Preparing for Classes
The weather has already begun its ramble towards autumn, teachers, professors or whatever label given to describe those who strive to assist others, young and old, towards new skills and understandings, feel energy in their souls even in their bones. The energy combines nervous anticipation with hope for each new student.
When a teacher looses that sense of energy, darkness has replaced light. The darkness might be from personal loss of commitment or the commitment was never there at all. Darkness can also come from the setting. Is the school or system so dysfunctional that there is no place for light and energy to enter? This is happening in more and more schools and systems in the USA than I have ever witnessed.
Too many agenda are being run and played in education. This overload started in the 80's when politicians and special interests such as religion and business decided making their goals priorities in school settings was not just acceptable but appropriate. Since neither view is a true part of the teacher student relationship in a free and student centered setting, the base relationship gets warped and drained of prime elements of legitimacy. When the ethos of the messenger - teacher - is weakened, the message suffers. The message of course was to be learning of whatever the student was seeking to acquire. The warped messages now include so many agenda, is it any wonder students cannot find their desires met?
"What is the purpose of education'" was always a key question in educational and educational philosophy coursers. If a teacher cannot answer that question in a way through which the effort needed has value, then the energy begins to die.
The answers to improving education are as simple and as difficult as the answer to that fundamental question.
When a teacher looses that sense of energy, darkness has replaced light. The darkness might be from personal loss of commitment or the commitment was never there at all. Darkness can also come from the setting. Is the school or system so dysfunctional that there is no place for light and energy to enter? This is happening in more and more schools and systems in the USA than I have ever witnessed.
Too many agenda are being run and played in education. This overload started in the 80's when politicians and special interests such as religion and business decided making their goals priorities in school settings was not just acceptable but appropriate. Since neither view is a true part of the teacher student relationship in a free and student centered setting, the base relationship gets warped and drained of prime elements of legitimacy. When the ethos of the messenger - teacher - is weakened, the message suffers. The message of course was to be learning of whatever the student was seeking to acquire. The warped messages now include so many agenda, is it any wonder students cannot find their desires met?
"What is the purpose of education'" was always a key question in educational and educational philosophy coursers. If a teacher cannot answer that question in a way through which the effort needed has value, then the energy begins to die.
The answers to improving education are as simple and as difficult as the answer to that fundamental question.
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