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Education
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English (U.S.)
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Topic:

The Changing Role and Purpose of Education in Society. Education Essay

Essay Instructions:

Over the first few weeks of class, we have explored the many purposes of education, both in and out of schools. We have examined the historical emergence of schools in different parts of the world (both in the U.S., Asia, and Europe, and as part of colonization and so-called “development”), and the many purposes these schools have tried to carry forth. We have examined the “official” purposes of schools, as stated by politicians and policymakers (for creating modern, assimilated, moral citizens or obedient colonial subjects; skilled workers for the labor force; loyal patriots; creative thinkers and problem solvers, etc.), and we have examined critiques and counter-proposals by some educators. This essay assignment should help you sort through the many purposes of schooling, examine your assumptions, and develop clarity as an educator and global citizen.

Use this mid-term assignment to craft a statement about what you view as the most important purposes of schooling today. You should write the essay as a letter to an audience of family members and/or friends, and assume they have little to no familiarity with the material you are discussing. Write the paper as though you are informing someone outside this course what you have learned so far, and how this has helped clarify your thinking about the most important purposes of schooling today. In developing this statement, you must make specific reference to the ideas and theories of at least 5 different thinkers from 5 different readings we have read and discussed over the first part of this course, and you must cite details from them (feel free to mention other authors you may know as well, but at least 5 should be from our common course readings). In other words, your own statement about the most important purposes of schooling should emerge out of a critical dialogue with other thinkers and authors. You may want to use some (bot not necessarily all!) of the following questions as an aid in developing the paper: How have changing historical circumstances brought certain educational purposes to the fore, and which of these purposes have persisted to the present day? Which ideas or proposals from the past do you find useful and worthwhile in the present day, and which do you find useless or misguided? How has your own thinking about the most important purposes of schooling been strengthened or sharpened by your exposure to “new ideas” (even if they are historically “old”)? How does your knowledge about the purposes of education in other cultures and countries, or in settings outside of schools, help you clarify your own ideas about the purposes of schools? Upon looking back at what you wrote on the first day of the semester, how have your own ideas about the purposes of education and schooling been changed so far in this class?

Please consult and read carefully the “Writing Guidelines” that I have attached jere for more details about my expectations on formal writing assignments. The paper will be evaluated according to how clearly you organize your ideas and express yourself in writing, how well you draw on course materials to develop your ideas, and how creatively and imaginatively you state your position. In referring to the authors and readings, you should provide concrete detail in the form of direct quotes or extended paraphrases (make sure you acknowledge direct quotes, and cite the page numbers). Feel free to cut and paste sentences or passages from your own Discussion Briefs. You do not need to include a formal bibliography with full citations if you are not citing readings outside the assigned material for this class. If the readings are from the syllabus, simply refer to the authors and the titles of the readings. This paper should be at least 1,500 words, around 5 full double-spaced pages (11 or 12 point font). It may go up to 2,000 words or a little longer, if you so wish. The paper is due by Sunday, February 25th, midnight, in this Canvas Assignment tab. It is worth 200 points.

Essay Sample Content Preview:

The Changing Role and Purpose of Education in Society
Name
Institutional Affiliation
The Changing Role and Purpose of Education in Society
It is not surprising that one day our children will ask us why we have to them to school or through schooling. For many parents, it has become a norm that a child should be taken to school for one to secure quality education and access reputable employment with high salaries for affording the high-end life. This is practically true because everyone has dreams and ambitions to fulfill. However, education is not a new concept in the American history. An analysis of the history of education reveals that the role and purpose of education has been changing depending on the society where it is introduced. The purpose of education in the colonial America is different for its purpose in post-colonial America. Similarly, the purpose of education in colonial Africa is different from its purpose in the pre-colonial Africa. These differences are discussed deeply in this paper with the strict focus of western perception of education. Education is meant to cultivate and nurture responsible citizens for democratic governance.
Before delving into the democratic role of education, it is essential for one to understand the original definition of education in the early eighteenth century. John Dewey is reputed as the first person to have coined the democratic definition of education. According to McClellan (1999), the original definition of education gave it a moral meaning. McClelan (1999) explains that parents in the late nineteenth century felt compelled that they needed to instill a sense of moral urgency in their children due to weakening family ties. As such, education for young people revolved around moral uprightness and self-control. This early perception was considered efficient in nurturing the internal aspects of responsibility instead of external controls that required close monitoring from parents.
The progress through the nineteenth century (from 1830s) witnessed significant improvements on the need for education and schooling. The primary focus is seen in how parents viewed the roles of education as cultivation of character rather than a mere process of going through school. After observing the moral motivation of education in this age, Dewey defined education as a process of equipping young people with a sense of moral responsibility (Soltis, n.d.). Dewey’s definition views education as a moral motivation that seeks to free human mind instead of physical fetters. For instance, if people of color were motivated to take their children to schools, they did so with the goal of giving them access to opportunity that had been reserved to elites. Elites existed in social, economic, and political life. As such, the original meaning and intent of education slowly transitioned into a new purpose, with the goal of assimilating the less affluent into an elite and progressive society.
The above definition points to a democratic role of education in the American society and Africa. Even though democracy has taken a political definition, White (1996) explains that the transition of definition of education from the moral point of view to the democratic point of view had been in the mind of ...
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