Raising Wise Consumers [A] Almost anyone with a profit motive is marketing to innocents. Help your kids understand it's OK not to have it all. Here are five strategies for raising wise consumers. 1. Lead by example [B] While you may know that TV commercials stimulate desire for consumer goods, you'll have a hard time selling your kids on the virtues of turning off the tube if you structure your own days around the latest sitcom (情景喜剧) or reality show. [C] The same principle applies to money matters. It does no good to lecture your kids about spending, saving and sharing when doing out their pocket money if you spend every free weekend afternoon at the mall. If you suspect your own spending habits are out of whack, consider what financial advisor Nathan Dungan says in his book Wasteful Sons and Material Girls: How Not to Be Your Child's ATM. "In teaching your child about money, few issues are as critical as your own regular consumer decisions," he writes. "In the coining weeks, challenge yourself to say no to your own wants and to opt for less expensive options." 2. Encourage critical thinking [D] With children under six or seven, start by telling them, "Don't believe everything you see," says Linda Millar, vice-president of Education for Concerned Children's Advertisers, a nonprofit group of 26 Canadian companies helping children and their families by media—and life—wise. Show them examples of false or exaggerated advertising claims, such as a breakfast cereal (谷类) making you bigger and stronger. [E] Shari Graydon, a media educator and past president of Media Watch, suggests introducing children to the "marketing that doesn't show"—the mascots (吉祥物) and web-sites that strengthen brand loyalty, the trading toys that cause must-have-it fever and the celebrity endorsements (代言). "Explain that advertisers pay millions of dollars for celebrities to endorse a product, and that the people who buy the product end up sharing the cost," she says. 3. Supervise with sensitivity [F] According to a survey conducted by the Media Awareness Network in 2001, nearly 70 per cent of children say parents never sit with them while they surf the Net and more than half say parents never check where they've been online. The states for TV habits paint a similar picture. A 2003 Canadian Teachers' Federation study of children's media habits found that roughly 30 per cent of children in Years Three to Six claim that no adult has input into their selection of TV shows; by Year Eight, the figure rises to about 60 per cent. [G] "Research suggests that kids benefit more from having parents watch with them than having their viewing time limited," says Graydon, noting that many children have TV sets in their bedrooms, which effectively free them from parental supervision. And what exactly does "supervision" mean? "Rather than ridiculing your child's favorite show, game or web-site, which will only create distance between you, you can explain why certain media messages conflict with the values you'd like to develop in your child," Graydon says. [H] If you're put off by coarse language in a TV show, tell your child that hearing such language sends the (false) message that this is the way most people communicate when under stress. If violence in a computer game disturbs you, point out that a steady diet of onscreen violence can weaken sensitivity towards real-life violence. "And when you do watch a show together," adds Graydon, "discuss some of the hidden messages, both good and bad." 4. Say no without guilt [I] I'm not proud to admit it, but when Tara asked me if I could take her shopping, I ended up saying yes. More precisely, I told her that if she continued to work hard and do well in school, I would take her over the school holidays. The holidays have now passed and I still haven't taken her, but I have no doubt she'll remind me of it soon enough. When I do take her, I intend to set firm limits (both on the price and the clothing items) before we walk into the store. [J] Still, I wonder why I gave in so quickly to Tara's request. Author Thompson says that my status as a baby boomer may provide a clue. "We boomer parents spring from a consumer culture in which having the right stuff helps you fit in," she explains. "Our research has shown that even parents in poor homes will buy Game Boys over necessities." In fact, 68 per cent of parents routinely give in to their kids' requests. [K] To counteract this tendency, Graydon says parents have to "learn, or relearn, how to say no." And what if the child calls you a miser or reminds you that her best friend has four Barbies (芭比娃娃) and she doesn't even have one? Graydon suggests practicing this mantra (祷文): "We create our own family rules according to our own family values. We create our own family rules according to our own family values. We create..." 5. Offer alternatives [L] As parents know, saying "You can't have that" only intensifies a kid's desire for whatever "that" is. Rather than arbitrarily restricting their TV or computer time to protect them from media influence, Jeff Derevensky, a professor of applied child psychology at McGill University, suggests creating a list of mutually acceptable alternatives. "If you want to encourage your children to build towers or play board games, be prepared to participate," he says. "Many kids will do these activities with their parents but not with other kids." [M] Miranda Hughes, a part-time physician and mother of four, fills her home with such basics as colored pencils and paints, craft materials, board and card games, building toys, a piano with the lid permanently open, sheet music and books of all kinds. "I also offer my own time whenever possible," she says. Although Hughes has a television in her house, "complete with 150 channels," she says her kids watch only about an hour a week. "I haven't had to implement any rules about TV or computer use," she says. "There's usually something else my kids would rather be doing."

Promote Life Skills for Young People and Adults [A] This goal places the emphasis on the learning needs of young people and adults in the context of lifelong learning. It calls for fair access to learning programs that are appropriate, and mentions life skills particularly. Why this goal? [B] Education is about giving people the opportunity to develop their potential, their personality and their strengths. This does not merely mean learning new knowledge, but also developing abilities to make the most of life. These are called life skills—including the inner capacities and the practical skills we need. [C] Many of the inner capacities—often known as psycho-social skills—cannot be taught as subjects. They are not the same as academic or technical learning. They must rather be modeled and promoted as part of learning, and in particular by teachers. These skills have to do with the way we behave—towards other people, towards ourselves, towards the challenges and problems of life. They include skills in communicating, in making decisions and solving problems, in negotiating and expressing ourselves, in thinking critically and understanding our feelings. More practical life skills are the kinds of manual skills we need for the physical tasks we face. Some would include vocational skills under the heading of life skills—the ability to lay bricks, sew clothes, catch fish or repair a motorbike. These are skills by which people may earn their livelihood and which are often available to young people leaving school. In fact, very often young people learn psycho-social skills as they learn more practical skills. Learning vocational skills can be a strategy for acquiring both practical and psycho-social skills. We need to increase our life skills at every stage of life, so learning them may be part of early childhood education, of primary and secondary education and of adult learning groups. Its importance in learning [D] Life skills can be put into the categories that the Jacques Delors report suggested; it spoke of four pillars of education, which correspond to certain kinds of life skills: Learning to know: Thinking abilities: such as problem-solving, critical thinking, decision-making, understanding consequences. Learning to be: Personal abilities: such as managing stress and feelings, self-awareness, self-confidence. Learning to live together: Social abilities: such as communication, negotiation, teamwork. Learning to do: Manual skills: practising know-how required for work and tasks [E] In today's world all these skills are necessary, in order to face rapid change in society. This means that it is important to know how to go on learning as we require new skills for life and work. In addition, we need to know how to cope with the flood of information and turn it into useful knowledge. We also need to learn how to handle change in society and in our own lives. Its nature [F] Life skills are both concrete and abstract—practical skills can be learned directly, as a subject. For example, a learner can take a course in laying bricks and learn that skill. Other life skills, such as self-confidence, self-esteem, and skills for relating to others or thinking critically cannot be taught in such direct ways. They should be part of any learning process, where teachers or instructors are concerned that learners should not just learn about subjects, but learn how to cope with life and make the most of their potential. [G] So these life skills may be learnt when learning other things. For example: Learning literacy may have a big impact on self-esteem, on critical thinking or on communication skills. Learning practical skills such as driving, healthcare or tailoring may increase self-confidence, teach problem-solving processes or help in understanding consequences. Whether this is true depends on the way of teaching—what kinds of thinking, relationship-building and communication the teacher or facilitator models themselves and promotes among the learners. Progress towards this goal [H] It would require measuring the individual and collective progress in making the most of learning and of life, or assessing how far human potential is being realized, or estimating how well people cope with change. It is easier to measure the development of practical skills, for instance by counting the number of students who register for vocational skills courses. However, this still may not tell us how effectively these skills are being used. [I] The psycho-social skills cannot easily be measured by tests and scores, but become visible in changed behavior. Progress in this area has often been noted by teachers on reports which they make to the parents of their pupils. The teacher's experience of life, of teaching and of what can be expected from education in the broadest sense serve as a standard by which the growth and development of individuals can be assessed to some extent. This kind of assessment is individual and may never appear in international tables and charts. Current challenges [J] The current challenges relate to these difficulties: We need to recognize the importance of life skills— both practical and psycho-social—as part of education which leads to the full development of human potential and to the development of society. The links between psycho-social skills and practical skills must be more clearly spelled out, so that educators can promote both together and find effective ways to do this. Since life skills are taught as part of a wide range of subjects, teachers need to have training in how to put them across and how to monitor learners' growth in these areas. In designing curricula and syllabuses for academic subjects, there must be a balance between content teaching and attention to the accompanying life skills. A more conscious and deliberate effort to promote life skills will enable learners to become more active citizens in the life of society. [K] Policy options—what governments should do Recognize and actively advocate for the transformational role of education in realizing human potential and in socio-economic development; Ensure that curricula and syllabuses address life skills and give learners the opportunity to make real-life applications of knowledge, skills and attitudes; Show how life skills of all kinds apply in the world of work, for example, negotiating and communication skills, as well as practical skills; Through initial and in-service teacher training, increase the use of active and participatory learning/ teaching approaches; Examine and adapt the processes and content of education so that there is a balance between academic input and life skills development.