An expert wants to change Bahrain's education system by focusing on children's emotional development rather than forcing them to be academically obsessed.

Bahraini Shahnaz Bahman, who has 19 years of experience in educational development, says the country needs to alter its teaching methods to make children more aware of their feelings, receptive to others opinions and become engaged in the classroom and society, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

The former Economic Development Board school improvement consultant is urging the Education Ministry to implement a new teaching mechanism, called the emotional intelligence system, which targets the early development of schoolchildren, aged between six and 10, and is already being used in several countries including Switzerland, UK, US, Germany and Japan.

Bahman explores the benefits of the system in her book, Developing Children's Emotional Intelligence, which was published by London-based Continuum International Publishing Group and has become a reference for many educators around the world.

She has also written other books about educational development in children, namely Life Skills 1 that was nominated for an ELTon award in 2009 by The British Council in London.

“I never knew when I was writing that the books would be so successful,” Bahman told the GDN.

“The reason I wrote the books is that in my experience I would see children grow physically and academically but not emotionally.

“I was really interested in the field and read a lot of books that didn't really explain anything new until I came across one quote in a book that changed my outlook.

“Dr Daniel Goleman, author of the New York Times bestseller Emotional Intelligence, wrote in his book that current research shows life success accounts for 80 per cent of emotional intelligence and 20pc of academic intelligence.”

Bahman has integrated the emotional intelligence system in three private schools in Bahrain, but she hopes the scheme will be adopted nationwide by the ministry.

“I had hoped to get the system introduced into the public schools but it would be a massive undertaking as the curriculum would have to change to account for the extra class,” she explained.

“Also, it is very hard to introduce a system like this in Bahrain.

“Private schools are more open to the concept, but it will take a lot of work to get it approved by the Education Ministry - the teachers would have to be trained, which I do, it is a lot of work and it will just take a long time to get it done procedurally.

“I wish I could, so that more Bahrainis could benefit.”

She said her research showed that people with a high level of emotional intelligence developed better communicative relationships in both the academic and professional levels.

“You have to understand that grade doesn't mean that you can achieve,” she added.

“There are A-students that end up achieving very little while there are C-students that end up being leaders and this a perfect example of the effect a high level of emotional intelligence can have.

“I have introduced the system in three private schools in Bahrain and following its introduction teachers saw massive improvement of not only the grades of the students, but their attitude to school in general.”

Education Ministry officials did not respond when contacted by the GDN. - TradeArabia News Service