Effectiveness of Education - Article Example

Education is considered to be one of the activities that can have a formative impact on the mind of a child. Since it happens during the formative years it also affects the child’s character and physical body as well. An attempt is made here to answer some vital questions about the education system. Effectiveness of schools, environment provided by a school, control theory, behaviour interactionist perspective and psychological needs of children shall be discussed. Identify the factors that differentiate ‘effective’ or ‘successful’ schools from less effective or less successful schools. A lot of effort goes into creating a good school. The major purpose of a school is to pass on the best of society’s knowledge to the students. However no school is ‘right’ for every student. According to Madeline Hunter, a psychologist ‘expecting all children the same age to learn from the same material is like expecting all children the same age to wear the same size clothing’. There are many factors that contribute to the effectiveness of a school. The ability of teachers to control students in a classroom, minimising the distraction factors of students, handling discipline problems maintaining order in classrooms are major factors. The principal is the one who has to provide a vision to the entire process. Instead of being involved only in the management of school affairs he also has to gain the confidence of all the teachers and guide them throughout the process. Effective schools treat parents as a part of the educational process. Parents can cultivate a love of education in their children. They can give valuable suggestions to the school authorities regarding their child’s education. Even parents who do not have a high degree of education must be given a clear idea about their child’s progress or difficulties he or she might be facing. Effective schools recognize the fact that every student comes from a different socio-cultural background and they might have different needs. They respect the difference; treat it like a challenge they have to overcome instead of making the child feel out of place. Learning programs must be made with these diversities in mind. An effective school will have a balanced curriculum. There will always be a high expectation from every student and a focused leadership. Teachers trained in the skills of positive teaching can be found in successful schools. These staff members have a special rapport with their students. In less successful schools, education is seen as a chore and not as a process that has to be experienced. How might the school environment optimize on student’s potential for learning? According to R.H Dave a school environment consists of ‘the conditions, processes and psychological stimuli that affect the educational achievement of a child’. Dave (1963). The learning environment has the capability to contribute to the learner’s academic performance. This refers to the attitude of the teacher, the educational programs adopted by the school and the positive social relationships that are fostered in a school. The environment in a school can be classified as physical, social, psychological and academic. The physical environment includes the infrastructure provided for the activities of students. Proper planning during building the facilities and maintenance of the property can be instrumental in attracting students. It also helps the students overcome the first hurdle of trying to get familiar with the campus. Social environment includes the interaction between the human resources within a school. This is an often-ignored aspect and must be given prime importance. It includes, interaction between students, teachers, parents and the management. This helps to instil in the students social values, democratic ideas and a positive attitude towards life. It will also help in bridging the gap between the school and the society. When the psychological environment in a school is good it brings out the best in every student. Every student is motivated and so are the teachers. Any competition that exists between students is healthy. It helps students satisfy their social and psychological needs. The academic environment is the one in which teaching and learning activities run smoothly so that the learning process gets completed. This relates to the proper management of the academic processes of a school. Classes, exams, evaluation of students and teaching methods used must be good .It is evident that though a certain group of schools are affiliated to the same university, some schools produce better students and that is because of the better environment provided in the schools.. What are the similarities and differences between the Control Theory (Glasser) approach and the Behaviour-interactionist perspective to managing students’ behaviours and fostering learning? According to Glasser’s control theory our behaviour is not caused by external factors but stems from our innermost desires. According to him all people can do is behave, we choose our behaviours and we try to fulfil five basic needs. Need to survive, to have fun, to be free, to love and to have a sense of belonging. When this theory is applied to classrooms, students have a say in what they learn. Teachers must be more open to suggestions. They must be able to relate to their students and also encourage students to be more competent. Healthy competition must be encouraged. Kevin Wheldall and Ted Glynn advocate behaviour-interactionist theory. This theory is a bit different to Glasser’s approach. It suggests that the environment influences behaviour, which in turn influences the environment because of the consequences, caused in the first place. When enforced it reduces the need for punishment or suspension. Instead of focusing on one student it sheds light on many factors like the curriculum, task demands, speed of instruction etc. since there is an effort to change the entire environment, it helps a variety of students. It also reduces disruption of academic activity. Instead of immediately punishing errant students it is important to look into the factors that caused it, include the parents in the picture and other influences on the student. This will help in preventing the problem from occurring to some other student. Even though these two theories have conflicting viewpoints, the solutions they suggest lead to the same results. The aim is to create better schools with students and teachers working together to create a better society. Discuss the importance of recognising student’s psychological needs in learning. Apart from learning lessons there are many things going on in a child’s mind. The years spent in school shape the personality of the student. Every student has a different set of psychological needs. According to Deci and Ryan’s self determination theory the three psychological needs of students are autonomy, competence and relatedness. These three needs must be fulfilled by the education system. Supporting autonomy essentially means understanding the student’s perspective and making them understand the importance of every leaning activity. Autonomy is not complete freedom but is a feeling that one is directly responsible for one’s actions. Students must be given options and allowed to make choices. That way they never feel that they are being forced to do something they don’t want to do. Competence can be seen in some students when they take on hard tasks and try to develop self-efficacy. Some students do not have this capability. Teachers must encourage students and instil a sense of confidence in them so that they are never afraid of failure. The student must feel that he can surmount any challenge. Relatedness is the connection one feels with the outside world. Teachers must be supportive, provide instant positive feedback when they feel that a student is doing well. A word of praise goes a long way. Students must feel that they are a group that is learning together. This will result in a collaborative classroom climate. However according to Glasser’s choice theory the five psychological needs are survival, power, freedom, fun and sense of belonging. According to him these are the five needs that have to be satisfied. Reference. Edwards, C.(1999). Classroom discipline & management (2nd ed.).New York: John Wiley & Sons. (Chapter 8 – Reality Therapy/Control Theory: William Glasser) Gillies, R. (2007). Cooperative learning: Integrating theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage (Chapter 1, Effective or expert teachers, p. 9-11 & Chapter 8, Future developments in using groups, p.219-232). Johnson, J. & C. Uline (2005). Preparing educational leaders to close achievement gaps. Theory into Practice, 44, 45-52. Rowling, L. (2003). Grief in school communities: Effective support strategies. Buckingham: Open University Press. (Chapter 6, Supportive school environment). Rutter, M. & Maughan, B. (2002). School effectiveness findings 1979-2002. Journal of School Psychology, 40, 451-475. Horner, R. H., Crone, D. A., & Stiller, B.  (2001, March). The role of school psychologists in establishing positive behavior support: Collaborating in systems change at the school-wide level.  Communiqué, 29(6), 10-12. Discipline with dignity By Richard L Curwin, Allen N Mendler Dave r.h 1963, the identification and measurement of environmental process variable that are related to educational achevement, phd thesis, university of Chicago. What works in schools: translating research into action By Robert J. Marzano, copyright 2003, by association for supervision and curriculum development. Pages 7 to 16. http://www.articles-central.net/Article/School-Environment.aspx Those Who Can, Teach  By Kevin Ryan, James M. Cooper 2010, cengage learning, pages 40 – 54 Effective schools  By Dennis M. McInerney, Martin Dowson, Shawn Van Etten Pages 17-43, 2006, information age publishing. Handbook of classroom management: research, practice, and contemporary issues  By Carolyn M. Evertson, Carol Simon Weinstein Pages 696-698, 2006, Lawrence earlbaum associates. Inc. Motivating students to learn  By Jere E. Brophy 186-202, 2006, lawrence earlbaum associates.inc. new jersey. Read More