of motivation as reflected in how much effort they will exert in an endeavour and how long they will persevere in the face of obstacles. The stronger the belief in their capabilities, the greater and more persistent are their efforts. This shows that there is a growing body of evidence that human attainments and positive wellbeing require an optimistic sense of personal efficacy (Bandura, 1989:1175-1184). PSE is in line with the phrase ―emotional intelligence‖ or EQ coined by Peter Salovey and John Mayer in 1990 to describe qualities such as understanding one‘s own feelings, empathy for the feelings of others and the ability to read social ones (Hook et al, 2002:214). However, emotional intelligence was popularised by Daniel Goleman (1995) in his book on the subject ―Emotional Intelligence‖. According to Goleman, the cornerstone of ―EQ‖ seems to be ―metamood‖ or a sense of awareness of one‘s own emotions. Furthermore, he believes that self-awareness is the most important factor in EQ because it allows us to exercise some self-control over our behaviour.

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In his study, using Rosenthal‘s Profile of Non Verbal Sensitivity (PONS), Goleman (1996b) highlights that people with higher EQs appear to have sufficient self- awareness to develop mechanisms for coping effectively with their emotions. He concluded that such people tend to be more successful in their work and relationships. Interestingly, Lev Vygotsky‘s theory of cognitive development tends to follow the same line of thinking since he also believes that interactions with others are essential for cognitive development. Vygotsky (1988:74) cited by Hook et al (2002:192), held that patterns of social interactions do not just assist cognitive development, but that social interaction determines the structure and patterns of internal cognition. He thus states, ―the very mechanism underlying higher mental functions is a copy from social interaction … all higher mental functions are internalised social relationships‖ (1988:74). Vygotsky, therefore believes that children‘s own knowledge develops from the assistance of adults (in this case teachers), or older children who guide the children towards more sophisticated solutions to a task. Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) cited by Hook et al (2002:194), use the term ―scaffolding‖ to describe the support provided by the parents or teachers that allows the child to extend skills to higher levels of competence.

Vygotsky (1988), as a social constructivist, strongly believes that learning is socially influenced, thus bringing in the affective domain. Interestingly, although cognitive abilities of students and their home background are important predictors of achievement, in recent years affective variables have emerged as salient factors affecting success and persistence, particularly in mathematics and science subject areas (e.g. Singh, Granville and Dika; 2002:20). In their study, the purpose of which was to examine the effects of 3 school-related constructs – motivation, attitude and academic engagement – on 8th grade student‘s achievement in Mathematics and Science, the findings indicate that attitude and academic time spent on Mathematics and Science homework has a positive effect on achievement.

Thus, a balanced socially and emotionally developed personality of a child fostered by good child rearing practices can have positive educational implications for orphaned children. This is premised on the fact that ―functional families‖ in all of their many forms are everywhere the primary providers of protection and support for children and youth. They exert a very strong influence on children‘s survival, health adjustment and educational achievement (Wakhweya, Dirks and Yeboah, 2008:48).

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Such influence tends to be greater under conditions of severe strain (e.g. losing parents whilst still dependent). Wakhweya, et al (2008:49) concur and state that it is well established that multiple risks affect the cognitive and social emotional development of the affected children. However, quality educational interventions when needed can ameliorate such impact – a thrust this study aims to achieve by establishing the varied educational needs of orphans in CHHs and addressing them through a designed psycho-educational programme.