The Rabbit Effect

Emotional care, not just academics, is key to student success—kindness fosters learning and well-being.

Listen to article

When we think about education, the first images that flash on mind are books, whiteboards, homework and rote learning. But the secret to raising happy, healthy and smart students doesn't start with math drills or even phonics. The yeoman's service in helping early learners thrive is to provide them with emotional care. Yes, emotions - the complicated human stuff we often overlook - are the foundation of a child's success in the classroom and beyond.

Once, a friend's son, a student of class three at an English medium school, asked me what was a gadha. I started at a seemingly simple question and replied that it was a donkey. He asked whether it was a bad animal. I explained: "Not at all. It's called a beast of burden, my son. For its ability to lift and transport heavy burdens, it has been chosen as the political symbol of the Democratic Party of the USA."

He spoke in angst amalgamated with a little surprise: "Then why do my Qari saheb (the Arabic teacher) call me gadha whenever I forget my lesson?" I was stunned and lost for words. I mustered up courage and asked: "Do you like to be monikered as such?" He was cast down and then shook his head. There was a whelming expression of anguish on his face.

The daughter of my next-door neighbour is a student of grade five at an elite English medium school. She sometimes consults me on some study matters. She tells me that her maths teacher addresses her class as 'the bevy of duffers'. Students evade answering even simple questions in her class.

In an experiment in 1978, the researchers studied the effects of a high-fat diet on heart health in rabbits. The shocking twist? Despite consuming the same unhealthy food, some rabbits remained healthy. What made the difference? The researcher taking care of them! Rabbits that were cuddled, petted and addressed tenderly fared far better than their less-loved counterparts. The findings were summed up as the Rabbit Effect: "the profound impact that love, connection, and kindness have on health".

Columbia University doctor Kelli Harding, in her inaugural book The Rabbit Effect, writes that the takeaway isn't meant merely for rabbits. Humans - especially children - need emotional support and connection to thrive in any ecosystem. When young students feel respected, loved and valued, their brains blossom like flowers in the sunlight. Learning occurs naturally. Emotional neglect, on the other hand, is like deserting a child when he craves moorings - learning slows, anxiety creeps in, and the joy of discovery is snuffed out.

Epigenetics shows how environmental influences - children's experiences - actually control the expression of certain genes. Experiences quite early in life, when the brain is developing most rapidly, trigger epigenetic adaptations that influence whether, when and how genes release their instructions for building future capacity for health, skills and resilience. That makes it crucial to provide supportive and nurturing experiences for young children in the formative years.

It has been observed that the moment a teacher enters a class, he darts his attention to the mischievous and idle students. The teacher's mood gets hijacked and his or her harsh tone is set for the whole period. Instead, the teacher must spotlight the students who are busy in some constructive activity. The teacher's appreciation would be beneficial in two ways. One, his or her tone for the whole period or even the day will be pleasant and kind. Second, mischievous students will most likely get reformed by wishing to be like the appreciated students.

The human brain is naturally wired to remember the pique of negative experiences more vividly than the bliss of positive ones. Research shows that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) - like neglect, abuse, or even high levels of stress - can leave long-lasting effects on brain development. Contrarily, emotional care can counteract these effects. Like those cuddled rabbits, children who are cultured on healthy emotions can overcome even the toughest odds.

In 1902, author Henry James told his nephew, "Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind."