Emotional investment or practical training? What priorities do Romanian parents have in the education of children analysis

Parents in Romania prioritize autonomy in learning and personal development of children, leaving technical and digital skills (16%) on a secondary plane, a new study reveals. Which opens the discussion on the gap between family expectations and economic realities. How is education transform into emotional investment and what consequences does it have on the human capital that the economy needs? What is the social and economic price of a generation prepared for emotional autonomy than for the digital and scientific skills required by the market?

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Specifically, the study by Mkor and Wow Lab shows that 91% of Romanian parents consider personal development and autonomy of learning more important than technical or digital skills. Aurora Oprea, vocational counselor, sees in this orientation a beneficial investment in self -control and emotional autonomy, which is naturally completed with technological skills. In contrast, clinical psychologist Andreea Ștefiuc warns that, without the real integration of scientific digitization and training, we risk forming generations prepared for the past rather than for the labor market of the future.

Generations Z and Alpha, born in the era of technology

“I think that a truly relevant study is done for a much longer period of time, following the generations of children who are raised in this way and you see how they are as adults in the field of work, how they approach the technology and how they develop their skills to keep up with the economic-social needs. True only in about 15–20 years if we were to look at the current generations of children and the parents' beliefs in addressing this type of growth and education focused more on the autonomy of learning and implicitly on an emotional autonomy that is essential for healthy development and without too much attachments of a future adult. “explains, for “Adevărul”, Aurora Oprea, vocational counselor.

The specialist emphasizes that the emphasis on emotional autonomy and learning does not conflict with the digital preparation of children. On the contrary, “The specific digital skills necessary for an economic market in a continuous scientific development do not exclude the capacities of autonomy of personal learning and development and together they actually make the best team for a healthy future for both the future adult and the society and the economic market.”

It believes that self -determination, responsibility and identity are part of the same matrix with digital skills. “Self -determination, responsibility and identity, the integration of experiences are all attributes of learning and emotional autonomy, but which are also similar to the attributes of technological and digital skills, study materials that they have constantly around as objects that they meet from the first day of life ”, Complete the vocational counselor.

In fact, Aurora Oprea points out that access to technology appears even where the basic education is missing: “I am convinced that each of us know children from disadvantaged environments that, perhaps, have not arrived for a year at school but are in the interval of adolescence as age and as they have a smart electronic device, whether it is a smart TV, whether it is a phone or even a tablet. Communicate there, they alone mount a video through those few applications and all this in the detriment of handwriting, fluent reading or why not the multiplication and division table. ”

Generations Z and Alpha are “born in the age of technology” and, even if they do not have a personal device, instinctively learn from contact with friends or neighbors. “Which means that at the level of biological learning capacities, these children are able to learn almost anything related to technology and digitization because they are more empathetic to this kind of approach even on the labor market than the boring hand written, browsing the book with covers that they no longer access because it is easier to give a scroll,She says.

The vocational counselor also reminds of the existing normative frame: “There is also an annex to the Order of Minister regarding the Law of Education which provides for the framework for digital competences for students. And there are clearly specified the methodologies and programs through which the specific competences and the expected performance levels are well structured for each education cycle and descriptively elaborated for each technological competence, for each discipline, including here both theoretical and vocational schools and especially the technological ones.“

Aurora Oprea believes that parents who emphasize emotional and cognitive autonomy give children a real advantage: “They give them a self -control with deep roots towards the harmful attachments that are implicitly summarized in these gadgets.“She adds that the new generation is already supported by schools and technology clubs: “Most high schools and high schools have robotics clubs, they have programming circles and how it is that Romanians are a bit of spear and the most medalist and awarded among adolescents in world -level competitions?!“

“We risk preparing the children for the past”

If for the vocational counselor the emphasis on emotional autonomy and learning represents a real gain for the future of children, the clinical psychologist Andreea Ștefiuc reports that, without a solid integration of the digital and scientific skills, this orientation risks leaving future generations unprepared for the current economic requirements.

Autonomy in learning involves stimulating innate curiosity and constructing internal motivation, so that the child perceives difficult activities as desirable, explains the psychologist. In order for this process to work, parents need to teach children tolerance to frustration and postponement, and teachers have the role of helping them learn how to learn, not just transmit information.

“The autonomy in learning does not mean doing something out of fear, but to seek intellectual stimulation, with the conviction that it is part of the process to hit frustration, lack of desire or misunderstanding”, she points out. In Romania, however, students are still far from this type of autonomy.

Regarding the term personal development, which is frequently used, it is essentially the support provided to the child to build a set of psychological tools: identifying emotions, regulating the nervous system, inhibiting impulses, controlling attention and the ability to understand their own behaviors and those of others.

“These skills must be learned and practiced as mathematics or grammar. The problem is that, in Romania, neither at school nor family there is enough experience in this field. Often, we ask adults who do not master these tools to teach children, which becomes impossible.”warns the psychologist.

The price of an unprepared generation

A sensitive point is the way parents report children to technology. “The immediate problem is how to get the children out of the phone or tablet. Many do not consider it important to learn how to use artificial intelligence, because they do not understand the technology.”

Recent studies confirm the risks. An experiment from Mit Media Lab (quoted by Le Monde, 2025) shows that students who used Chatgpt for themes had a low brain activity and a lower reminder capacity, compared to those who used Google or their own resources. “If adults do not guide children, the AI ​​becomes a substitute for thinking, not a support for learning. But, used correctly, it can be a strong educational tool.”

The psychologist also draws attention to the deficient relationship with the money: “If adults do not know their emotions and financial behaviors, they cannot transmit healthy models to children. ”

Education as an emotional investment is not a moft, but a condition for a generation capable of being resilient, autonomous and using conscious technology. Without these skills, warns Andreea Stefiuc, “We risk to form generations that, although they have emotional autonomy, do not have the cognitive and technical instruments necessary for the current economy. The price will be paid socially: by inequality and marginalization … and economically, by decreasing productivity and competitiveness.“

Study: Parents focus on autonomy and personal development, not digital skills

A new study by Mkor and Wow Lab shows that extracurricular education has become almost a rule in Romania: 83% of children participate in activities near the school, and 44% do meditations. Behind this financial and logistical involvement of parents, however, is a paradigm change: success no longer means high grades, but a set of life skills.

According to the report “Nextgen Learning – perspectives on education for the future”, 91%of parents consider personal development and autonomy of learning essential for children – more important than general culture (27%) or technical competences (16%). The most sought after skills include clear and efficient communication (38%), critical thinking and solving real problems (37%) and emotion management (35%).

This hierarchy shows a clear tendency: parents invest in building emotional autonomy and resilience, but leaves the digital and technical skills – exactly those skills increasingly required by the labor market.

“The study validates a reality that we observe for over a decade on the field: there is a huge thirst to understand how the world works. Parents are looking for experiences that ignite curiosity, not just to convey information”, Explains Anca Tănăsescu, the founder of Wow Lab.

Context The research was carried out online, on a sample of 400 parents of children between 5 and 18 years, representative at national level, between August 29 – September 2, 2025. The error margin is ± 4.9%, at a level of 95%.