Educational Philosophy
By
S. Pal Asija
Education
is a life long process. Most important thing we can
Teach
students is the art and science of learning. Children are
born
with instinct to learn and create.
Society - meaning
students, parents,
teachers and others
involved with the
educational
process - must nurture and cultivate this instinct or
the
very least do nothing to interfere with this endowment.
For
good
effective and efficient
transfer of knowledge
learning
must be fun, teachers must be skilled
in the art of
teaching
in addition to the mastery of the subject matter, the
students
must be skilled in the art of learning and the environment
must
be conducive to learning. The environment must be risk free
and
fear free. Best teachers genuinely care about students, teach
by
example and attempt synergism between left and right brains.
Since
the future of each student and the nation as whole
depends
upon the quality of education, this responsibility must be
shared
by all segments of the society. For vocational training a
greater
cooperation between industry and community colleges is
prudent.
Since
teaching and learning is a process and not a goal it
can
never be perfect. It can always be improved by following the
examples
of such master teachers as Jesus Christ who taught in
parables
precept upon precept and concept upon concept.
This
approach
may require restructuring our knowledge but the society
may
not be ready for it yet.
While
today's students have more knowledge to acquire in less
time, fortunately
they also have the help of
technology in
acquiring
or accessing this knowledge readily. Like Einstein I
believe
students should not be asked to clutter
their brain with
facts
which they can easily access with the help of modern
technology.
Just as
quality is an
integral part of
any design,
manufacture,
delivery and service of any product and not a separate
function
similarly quality is an integral part of design and
delivery
of any instructional system and not a separate function.
The
best source of quality is a genuine concern for the students
and
the future of the nation already at risk.
Punishment
if any should be in the form of disapproval
followed
by abundant love lest the students think the teachers to
be
their enemy. To correct mistakes of the past is a slow process
and
patience is essential. After all teachers cannot talk students
out
of problems overnight which they (the
students) behaved
themselves
into over a long period of time.