There aremany parts of our educational system that I disagree with.
The problem is that I see fartoo many problems, yet offer few answers. Today’s educational systems seem so trendyand political. It almost seems like we should not get comfortable with any one way ofdoing things because policies and procedures change so often. My own philosophy is onethat many people have heard of, “If it’s not broken, then don’t fix it!”. This is simple,and so am I. Upon reading some of the different philosophical views towards education, Ifound many really good ideas.
Each philosophy is presented very attractively. And whynot? The people who set forth these particular ideas were very passionate about whatthey believed in. Unfortunately, we could all debate about the different philosophicalviews of education until we are blue in the face. This still doesn’t actually make any oneopinion, better than any of the others.
We all have opinions, what we need is commonground between them. Hopefully, that is what my educational philosophy stands for. The metaphysics, or nature of reality, of my philosophy starts with the subjects westudy in school. Subjects should be functional to today’s world.
Our educational systemis far more diverse today than it has ever been, and our subject matter should reflect that. The reality of the subjects studied in school, should also reflect upon the reality in eachstudent’s environment. Reality can change, because environments change. Textbooksand literature become somewhat obsolete after a while because our culture changes sorapidly. That is not to say that classic pieces of literature are not of use in the classroom,but each literary product presented in the classroom should hold some information that isrelatively useful for all of the students. When considering metaphysics in the classroom, I believe that religion issomething for outside of the classroom.
There are far too many religious beliefs in theworld to accommodate all of them, so that is an area best left alone. This leaves plenty oftime for other areas of development. If it is the wish of a family to have religionaddressed in the classroom, then there are certain specialized schools that do just that. Ibelieve it is the responsibility of the church to educate their youth in these areas. Lastly, writing skills are important to the metaphysics of my educationalphilosophy. Writing is a necessity in order to accurately document events and opinions.
Distinguishing the difference between fact and fiction can be quite difficult. But a strongfoundation of writing skills make identifying “reality”, that much easier. The epistemology, or nature of knowledge, in my philosophy is much like that ofthe pragmatists. I believe that interaction with the environment is a key part of education. Education should extend outside of the classroom.
Life is a constant learning process initself. If we compared how much time we learn in classrooms to the amount we learn outof them, there is no comparison. If an environmental science class is learning how to usea compass in the woods, then that is exactly what they should do, literally. Another part of my epistemology is problem solving. Once again I find myselfsiding with the pragmatist view. There are many people who are “book smart”, but not somany of those people can practically apply that knowledge.
Today’s system praises shortterm memory. Far too many subjects are taught and then forgotten. If we desire to retaininformation then it must be useful and interesting to us. Knowledge has definitely taken aback seat to the test score.
It is very possible to obtain an “A”, in a subject but notactually learn anything about it. Today’s society values grades, not knowledge. They aretwo very different things. The axiology, or the nature of values, is also a very sensitive area to touch upon. Moral values, for the most part, should be taught at home. Ethics are an important part ofeducation (plagiarism, dishonesty, etc.
). If ethical values are going to be worthwhile, thenthey must be part of life outside of the classroom as well. If the gap between ethicsoutside of school differs greatly from that of ethics inside the classroom, the learningprocess can be greatly hindered. A perfect example, in my mind, is the recent tragedy atColumbine high school in Colorado. The students who went into school with their gunssmoking, were obviously far beyond ethical principles, and did not know of any otherway to seek redemption.
The aesthetics of values is a much more simple area of education than morals. This should be entirely up to the student. If a student has seriously considered thematerial presented, then perhaps appreciation for the beauty of nature and art is possible. The teacher is simply a facilitator in this situation.
Teachers must also be careful not tolead students in any certain direction with their appreciation, but rather let the studentslead themselves. Society as a whole will lead students in a certain direction, because it is society asa whole that decides what is right or wrong. We learn right from wrong through trial anderror. Once again I seem to side with the pragmatists in believing that values depend onall of the variables present during that particular time or setting.
If a person cannotconform to the norms of society when it comes to morals, or any other area, then thatperson will end up being an outcast or undesirable. I think that natural consequencesshould be the penalty for not having morals. Either you conformingly exist, or you ceaseto exist. The logic of my philosophy is simply to approach education logically.
Forexample, it does not make sense that students must pass a comprehensive exam inMassachusetts in order to graduate from high school. I can’t wait to hear about thestudent who aces the SAT’s, but flunks the MCAS. Besides, there is no way to test andmeasure life skills, which are a large part of a successful life after high school. Studentsshould develop those skills throughout the course of their lives. Logic is also a key part of communication.
Education should help studentsdevelop a strong verbal and written competency, as these are important parts of real life. It would be logical for school to be more like real life in order not to create some kind ofsheltered fantasy land (schools) in which students hide from the world. Strongcommunication skills will help the progress of society. And that is one of the importantroles of school, isn’t it? It prepares our youth to be productive and successful members ofour society.
Lastly, school must be logical in order for students to completely invest in it. Ifstudents do not see the need or usefulness for education, then they will be less likely tobenefit from it. Too many students drop out of school because the problems in theirlives do not seemingly have the chance of being solved with or without an education, sothey simply give up. In conclusion, we as a society must make school an enriching experience for ourchildren.
We can do this by supporting the schools and contributing to the process ofbettering lives outside of school. When there are less distractions outside of theclassroom, there are in fact more learning opportunities presented within it, for everyone.
