The concept of education existed in the minds of philosophers and thinkers from Socrates, Plato down to Gandhi and Dewey for a long time. Most of these thinkers looked at education differently mostly with a biasness towards the field of their interest.
To most of these thinkers however, it is noticeable that behaviour change and experience was at the core of how they looked at education. From inception, it is wise to note that education as a word has a wider connotation and it is very difficult to give its precise definition. Students in this field therefore, should take a leading role to try and add their voices in coming up with a definition of education.
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DEFINITION OF EDUCATION
Etymologically, Education is derived from two Latin words; ‘educare’ – meaning ‘to bring up’, and ‘educere’ meaning ‘to bring forth’. Education does not only mean the acquisition of knowledge or experience, but it means the development of habits, attitudes and skills which help human beings lead a full and worth-while life.
This etymological concept of education opens the door to many meanings of education which are:
- Education meaning an attempt to develop human beings: education is seen to be the development of capacities in the individual which enables him to control his environment and make meaning of it.
- Education is modification of behaviour: education is an activity or process which transforms the behaviour of a person from instinctive behaviour to rational behaviour.
- Education is an act of training: this means that education is a conscious purpose to train the children for adult life. It should be noted however that the training can have either positive or negative results. Animals are also trained by imitating the actions of adults but in their training, the purpose is neither conscious nor well-developed.
- Education is direction: educating a child means directing a child properly according to human standards. Children are born with instincts. These instincts have to be properly directed in order that their satisfaction may be socially acceptable.
EDUCATION TYPES
Traditionally education has been categorised as formal, informal and non-formal. The distinction amongst them is seen in the manner they are organised and structured.
FORMAL EDUCATION
By formal education we refer to the hierarchically structured, chronologically graded educational system, running from primary school through the university and including, in general other forms of higher education.
FEATURES OF FORMAL EDUCATION
- Organised structures where programs are conducted
- Well trained teachers
- Well-structured curricular being followed
- Follow a designed syllabus
- Certificates are awarded upon completion of the program at each level.
NON FORMAL EDUCATION
By non-formal education we mean any organised education activity outside the established formal system that is intended to serve identified learning clienteles and learning objectives. Examples; Adolescents and adult literacy classes, school based extra-curricular activities such as boy and girl scouts, sports and recreational groups, occupational training for adolescents in agriculture and construction carried outside the formal school structure. In this type of education, learning is structured, although not so obviously as in the case of formal education. There is more flexibility in this education as regards places, time and methods of learning.
FEATURES OF NON-FORMAL EDUCATION
- It not compulsory
- It does not lead to formal certification
- It may or may not be state-supported
INFORMAL EDUCATION
By informal education we mean education that is considered a life-long process where every individual acquires attitudes, values, skills and knowledge from daily experiences and the educative influences and resources in his or her environment. An individual gets this type of education from:
- Family and neighbours
- Work and play
- Market place
- Library
- Mass media
Through informal education, for example, a child acquires substantial vocabulary before going to school, a girl child learns child care and cooking from helping and observing her mother, a son picks up occupational skills from his father.
FUNCTIONS OF EDUCATION
In the words of M.L. Jacks, if we believe in the doctrine of original sin…..there is plenty of work for education to do, its prime task is to transform original evil into acquired good.Daniel Webster said that through education, the feelings are to be disciplined, the passions are to be restrained, true and worthy motives are to be inspired, a profound religious feeling is to be instilled and pure morality is to be inculcated under all circumstances.To Plato, the business of education is to discover aptitudes and progressively to train them for social use.
There is no doubt that the role of school is to provide a special environment for the young.It equips children to cope with the emergencies of changing order and to keep them into relationship throughout with the human, social process.Education enables a person to make a choice of values. It presents the desirable and also tells the undesirable, thus leaving a man to choose what he wants.Dewey, the function of education is to help the growing of helpless young animal into a happy moral and efficient human being.
Education must fit the pupil to environment so that he may survive while enjoying the pleasure of satisfying his instincts provided these instincts have been redirected to acceptable and desirable channels.
PEDAGOGY
Pedagogy is the art or science of being a teacher. The term generally refers to the instructional strategies. The concept of education today is used to refer to the whole content of instruction, learning and actual operations. The concept of education encompasses teaching and learning of specific skills and also something less tangible but more profound: the imparting of knowledge and positive judgment.
Education is an application of pedagogy or teaching methodologies if you like. You will find that pedagogy is a body of theoretical and applied research relating to teaching and learning. It draws on many disciplines such as Psychology, Philosophy, Sociology, Communication Technology and even Management. You have studied all these areas and you will now have a chance to apply what you learned in General Methods of teaching.
Current global education issues centre on teaching methodology such as, which teaching methods are most effective, how to determine which knowledge to be taught, which knowledge is most relevant and how well the learner will retain incoming knowledge. So the essence of our job as teachers is making sure that the curriculum serves as a catalyst for powerful learning for students who with our guidance and support become skilled and committed to the process of learning.
It is imperative therefore, that when teachers are planning for instruction they include effective teaching techniques for efficient implementation of the curriculum.