Decades ago, teachers believed that the most effective ways to motivate the kids were giving them material rewards and inflicting fear on them. Surprisingly, they at the same time realized that such a carrot-and-stick mentality did not work. Daniel H. Pink, the author of the best-selling “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,” stresses that such a traditional approach works well with routine learning tasks but is no longer valid for 21st-century learning, which treasures creativity and collaboration. Ironically, The Bible has already highlighted for thousands of years the importance of interpersonal relationships in our life-long learning: “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. – Ecclesiastes 4:9.” So kids, don’t just focus on subject knowledge in your school life.

Mr. Kenneth H. Ng