Founder of the Dominion Lyceum, PhD, and winner of the Talents for Ukraine project from the KSE Foundation, Inna Dyomina explains the difference between destructive and constructive pressure on students, and also talks about the concept of «ecological effort», which helps raise a resilient and confident generation.
Founder of the Dominion Lyceum, PhD, and winner of the Talents for Ukraine project from the KSE Foundation, Inna Dyomina explains the difference between destructive and constructive pressure on students, and also talks about the concept of «ecological effort», which helps raise a resilient and confident generation.
Next is a direct speech by Inna Demina.
It seems to me that modern education is dangerously stuck between two great fears. The first is the fear that the child should not be allowed to experience difficulty. The second is the belief that the child should get used to difficulty through harsh pressure and coercion. But both extremes seem to be equally detrimental to development.
Once upon a time, when we were still small, we didn’t have time and opportunities to show our weaknesses. Once upon a time, we heard: «endure», «try because you can’t», «don’t give up», «life won’t be easy». Many of us grew up in this paradigm. And to be honest, often along with knowledge we brought with us a paralyzing fear of making mistakes, chronic anxiety and the habit of associating personal development exclusively with suffering. We were used to the fact that the result had to be suffered, otherwise it was supposedly priceless. This didn’t always happen, but often.
Today, the pendulum has swung the other way. We are terrified that it will be too difficult for the child, because it was difficult for us once, and we want only the best experience for our child. In order not to overload, not to hurt self-esteem, God forbid, not to injure. And sometimes we are so careful to remove any obstacle from its path that along with the difficulties of a child’s life, development itself disappears. And the brain does not grow where it is always easy. It grows only where there is a feasible challenge, a moment of acute «I can’t do it… but I’ll try again,» an experience of effort, after which a very valuable feeling of personal victory appears.
Growth is almost always a little uncomfortable. It’s a normal physiological response to expanding your boundaries. So the question isn’t whether it should be difficult. The question is what makes it «difficult.»
There is «destructive difficulty». This is when the complexity of the task is reinforced by fear. Biologically, this is a chronic stress regime. When a child finds it difficult because he is afraid of disappointing the teacher, is afraid of being ridiculed in front of the class, or is afraid that his value as a person depends only on the correct answer. Such «difficulty» does not develop intelligence, it depletes adaptive resources. The brain at this moment works not to find a solution, but to protect. This is the path to burnout even at school age, when knowledge becomes synonymous with pain.
And there is «constructive difficulty.» This is when the task is challenging, but the child feels excited. It is difficult because the brain is forced to look for new ways, combine knowledge, make mistakes, and try again. This «difficult» is accompanied by dopamine, the neurotransmitter of anticipation of victory.
The difference between them is the presence of a safe support. In the first case, the child is left alone with the difficulty, under the sights of assessment. In the second, he knows that the difficulty is part of the game, and there is an adult nearby who will not let him fall, but will give him the opportunity to get up on his own.
That is why at Dominion Lyceum we build our education around the concept of «constructive difficulty.» Our task is not to simplify science to the point of being primitive, but to make the path to understanding it exciting and safe.
The comprehensive development of a child occurs through the synergy of intellectual challenge and psychological support. We integrate natural sciences, physics, chemistry and mathematics into a holistic picture of the world (Science) through experiments and real-life projects. Here children learn to think deeply, look for unconventional solutions and, most importantly, not be afraid of mistakes.
We do not create an artificial, «sterile» world for students, where there are no obstacles. Instead, we create an environment of trust and safe support.
We cultivate strong «muscles» — intellectual, emotional, and worldview. Because we believe that when a child gains experience in environmental efforts at school, he or she enters adulthood ready not to hide from difficulties, but to overcome them confidently and with interest.
