Education should only be concerned with what is useful in life. Discuss.
Education should only be concerned with what is useful in life. Discuss.
Education is championed to be the solution of many prevailing problems society is facing today. An overarching view of education can be seen as a way in which people gain knowledge, information and understanding, and learn new skills. One can safely say that the breadth and depth of what can be learned cannot be finished in a lifetime and thus it often forces educators to sieve out and choose areas that are deemed useful in society today. Yet, it must also be recognized that usefulness, as defined by society, is subjected to constant change, due to ever-evolving contexts and perspectives. Hence education cannot be allowed to only be concerned with what is deemed useful in life; there is a need to go beyond practicality.
Education, when solely concerned with what is deemed useful in life, runs the risk of being too narrow. This is because what is deemed useful will differ with various groups of people. Given the example of “Each One Teach One” approach to literacy. Each individual who already can read is to teach another illiterate person to read the materials prepared by an educational leader. This was one of the prominent ways of spreading learning in the past in countries like China, India and the Philippines. Set in the familiar context of the city, if people are only educated with what is being perceived as useful in society, it is likely that they would grow up with a tunnel vision; a narrow minded perception of reality. Being set in only focusing on what is regarded as useful may also cause a stunt in creativity and precipitate the effect of being predictable. Considering the value of holding multiple perspectives, being educated in only what is deemed as useful might not be an insightful decision.
In the same vein, though proponents may advocate that education should only be confined to what would be beneficial for both the individual and society at large, it is also argued
Education is championed to be the solution of many prevailing problems society is facing today. An overarching view of education can be seen as a way in which people gain knowledge, information and understanding, and learn new skills. One can safely say that the breadth and depth of what can be learned cannot be finished in a lifetime and thus it often forces educators to sieve out and choose areas that are deemed useful in society today. Yet, it must also be recognized that usefulness, as defined by society, is subjected to constant change, due to ever-evolving contexts and perspectives. Hence education cannot be allowed to only be concerned with what is deemed useful in life; there is a need to go beyond practicality.
Education, when solely concerned with what is deemed useful in life, runs the risk of being too narrow. This is because what is deemed useful will differ with various groups of people. Given the example of “Each One Teach One” approach to literacy. Each individual who already can read is to teach another illiterate person to read the materials prepared by an educational leader. This was one of the prominent ways of spreading learning in the past in countries like China, India and the Philippines. Set in the familiar context of the city, if people are only educated with what is being perceived as useful in society, it is likely that they would grow up with a tunnel vision; a narrow minded perception of reality. Being set in only focusing on what is regarded as useful may also cause a stunt in creativity and precipitate the effect of being predictable. Considering the value of holding multiple perspectives, being educated in only what is deemed as useful might not be an insightful decision.
In the same vein, though proponents may advocate that education should only be confined to what would be beneficial for both the individual and society at large, it is also argued