Over the recent Christmas break, an interesting article in December 2024’s Inc. Magazine caught our attention and led us to reflect on an important topic close to our hearts: developing Emotional Intelligence (EQ) in our children.
The article’s theme is indeed one with which we have identified for many years at Herne Hill School – that “emotional intelligence is the best predictor for a child’s future success” and should therefore be the “focus if you want to raise happy, successful kids”.
This thinking is based primarily on the findings of what is considered to be one of the most comprehensive and long-lasting longitudinal research projects into human development globally, the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study.
The Dunedin Study – further proof that the early years matter the most
The Dunedin Study was launched in 1972 by dedicated psychologists who followed and intimately recorded the development of 1,037 babies born between 1 April 1972 and 31 March 1973 in the town of Dunedin, in Ngaire’s home country of New Zealand. For each, they obtained extensive data sets from cognitive, psychological, health, social development and behavioural assessments at birth; throughout childhood at ages 1, 3, 7, 9, 11, 15 and 18; and then in adulthood at intervals of 4 to 6 years.
The Study is globally considered to be the ‘Goldilocks of longitudinal studies’ due to its unique multidisciplinary approach combining medical, psychological and sociological perspectives; its high retention rate (over 90% of the original participants are apparently still engaged); and the high quality of the data gathered. Its pioneering approach has enabled its researchers to tease out previously unseen patterns in human development, which are becoming increasingly widely accepted.
Douglas Starr, Professor Emeritus at Boston University and a veteran science, environment and medical writer, summarised in an article in Science (Digital Object Identifier doi: 10.1126/science.aat1615) that the Study’s “multiple findings show that the course of the lives of the Dunedin cohort can largely be traced to their health, environment and temperament as children“. Among others, he lists the following examples:
- Temperament: Girls who have behavioural problems as children have more trouble adjusting to early puberty.
- Personality continuities: Undercontrolled 3-year-olds tend to grow impulsive and antisocial; inhibited 3-year-olds tend to become unassertive and depressed.
- Persistent offenders: People who are violent and antisocial as children grow into violent adults more often than those whose antisocial behaviour is limited to adolescence.
- Stress and illness: People who were abused as children have higher markers of inflammation, indicating an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease.
- Self-control: Childhood self-control predicts physical health, financial success, and the lack of criminal behaviour among adults.
Childhood self-control, which can be learned, best predicts future success
Dr Henry Goldstein, a General Paediatrician and Adolescent Medicine Fellow based in Queensland, Australia, also highlights the key role of self-control in childhood as one of the pivotal findings from the Dunedin Study (Henry Goldstein, The Dunedin Study, Don’t Forget the Bubbles, 2016, updated 2024, doi: 10.31440/DFTB9829).
He articulates well how “Research has demonstrated that children who exhibit higher levels of self-control tend to experience better health outcomes, greater financial stability, and overall higher life satisfaction in adulthood”.
He further explains that “Self-control encompasses skills such as delaying gratification, regulating emotions, and resisting impulsive behaviours. These skills have been linked to a variety of positive life outcomes. For instance, individuals with higher self-control are less likely to engage in substance abuse and criminal behaviour, have lower rates of obesity, and generally lead healthier lifestyles. The study found that self-control is a better predictor of these outcomes than intelligence or socioeconomic status, highlighting its profound impact.”
Dr Goldstein goes on to state that “Moreover, the research indicated that self-control is not only a personal trait but can also be influenced by external factors such as parenting, education, and early intervention programs. Children who receive support and guidance in developing self-control skills tend to fare better as adults. This underscores the importance of fostering these abilities from a young age to improve long-term life outcomes.”
“EQ is a skill, not a trait”
The aforementioned Inc. Magazine article also picks up on the fact that EQ is not an inborn trait but a skill that can be cultivated and that, as with all skills, the critical foundations are laid in the early years of childhood. It refers to a keynote speech given at the EQ Summit 2017 in London by psychologist Daniel Goleman, who is considered to be the godfather of EQ for his role in popularising the concept with his 1995 landmark book ‘Emotional Intelligence, Why It Can Matter More Than IQ’.
In his speech, Prof. Goleman described his model of EQ as being based half on focusing inside (self-awareness and self-management), and the other half on being mindful of and empathetic with others (social awareness and relationship management). He stresses that these are learned and learnable abilities, with “mindfulness being very helpful as it enables you to tune into your feelings”.
This reference to mindfulness being beneficial in building EQ skills was particularly gratifying to read as we introduced mindfulness into our school-wide curriculum several years ago – a decision we had taken based on learnings that had emanated from other research.
Children need both – IQ as a ‘qualifier’ and (especially!) EQ as the ‘differentiator’
On the question of ‘IQ, EQ or both?’, Prof. Goleman said the following in his EQ Summit speech: “Everything you learn in school and your IQ is basically threshold. You need it to get the job. And you need to be able to have a certain level of cognitive ability to process whatever information that is required. After that, it doesn’t have that much impact. The higher you go in an organisation, the more Emotional Intelligence matters. For top leadership jobs, emotional intelligence abilities are 80% to 90% of the competency model.”
Anyone who is familiar with our pedagogical approach and provision at Herne Hill School will appreciate that this strongly resonates with us as we view the question of EQ vs. IQ not a case of ‘either/or’, but one of ‘not only… but also’.
Indeed, we have for a long time emphasised that during a child’s crucial Early Childhood Education period, it is fundamental to embrace developing ‘the whole child’ and that, in addition to focusing on the traditional cognitive/academic domains of development, the ‘soft skills’ require just as much (and arguably more) attention, for the following reasons:
- The complex development of the human brain encompasses all domains, including all the ‘soft skills’ which ultimately lead to EQ.
- Similar to Prof. Goleman’s description of IQ as ‘basically threshold’, we have considered it to be a ‘qualifier’, with EQ being the ‘differentiator’ that will set our children apart, especially in a world of AI.
- As IQ is more fixed and genetically driven than EQ, which is more malleable and ‘learnable’, EQ warrants extra focus when considering the value-added provided by a school.
- IQ/Cognitive development can more readily follow EQ development than vice versa, i.e. a young child who feels loved and secure and is confident, self-aware, reflective, positive, curious, motivated and resilient will also more quickly make academic progress. Therefore, developing EQ skills does not come at the expense of developing a child’s more inborn IQ but helps to enhance it. Of course, we are also acutely aware of the need to develop our pupils’ academic prowess by 7+ in tandem, and we have developed very successful methods for achieving this.
Our model for developing EQ at Herne Hill School
For all of the above reasons, we have for many years considered continuously how we can further improve the development of our children’s EQ, which we view as an integration of three inter-related skillsets: social, emotional and self-regulatory/executive function skills. In turn, the latter consists of essentially three primary strands: inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility.
As research has proven unequivocally, the crux to developing the three strands of self-regulatory/executive function skills is via a child-led, experiential play-based learning approach, especially for our younger years through the Reception Cycle but even into Key Stage 1. As a consequence, and driven by our exclusive focus on Early Childhood Education, we have honed this and endeavoured to continue to develop cutting-edge expertise in this regard.
In addition, our curriculum and modus operandi are littered with numerous major and minor elements that combine to also develop the children’s social and emotional skills to the maximum. These include:
- An acute awareness that children learn from their environment and that we therefore need role modelling by all of our staff and the other children (especially the older ones) to create a happy, friendly, positive, loving and caring atmosphere.
- Our nine golden rules of compromise, forgive, gentle, help, honest, kind, listen, share and strive, which are introduced from Kindergarten and become second nature by Key Stage 1, which as a moral and behavioural compass for everyone at the school.
- Judicious discussion of topics pertaining to dealing with social and emotional challenges in assemblies and the classrooms.
- A lot of outdoor learning and being outdoors in our woodland area, which we know greatly supports and enhances the children’s wellbeing.
- Making the most of the unique virtue that our children can become the oldest at the school; the development of their EQ benefits hugely from experiencing the related leadership and social responsibility roles.
- Clubs, workshops and other initiatives that introduce the children to additional wellbeing concepts such as healthy food and eating through our weekly taster trays of fruit, veg and flavour of the week, yoga club and workshops, mindfulness sessions, the mental satisfaction that comes from being creative and working with one’s hands, healthy living week, etc.
- And perhaps not least: our very own ‘Mindset – Set Your Mind’ song, as performed by our 2024 Year 2 pupils at their graduation ceremony.
In today’s world, early EQ development feels more important than ever
In light of the dramatic societal increase we have seen recently in young people and children dealing with mental health issues as well as in the number of children having some aspect of a special educational need, we consider the development of our children’s EQ to be more important than ever.
In that vein, we would also like to share a highly insightful and thought provoking September 2023 webinar video on ‘Building Emotional Intelligence and Resilience in Teenagers and Children’ which we encountered as part of our reflections on the topic of building EQ in children.
It will be of particular relevance to anyone who is a parent, relative or teacher of a child between the ages of 11 and 18. But it will also be of interest to anyone with younger children who wants to look ahead and start applying some of the introduced concepts at an earlier age, as we do at Herne Hill School.
Richard Branson considers EQ to be more important for success than IQ
Sir Richard, Founder of Virgin Group, famously left school at age 16. He is a prime, although perhaps extreme, example illustrating that the school a child attends is less important than the EQ they acquire – skills for which the crucial foundations are all laid in early childhood.
When asked in a LinkedIn Q&A in November 2021 whether EQ or IQ was more important for success, Sir Richard replied firmly in favour of EQ:
“I think being emotionally intelligent is more important in every aspect of life. Being a good listener, finding empathy, understanding emotions, communicating effectively, treating people well, and bringing out the best is critical to success.
It will also help you build a business that really understands people and solve their problems, and it will make for a happier and healthier team too. If I had let my IQ and my school grades determine my success I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today.”