MARILSE EERKENS (b. 1967) is a journalist and social psychologist. She spent more than five years working an editor for J/M Ouders, a magazine for parents of children between the ages of 4 and 16. She has also written articles about parenting for newspaper The Correspondent. She previously published What Do We Do with the Baby? About Attachment, Brain Development and Childcare.
Als ze maar gelukkig worden (As Long As They’re Happy), 2022
Excerpt from As Long As They’re Happy:
Who am I to decide what skills other parents and guardians should be teaching their children? The answer to that question is very simple: I have no business whatsoever telling other people how to raise their children, nor do I want to. What I do want to do, however, is give them a push in the right direction. To this end, I will set out five goals that I believe we should be striving for. You could describe them as a set of basic skills and qualities that will help our children to live together peacefully and democratically in adult life and equip them with the tools they need to face a number of complex social issues.
The five child-rearing goals that I feel we should strive for are:
– A well-developed sense of empathy
– Critical and independent thinking
– Social responsibility and an awareness of our democratic values
– Resilience and determination
– A creative mindset and approach to life