Who deserves what kind of education - Essay Example

WHO DESERVES WHAT KIND OF EDUCATION There is a lot of controversy surrounding literacy. One of the controversies is that there is no fixed definition for the term. To many, it is the ability to read and write, but a more complex attribution refers to literacy as a means of combining schooling, political ideology and economy in today’s culture. The common controversy regarding literacy (education) seeks to answer the query as to who should receive what kind of education. In the 1800s, it was normal for men to be more educated than women, non-whites were limited to acquiring knowledge, and the poor were generally less literate than the wealthy (Tozer, Senese & Violas, 2005).

These inequivalences have never been explained to this day. Sato and Lensmire (2009) state that underprivileged (poverty-stricken) children are usually stereotyped as inferior students in that their conditions may hinder their learning and they are termed as less-worthy learners. This should not be the case and that is why teachers are today being trained to cater for children of all social classes. The strategies applied include treating all learners as equal, bridging school and home experiences, and connecting between lived sociocultural realities and academic abstractions.

Collectively, the idea here is to provide the best (and normal) education to everyone regardless of their social class. Jean Anyon conducted a research on students in five elementary schools to tell whether there was a relationship between social class and the type and level of literacy attained at school. Five elementary schools were evaluated, each set in contrasting social class communities. According to the findings, it was revealed that depending on a school’s social class, the children differed with regards to their symbolic and physical capital, the process of work, and finally, authority (Anyon, 1981).

This revelation, therefore suggested the need to maintain uniformity in education (literacy) settings to prevent this bias. Finally, education has been defined by many scholars as a “banking” process in that learners are taught through narration. This means that they ingest whatever the teacher (banker) provides them without any thinking process involved. According to Freire (1970), such education minimizes the learner’s creative and problem-solving power. In its place, Freire recommends problem-posing education which is more engaging in that the learner is taught how to solve a problem but they are not filled with the solutions.

Concisely, this type of education is better at unveiling or reality and turns the learners into hardy individuals capable of devising solutions that enable them to survive more efficiently. ReferencesAnyon, J. (1981). Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work. Journal of Education. 11 (1), 67-92.Freire, P. (1970). Banking v. Problem-solving Models of Education in The Nature and Aims of Education.New York: Penguin books.Sato, M., & Lensmire, T. (2009, January). “Poverty and Payne: Supporting Teachers to Work with Children of Poverty”.

Phi Delta Kappan.Tozer, S., Senese, G., & Violas, P. (2005). “Liberty and Literacy Today” in Educational Aims Contemporary Society. Contemporary Perspectives. New York: McGraw-Hill.