Self-Regulation And Autonomy: An Analysis

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“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education,” as quoted by Martin Luther King Jr. Although education serves as a tool to create erudite and knowledgeable civilians. Intelligence is a quality that is to be admired and worshipped by society. However, there are a growing number of individuals who disagree with this. Instead of valuing intelligence as the greatest treasure, researchers Angela Lee Duckworth of University of Pennsylvania, Stephanie M. Carlson of University of Minnesota, and leaders of Riverdale Country School and KIPP in New York City, are realizing that grit and self-regulation are the most influential, proficient, and notable qualities for a student to have in order to succeed in life. …show more content…

Levin soon had to re-evaluate these characteristics he had formed with Randolph. With the advice of Angela Lee Duckworth, Levin and Randolph re-created a new list of qualities, “they settled on a final list: zest, grit, self-control, social intelligence, gratitude, optimism and curiosity” (Tough). Likewise, “Self-Regulation and School Success” by Angela Lee Duckworth (the very same researcher from Tough’s article) and Stephanie M. Carlson in Self-Regulation and Autonomy: Social and Developmental Dimensions of Human Conduct focus on student performance. However, Duckworth and Carlson mainly focus on self-regulation, compared to the list of qualities by Levin and Randolph. This characteristic, self-regulation, does include both negative and positive definitions:
In taxonomies of childhood temperament, self-regulation is typically distinguished from two factors that are more reactive and less voluntary in nature: negative emotionality (shyness, fear, sadness, etc.) and surgency (activity level, sensation seeking, positive emotion) (Rothbart & Rueda, 2005). (Duckworth & Carlson