What does it mean to be educated? Webster states that to be educated only means giving evidence of training or practice. All teachers develop their own philosophy. There are many different aspects to an acceptable philosophy. Every teacher in their school has their own unique way of creating a safe and effective learning environment to best educate the students. In my opinion the purpose of education is not only to instill knowledge but to prepare the students for life outside the classroom.
Every student needs a basic core of academic knowledge to be able to contribute as a citizen. These aspects include subjects such as Mathematics, English, Science, and History. Along with the core subjects it is important for schools to have a wide variety of character education to provide the students with life skills that will help them contribute to society. We as teachers have to prepare the children not only with knowledge, but also with a sense of identity, community, and preparation for moral conduct. Of course we need to follow our curriculum, but we need to focus on the purpose of our education. This purpose is to prepare our students to be productive citizens here in our country and contributors globally.
Unfortunately too much emphasis is placed on standardized testing, but teaching methods along with technology and multiculturalism, are extremely important to education. Being able to reach all learners through various methods and bring in new technology while touching on differences is beneficial to any school system. Standardized testing cannot measure someone’s desire to question and look for the truth. Also, the standardized tests do not measure if the students are becoming contributing members of society. Can we measure respect and consideration? School systems need to remember that they are educating the future. We want to produce well-educated students, but we must remember that we also want students to develop good character. The latter cannot be measured through standardized testing.
A truly effective philosophy will combine different teaching strategies in order to instill the academic knowledge and to prepare the students for society. If we are going to teach acceptance and respect within the classroom, teachers need to differentiate their instruction. This means more time for group activities and partner work, but less time for lectures. Education is constantly changing. With the diversity of students, teachers must constantly come up with creative and intuitive lessons. How else are we going to equip our students with the tools for the future? Just as John F. Kennedy once said, “Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.”
Every student needs a basic core of academic knowledge to be able to contribute as a citizen. These aspects include subjects such as Mathematics, English, Science, and History. Along with the core subjects it is important for schools to have a wide variety of character education to provide the students with life skills that will help them contribute to society. We as teachers have to prepare the children not only with knowledge, but also with a sense of identity, community, and preparation for moral conduct. Of course we need to follow our curriculum, but we need to focus on the purpose of our education. This purpose is to prepare our students to be productive citizens here in our country and contributors globally.
Unfortunately too much emphasis is placed on standardized testing, but teaching methods along with technology and multiculturalism, are extremely important to education. Being able to reach all learners through various methods and bring in new technology while touching on differences is beneficial to any school system. Standardized testing cannot measure someone’s desire to question and look for the truth. Also, the standardized tests do not measure if the students are becoming contributing members of society. Can we measure respect and consideration? School systems need to remember that they are educating the future. We want to produce well-educated students, but we must remember that we also want students to develop good character. The latter cannot be measured through standardized testing.
A truly effective philosophy will combine different teaching strategies in order to instill the academic knowledge and to prepare the students for society. If we are going to teach acceptance and respect within the classroom, teachers need to differentiate their instruction. This means more time for group activities and partner work, but less time for lectures. Education is constantly changing. With the diversity of students, teachers must constantly come up with creative and intuitive lessons. How else are we going to equip our students with the tools for the future? Just as John F. Kennedy once said, “Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.”
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