Self-Worth in Education Part 1: Resisting Pygmalion

Steven Hawking stated in an interview that he believes that over the last hundred years or so humanity is entering into a new kind of evolution. Rather than merely relying on random mutations in our genetic code to advance humanity, we are now evolving by our ability to make ourselves with our ability to acquire knowledge. However, in order to express the power of self-creation we must understand what nature has given us. The essence of using temperament to advance education is the ability to self-make through self-knowledge.

 By now hopefully you've read enough material on this blog to understand the fundamental ideas behind our methods. Humanity contains an array of talents that differ and complement one another in a society. Evaluation tools like temperament tests attempt to identify inborn traits in people so that we can come to appreciate each others strengths rather than focusing on weaker points and--as is the case with education--to help others develop their strengths rather than trying to arrogantly "fix" them to be like ourselves.

Along with shaping our strengths, temperament and personality also are strongly connected with our sense of self-worth. Many of our motivations are driven and developed by what gives us a sense of self-worth. If we have an affinity for music, then we naturally develop in parallel a pride and joy in being musical. In healthy people, with a strong sense of self-worth we will see the greatest expression of what man can be.

Unfortunately, an inherent part of the human ego is a belief that we are all ultimately the best version of humankind. As we look at others we often judge them based on our set of strengths and weaknesses. We minimize their successes as being trivial and maximize their faults comparative to our strength in that area. This type of thinking usually leads us to pull out our chisel and hammer and attempt to fashion others in our own image. The most common arena in which this pygmalion project happens is that of educating children. We inherently view children as our lessers and see them as ripe opportunities to mold them into "proper" versions of humanity.

While there is certainly merit for parents and teachers to teach and enforce moral right and wrong, it is crucial that we develop the knowledge and ability to discern between true ethics and things that are merely differences between ourselves and others. It is especially crucial to children's sense of self-worth and ultimately their happiness.

Imagine a teacher-student relationship where the teacher is exceptional at making decisions quickly and keeping strong commitments. Conversely, the student is less inclined to make quick decisions and commitments. They would rather wait until the last minute to make a decision, so as to not miss out on any potential upcoming options that they're unaware of. The teacher will most likely view the student's tendency to post-pone decisions until the last minute as a character flaw, rather than seeing the pattern for its potential upside of getting a better deal.

As an example, imagine a fresh collage graduate attempting to make a decision about which job offer to accept. After receiving one or two proposals from employers that are seen as acceptable to the graduate, with the fear of missing out on more money, greater opportunity, or ideal location, he decides to hold out on accepting them and making arrangements for anything until the absolute last possible minute.  The decision oriented parent is most likely to chide, encourage, or even threaten his/her child with the prospect of getting nothing. The parent views the child as being foolish for taking the risk of losing an offer because they are looking for something better to come along and expresses that to him without reservation. If this has been a lifelong pattern between this parent and child, it is likely that despite his inclination to be a bold risk-taker, his ability to take joy and develop self-worth from it has been hampered by years of negative feed-back.

I can hear the person that identifies with the parent already saying, "But this is good! This child should learn to make more stable decisions." The problem with this, is that the progress of society is built on bold risk-takers. In fact, is is likely that the stable, secure jobs of tomorrow are being built by the bold, risky entrepreneurs of today. Conversely, risk takers rely on the stability of those who take measure to create security. Society would altogether fall-apart if the failings of risky actions weren't cushioned by the reserves of the security driven personality.

In order for either party to play their role, they must derive a sense of self-worth from doing so, otherwise they would lack the confidence to be successful and neither person would do well in attempting to fill the other's role. We must fulfill our predispositions or languish. That is why it is crucial for each of us to develop an understanding of the varying temperaments so that we can help our students develop their individual capacities

In the second part of this series, I will discuss how each type develops and acquires their sense of self-worth.
and develop a strong sense of self-worth.