Raising Resilient Kids

It takes a whole village to raise a child.’ African Proverb

I am not the type of person that puts inspirational quotes up around my office but as an educator, the quote, ‘It takes a whole village to raise a child’ resonates loud and clear to me. But what if the whole village was lowering the bar to such an extent that your village was not living up to its expectations? It would be fair to say you might have some thinking to do.

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This may seem a little dramatic, but if the lowering or smothering of standards puts at risk the development of resilient kids, then we all need to sit down and evaluate the environment we are creating. The perfect storm is being created via some of our school, sporting and community
organisations. Rules such as no ball games at school, no scoring, everyone gets an award, no clapping at assemblies, no running on the grass, etc. This all seems crazy to me. This is not a helicopter approach, but a bulldozer approach where everything is smoothed over so much, that
there is not a hurdle or bump in sight. Surely, that can’t be good for our kids.

‘Although it’s natural for us to want to protect our children from negative experiences, it’s important not to shield them completely from life’s challenges.’ (Beyond Blue)

Schools have an important role to play in this space and it doesn’t require extra work. If all the research points to resilience as a vital human character trait, then schools need to stand strongly in thi space. Teachers as experts, use newsletters assemblies and any other public forum to display their expert knowledge about teaching and learning. This expertise is needed because often we need to be the change we want to see in our community. Kids become more resilient if we teach them to think independently, manage their emotions, deal with and manage conflict and communicate clearly.

If working through difficulties, challenges and problems, with village support, gives kids a chance to learn about themselves, develop resilience, and grow as a person, then let’s get that message out there loud and clear. It requires very little extra work and in fact might just reduce the line up at
the Sick Bay.

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Ryan Martin


Ryan Martin, recently awarded with the Northern Territory Principal of the Year, is an experienced school leader with a proven track record in behaviour management, leadership and coaching. He has a sharp focus on changing the trajectory of students from highly complex and disadvantaged
backgrounds. Ryan has a passion for education but you might also find him surfing, skating or tinkering around with old cars.