Suvankar Mallick

An essential life skill that is frequently overlooked in formal education is emotional regulation, or emotional intelligence. Although schools typically prioritize academic subjects, they seldom provide guidance on how to comprehend, manage, and communicate emotions in a balanced, healthy way. Mastering emotional regulation is key to developing resilience, managing stress, nurturing positive relationships, and making sound decisions. This skill is often cultivated through personal experiences or self-reflection, rather than being directly taught in traditional educational settings.

In today’s technology-driven world, programming is undeniably a crucial life skill. While not everyone needs to be an expert coder, grasping the fundamentals can greatly improve problem-solving abilities, sharpen logical reasoning, and foster creativity. It can also open doors to diverse career opportunities, streamline tasks through automation, and enhance one’s understanding of the technology that shapes daily life.

Moreover, learning to program builds resilience and flexibility, as it often requires tackling complex issues and finding solutions through persistence. In a wider sense, programming is an invaluable skill for anyone navigating the modern world, regardless of profession.

The IELTS Life Skills test is designed to assess your ability to communicate in English at a basic level. It evaluates your speaking and listening skills in everyday situations, particularly in relation to practical tasks such as social interaction, understanding instructions, and conveying information. It is specifically intended for those who need to prove their English proficiency for visa or immigration purposes in the UK.

There are two levels of IELTS Life Skills:

• A1: For basic users of English, typically for family visas or spouse visas.
• B1: For those looking to meet the English requirements for a permanent visa or citizenship in the UK.

The test is structured to assess how well you can:

1. Understand spoken English: You'll need to follow conversations and extract key information.
2. Express yourself clearly: You'll engage in a discussion and demonstrate your ability to speak clearly and interact with others.

It is a face-to-face test with an examiner and typically lasts between 16 to 22 minutes. The results are reported as "Pass" or "Fail," with no band scores provided.

Art teaches a variety of life skills that can benefit individuals in both personal and professional settings. Some of these include:

1. Creativity and Problem-Solving: Art encourages thinking outside the box and finding innovative solutions to challenges. It teaches individuals to approach problems from different angles and to experiment with new ideas.

2. Critical Thinking: Through analysis and interpretation of art, individuals learn to observe carefully, assess details, and develop well-rounded opinions, which can be applied to other areas of life.

3. Patience and Perseverance: Creating art requires time, focus, and effort. Artists often experience setbacks and need to persist through mistakes or challenges, teaching resilience and the value of practice.

4. Emotional Expression and Self-Awareness: Art provides a medium for expressing emotions, helping individuals understand and communicate their feelings. This can enhance emotional intelligence and self-awareness.

5. Attention to Detail: Art demands close attention to elements like color, composition, and texture, fostering a meticulous mindset that is valuable in many professional and personal tasks.

6. Collaboration and Communication: In group art projects or critiques, individuals learn to work with others, share ideas, and provide constructive feedback, which enhances teamwork and communication skills.

7. Time Management: Working on an art project often requires careful planning and time allocation, helping individuals improve their ability to manage time effectively and meet deadlines.

8. Confidence and Risk-Taking: Sharing artwork or experimenting with new techniques can build confidence, teaching individuals to take risks and step outside their comfort zones.

9. Adaptability and Flexibility: Art projects often evolve as they progress, and artists must be open to change, fostering adaptability in navigating unexpected outcomes or new directions.

These skills contribute to a well-rounded, adaptive mindset that can be applied to various aspects of life.

One life skill that continually surprises me in how many people lack it is effective communication, particularly the art of active listening. Often, during conversations, people are more focused on what they will say next than on truly absorbing what the other person is expressing. This can lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and lost opportunities for collaboration. Active listening is an essential skill that greatly improves both relationships and problem-solving, yet it is frequently overlooked or underdeveloped.