In Idealism, what makes a teacher effective?
In Idealism, the aims of education can be explained as Idealists generally agreeing that education should not only stress development of the mind
but also encourage students to focus on all things of lasting value. Along with Plato, they
believe that the aim of education should be directed toward the search for true ideas.
Another important idealist aim is character development because the search for truth demands
personal discipline and steadfast character. This aim is prevalent in the writings of
Kant, Harris, Horne, Gentile, and others. What they want in society is not just the literate,
knowledgeable person, but the good person as well. (Source: http://www.pearsonhighered.com)
If I were an idealist, an effective teacher should be someone who can make students focus on the following: things that are truly valuable; things that are in line with true ideas; and things that demand discipline and the development of character. Who would not want these things? in fact, these are things that one would cherish to have. Yet, the notion of the effectiveness of idealism is to this day being questioned. And why is that the case?
Based from the discussion in class, the aim of education in Idealism is to redirect students from sensation, opinion, and perception to the reality of ideas. Another aim of eduaction in Idelism is to cause transformation, meaning a personal conversion towards goodness, truth and beauty, in order to battle relativism, materialism and consumerism. In other words, to put it in a more specific context, in Idealism, the teacher is the exemplar and there is no room for mediocrity as there is a great emphasis on high standards.
From a point of view of an Idealist, an effective teacher is someone who will live out the high standards that have been set both in teaching and in going about his life. Day in and day out, the effective teacher must be able to teach his/ her lessons in accordance to whatever is considered as excellent. He/she has no room for a subpar performance as it will elicit mediocrity and lead to ineffectiveness. Then, there is also a high regard on how the so-called effective teacher must go about his life. Whatever he/she teaches, he/she must live out. As the saying goes, the effective teacher must talk the talk and walk the walk.
Yet, realistically speaking, does this really happen? Is it even possible to be accomplished? Yet, for an idealist there is no point in considering whether it is realistic or not, as the only thing that matters for them is that it must be done regardless of the queries posted by other thinkers. If it is ideal then it should be the one followed. And I think, this is where the major challenge comes in. There is nothing wrong in setting very high standards especially if there is a want to motivate people to bring out their very best. Yet, this can also backfire if it becomes overly implemented like if there is no room even for the slightest error. It becomes taxing and tiring for the teachers and even for the students especially if this is what is expected every single day from them. There is also a high tendency for teachers and students to become too afraid of making mistakes. And the tendency is for them to become too safe about how they go about things. The typical I would rather NOT take a chance than make a mistake becomes part of the culture with this kind of philosophy being implemented. How can there be learning in this kind of process? How can there be effectivity if everyone becomes too safe about how they go about things? Yet, there is also a perspective of how this thinking can be altered a little in terms of how it is implemented. How about moving towards a process of what is ideal instead of having to be there all at once. There should be room for errors as long there will be the willingness to correct then in order to achieve what is being set. The standards and expectations are high but the process to get there should have more leeway in terms of allowing mistakes and learning from them as well.
With this, for me, the truly effective teacher from the perspective of an idealist should be someone who is sold to the idea of achieving high standards and expectations. Yet, he/she should also be someone who is willing enough go through the hardships of the whole process itself, even if it means making mistakes along the way, to get to where he wants he and his students to go.
A very nice blog entry. I actually agree with how you are able to analyze how the idealist teacher can be prone to an inclination towards perfectionism.
ReplyDeleteI had experienced such things during my teaching stint. Of course, all of the teachers (including myself at the time) are the exemplars of unlocking the ideals the students have from within. However, I saw how pressured the students and teachers were in doing so to the point that although certain ideals are beginning to manifest, the satisfaction and fulfillment in attaining these was not seen. It was all just simply a game of standards.
And that is why during my brief class adviser stint, I relate to my students not just on the grounds of being an exemplar but in terms of being a brother and a friend to them.
It was not just though a formality of developing character but rather a journey in which the roads get bumpy but there is an end goal.
And one of the best proofs to this is when I see my old students in which they have matured (even the so-called "delinquent" ones have somewhat changed) to the point that they thank me not because of being their teacher for 10 months but because they are grateful to have someone who believes in them regardless of what they do.
And that makes me happy :)
You're right that we as teachers can't be expected to be perfect. We can, as you said, try our best to achieve a high standard. After all, if we are to put it in Idealist terms, we are still only trying to wrap our microcosmic minds around the macrocosm. If we haven't yet grasped its full breadth and depth, so how can we be expected to perfect examples of it to our students. Therefore, we can really only transmit what we've learned and build upon it.
ReplyDeleteSorry! Initially, I mistakenly added my comment to the contact form instead of the comment sections. Hehehe!
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