Importance Of Teachers In Education

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How important are teachers in education? In the modern education system, students are seemingly fed prescribed knowledge, rather than core knowledge. Prescribed knowledge supplied to us students deprives us of the ability to think critically, and perhaps challenge the status quo. It ingrains a sense of conformity within us, where opposing another person's views seems a crime. The primary purpose of education, in my opinion, is to help us find out true selves, help us trigger our passion, and teach us the knowledge and expertise needed to direct and sustain it. Schools have a duty to make us better citizens, to develop a devotion to civic and responsibility that arouses a feeling of boldness within us, making us realize we have the power and…show more content…
In Summerhill, teachers are not there to create things for the children, and instead, children are left on their own to develop new ideas and possibly find something of their interest, rather than being pressured into liking/doing something. Not having any pressure on them will eventually lead them to have high self-confidence, and as noted in Summerhill, students gain a sense of achievement for managing their own lives how they want to handle it, hence creating a relaxed atmosphere and one where each and everyone thrives on. These instances at Summherill support Dewey's stance on education too, that education should be hands-on, based on social settings, where there is little or no pressure on the student. Having no burden allows students to think critically, which is the basis of a liberal democratic society, allowing them to entail successful communication and problem-solving skills, allowing them to think critically about social issues to inform their judgments about proper governances and biases or injustices that take place overall, hence giving them an opportunity to challenge the status quo further. Furthermore, in Ladson-Billings essay, we can see that how she emphasizes the need for "culturally relevant teachers." By culturally relevant teachers, Ladson-Billings meant to empower students…show more content…
If the education system does not change soon enough, it would be a case of countries with more advanced education system going further at a fast speed, whereas countries which fail to acknowledge the change will be left behind. Falling behind would mean that a whole country is left behind, as education is upon which a nation is built on. Education is no longer about "knowing," but in fact requires us to focus on the development of skills, communication, and creative thinking. As Dewey at the beginning of his essay says that education needs to evolve with society. Otherwise, the changes would just be incremental or somewhat transitory. We can compare this statement of Dewey and apply this to the current U.S education system, and then compare it to the Finnish education system. For example, in the video we watched about Finland's school system, it was evident that they had evolved their education with the needs of the society. Most importantly, they recognized the need for high-quality teachers, hence making the need for Masters a minimum required to become a teacher. They understood that teachers have a critical role to play, as they are the ones who shape the future generations. They must be knowledgeable and creative, but also empathize and communicate with students those they have a responsibility for inspiring. In fact, we can see some of the
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