Purpose of education
- Prepare students for the working world, for employment: credible labour force
- Develop skills: social skills, critical thinking
- Impart knowledge: accumulation of knowledge
- How to be an educated person / a good citizen, unity, national identity
- Building up character, facing adversity, ethics
- Teaching right from wrong ( conformity?
- Understand matters in life
Types of education
- Liberal education: education including the arts, equal weight given to arts and sciences ( Literature, history and appreciation of the arts
- Home schooling
- Family education (parental guidance)
- Informal and formal education (skills and academics)
- Experiential learning
- National education
- All-round education
Overemphasis on excellence eroding purpose of education?
- Pursuit of achievement: meritocracy, guided by principle of progress: development
- Credible labour force to satisfy economic needs ( Knowledge: improve ability to handle learning in future ( English teaches us communication skills
- Career ( Secure better jobs because past excellent track records show that individual has capability of handling what is required of him
- National identity ( People strive for economic growth, creating prosperity, increasing standard of living of people, making them happy and hence more loyal to the nation ( National education ( BUT increasingly competitive ( Uneven distribution of income ( Cannot eliminate discrimination, likely that discrimination will prevail
- Disunity ( Rise of elitism: encouraging unhealthy competition ( SAP, independent schools, IP
- Compromises ethical values ( Too concerned with quest of excellence, may try to excel using underhanded means ( Undermines moral development, ignore ethical means ( Conceal knowledge, unwilling to share knowledge with people
Thinking mind better than accumulation of knowledge?
- Develop