Positive New Perspectives on Education, Parenting Abound at Virtual Festival of Emotional Intelligence

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Parenting and education will be among the focal points during the 3^rd annual Virtual Festival of Emotional Intelligence, or EQ Week (www.6seconds.org/e/). Neuroscientists and learning experts will discuss topics ranging from the brain development in adolescence to steps that educators can take to nurture the emotional IQ of their students. The free event, which kicks off on March 10, is sponsored by Six Seconds (www.6seconds.org), a global organization supporting people to create positive change.

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While the traditional "3Rs" of education are important, the online conference highlights the critical need to develop emotional intelligence alongside traditional subject matter.  Indeed, many of society's ills, from violence to drug abuse to other kinds of self-destructive behaviors, can largely be traced to poor skills in handling social and emotional dynamics. 

"Social and emotional skills are learnable – and vital.  We need to reach children and connect with them in a meaningful way, so that we can equip them with the skills to build healthy, lifelong relationships," explained Dr. Anabel Jensen, president of Six Seconds. "To do so, we need to understand current neuroscience, and then change the way we teach and parent to optimize the brain's potential.  It's not enough to simply be aware, we need to bridge science and practice." 

At the virtual conference, Dan Siegel, co-founder of the Mindful Awareness Research Center and professor of clinical psychology at UCLA School of Medicine, will be presenting "Brainstorm" on March 13 at 10 am PDT. During the webinar, Siegel hopes to illuminate why adolescence is so important and, unfortunately, so frequently misunderstood.

Debunking harmful myths about adolescence is the goal of Siegel's presentation, in which he describes the second dozen years of life as the "most powerful life phase for activating courage, purpose and creativity." While it's certainly true that risk-taking goes hand in hand with youthfulness, he argues that this is only part of the story. Moreover, risk-taking and pushing-away are too often framed in a negative light. Siegel argues persuasively that adolescence is an indispensable primer for adulthood, and that adopting the right perspective on this crucial developmental phase is paramount in modern parenting and education.

In a related webinar, "Neuroscience Insights for Learning," Dr. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang will present some of the latest research on the neuroscientific basis for the learning process. She then extends these findings to suggest some practical implications for the classroom, pointing toward a more effective way to instill positive values and an emotional centeredness in children and adolescents. Immordino-Yang's webinar is slated for March 14 at 10 am PDT.

Other notable webinars include sessions on the fundamentals of SEL, or social emotional learning; how to use apps to introduce meditation and mindfulness; games for emotional intelligence; and classroom-based tools for communicating the concepts of SEL.

Underpinning all of the education and parenting-related presentations at EQ Week is this tenet: the mission of teaching (and parenting) is to empower children to create meaning in their own lives, while also becoming positive members of a larger society. In a session titled "The Science of a Meaningful Life," Dr. Vicki Zakrzewski, of the Greater Good Science Center from UC Berkeley, will tie all of these disparate threads together and provide workshop participants with the tools and knowledge to foster hope, gratitude and compassion for self and others.

More information about the Virtual Festival of Emotional Intelligence can be found here: http://www.6seconds.org/e/. Visitors can sign up for EQ Week daily emails, as well as webinars, podcasts, videos and e-books.

About Six Seconds

Six Seconds is a global network supporting people to create positive change — everywhere, all the time. We teach the skills of emotional intelligence to fill the "missing link" needed for people to become more aware, intentional, and purposeful so individuals, teams, organizations, families, schools and communities flourish.

Contact: 
Joshua Freedman 
+1 (831) 763-1800 
Email

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SOURCE Six Seconds

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