Teaching and Education - Essay Example

?Reflective Essay About Teaching/Education Education plays a very significant role in a person’s success in life. It is often viewed as the basic foundation which brings about economic wealth, social prosperity and political stability in a society. This is the reason why parents sacrifice their money to invest in the best schools for the education of their children. Even the government allocates a large portion of the national budget for the improvement of the educational system of the nation. Education mainly begins at home. Parents have an important role in educating their children too. They should participate more actively in their child’s early development and learning. A child does not only acquire knowledge from the teacher alone, their parents are their first and most influential teachers. Parents cannot just rely on the schools to teach all of life’s lessons to their children. Many of life’s lessons are learned outside the structured environment of the classroom. Parents have a role too in curriculum development. It is not the sole responsibility of the school and the teachers. I believe that parents should have a role in the development of the curriculum because they have an indirect interest and concern in it. At the content level however, curriculum development lies primarily to the state officials and local administrators. At the processing level of the curriculum, the facilitators, teachers and support staff take on the major roles. Parents and students play a key role at the process level because they must learn and apply the objectives through their own methods and styles. Parents can be more involved in goal setting, finding alternative learning opportunities and in the evaluation of the curriculum. Parents must however recognize and respect the roles of the other participants in the curriculum development such as the teachers. A teacher’s role is not confined to merely educating the students in various subjects. I view their role as more encompassing. Teachers should educate students so that they will be equipped with the needed knowledge, possess a noble character and be responsible individuals of the society. They should also educate students to develop a strong will power to acquire various skills necessary to fulfill their aspirations and the requirements of the nation. Teachers have a great impact on the students’ lives during their school years and even after. It is therefore essential that they guide them towards the right attitudes and help the students uncover their roles in society in the future. Teachers are agents of change too. They should have the ability to carry out new changes according to the requirements of the student and the society. Teachers are important factors for a modern, updated and advanced society because their knowledge and skills not only enhances the quality of education but it also serves as prerequisites for future research and innovation. It is the responsibility of teachers to adopt their teaching method to the fast pace of our society today. The role of teachers today has undergone a dramatic transformation. This transformation is due in part by the massive advancement in knowledge and information technology and a growing demand for better learning methods in schools. The teachers of today are more concerned with their relationships with the students, colleagues and community. They are rethinking the tools and techniques that they use, as well as the form and content of their curriculum. Teachers realize now that it is their responsibility to get to know each student as an individual in order to understand his unique needs, learning style, social and cultural background, interests, and abilities. Their jobs now include counseling students to assist them to unite their social, emotional and intellectual growth to make better decisions in their lives. This is a totally new form of instruction for teachers which is no longer geared at traditional classroom lectures, but rather a teaching style which challenges students to have a more active role in learning. Teachers are no longer the masters of the classroom because they realize that they will be more effective if they adopt the role of educational guides, facilitators, and co-learners. If I were a teacher in business management, I would use role playing where students will be acting out roles like being a CEO of a large organization or a manager handling problem employees. This method will help the student understand more the concepts that we discuss during our lectures. Another method which I will adopt is the use of case analysis. I can assign a group of students to present an analysis of a case based on real life corporations while the rest of the class can be the critique group who will comment on how they handled the case. This teaching style will result in more interaction with their fellow students and will challenge the students to apply the lessons they have learned in class. In short, teachers now are reinventing themselves to better serve the needs of the students, the school and the society as a whole. Alongside the teachers, students also have a role in education. They are at the very core of the educational system. Students should take an active role in their own learning process. Students should invest their time and effort to the learning process. They must in their own little ways contribute to the development of the campus environment as a place for growth and learning not only for themselves but for the other students as well. Students must realize that education is a partnership between them and the school. There should be a clear acknowledgement of their mutual obligations in order for both the institution and the student to achieve their goals. Schools play a vital role in society. Schools offer organized education as opposed to those given by the parents. The school is the institution that prepares the children for their adult roles in society by providing them with the necessary skills to survive, work and to socialize them so that they can act according to the standardized norms and social relationships. Aside from this role, I believe that schools must also provide every child with an equal opportunity to excel and use their education to their advantage. Children who belong to the low income social class will be given the opportunity to improve their lives through education which may result in putting some equilibrium between the rich and the poor. Another important role of schools is to provide opportunities for every child to explore their potentials and interests thereby developing them to a fully independent and realized individual who will be an asset to society. As an example, in the Montessori method of teaching, the teacher only acts as a guide to the child. The role of the teacher is to observe the child and determine his interests. The teacher prepares the environment to meet the observed needs of the child. The Montessori classroom has a multitude of fascinating materials such as the golden beads, the color boxes, sandpaper globes and animal puzzles which aid the development and refinement of the senses of the child. The role of a school goes beyond providing for intellectual stimulation and preparing the student to becoming good citizens of society. It must go further and serve a wider human purpose. It must be an instrument in establishing unity and harmony not only within the confines of the country but rather around the globe. It must support the collaboration among the different peoples of the world regardless of race, religion, economy, class and political barriers. Schools must also be responsive to the destruction of the society brought about by greed, crime and violence. Schools must strive to contribute in developing a society that is just, equal and fair. In conclusion, I believe that education to be effective should be a conglomeration of the student, teacher, parent and an up to date and well-conceptualized school curriculum. The school, the teachers and the parents each have significant roles to play in educating a child to make him a responsible and a well-rounded citizen of the country. Quality education is essential if we want society to progress. And quality education can only be achieved if the student, teacher, and school administrators perform their roles to the fullest. Read More