Education

Education is an enlightening experience. It is an essential human virtue, a necessity of society, basis of good life and sign of freedom. It is important for integration of separate entities. This article talks about the Importance of education in our life.

Importance of education

If you are in your academic career, then you might be hearing the words like ‘Education is Must‘, ‘There is no Life without Education’ etc., right? So, why all such words come from people around you? What is the importance of education in our life? Forget about it for a while! First, do you know what education really is?

 The process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, esp. at a school or university: “a new system of public education”.

 Well, education is not limited to schools or colleges only, nor it is limited to age. The things happening in the practical life also educate us. Anyways, coming to the question in hand, read out the importance of education in our life below.

Education Makes Better Citizens

Man is nothing but an animal. It is the education that teaches him many things, teaches the manners, rules and regulations of life etc. All these things result in converting man from an animal to well-mannered citizen.

Education brings Confidence

Nothing in the life can be achieved if we don’t have belief on ourselves. Education is what brings self-confidence in us. We get the confidence of doing the things on our own. Our self-confidence then helps us in passing all the difficulties that come on way to our aim. Education also makes us better in communication with others.

Ensures a Bright Future

An educated person lives a happy life always. He/she has a bright future that on one can pull from them. Education wakes the hidden talent and skills of any person. This hidden talent and skills give us employment and a completely secure future. It is the education that helps us in achieving new heights in our life.

Spreads Awareness

An educated person tries to understand each and every thing on its own rather than blindly following anyone else. This results in spreading awareness everywhere. An educated person does not only reject the misconceptions him/herself, but also explains the real logic behind any happening, to others. Thus education clears out the darkness with the intense light of knowledge.

Educated Persons Help in Progress of Country

People of any particular country can live happily only if the country have resources, or simply, say, country is rich in every aspect. Educated persons know pretty well that what is wrong and what is right. They do not need to follow the words of third person. Educated persons are well aware from their country’s rules and laws. They know pretty well about their duties and fundamental rights. They know the value of paying taxes, and thus pay their taxes on time. All these qualities of educated persons help them play a vital role in the progress of their country.

Education is essential for everyone. It is the level of education that helps people earn respect and recognition. It is indispensable part of life both personally and socially. However, the unequal standard of education is still a major problem that needs to be solved. As a result, strategies are being made to resolve the problems. Without education, life would be disastrous and detrimental. Consequently, to this day, we are trying our best to make education global and accessible for everyone particularly the poor and the disabled. There are still some places where the inhabitants are almost completely uneducated, causing a serious lack of knowledge. Additionally, every child should be given equal opportunities to learn and study. Although the educational systems of different countries are not similar but they have to share a common goal which is to provide its citizens a suitable and proper learning.

Education is more than just learning from books, and it is a shame that a lot of schools, teachers and even parents/guardian do not see that it is more than just a curriculum and school score. A good education can teach a child how to learn so that the child may take up independent learning as an adult. Education may also teach a child how to reason so that a child does not grow up to be ignorant.

Here we are taking two points to emphasize the importance of education.

Persuasive point 1

The biggest selling point for education in our society is the fact that it helps people learn “how” to learn. It is not about the knowledge they accumulate, it is the way a child is taught how to “learn” things. A child may come away from school not knowing a lot of the course, but if that child has been taught how to learn, then that child may become an adult that learns everything he or she needs in life. Otherwise, that child may grow up to be a person that cannot see the obvious because he or she cannot reason and consciously learn new things.

Persuasive point 2

Education teaches people how to reason, and if they are taught how to reason well, then they help subdue their own thoughts of ignorance. For example, there are lots of posts and websites on the Internet about childhood vaccinations and how dangerous they are. Ignorant people than never learned how to reason will look at them, believe them and support them. If a person is taught how to reason then he or she will know how to recognize empirical evidence.

That person would look at all the people in the US that have had childhood injections (most of them) and then look at all the people with autism. They would reason that if childhood vaccinations caused autism then most of the people in the US would have autism. If a person is taught how to reason then that person may see how people that smoke seem more likely to develop emphysema than people that do not smoke. They would then reason there is a link between smoking and emphysema. This sort of reasoning can be taught in schools, and if children are not taught it then they walk around risking their children’s lives by not vaccinating them, and walk around smoking because their daddy smoked for years and it never hurt him.

Conclusion

If education is not seen as important, then one day it will just be all about school scores and hitting the factors of a curriculum. There will be a day when children start to hate learning because school put them off it for life (this already happens in some cases). Plus, without education teaching people how to reason things out and teaching them how to separate what is fact from what is faulty evidence, then our society will become more and more ignorant until a smarter country simply marches over and takes our country from under out ignorant noses.

Education in its all-inclusive form goes beyond what takes places within the four walls of the classroom.

A child gets education from his experiences outside the school as well as from those within on the basis of these factors. So, there are mainly three types of education, namely, Formal, Informal and Non-formal. Each of these types is briefly described below.

(A) Formal Education

 Highlights

(i) Planned with a particular end in view.

(ii) Limited to a specific period.

(iii) Well-defined and systematic curriculum

(iv) Given by specially qualified teachers.

(v) Includes activities outside the classroom

(vi) Observes strict discipline.

(i) Planned with a particular end in view

Formal education is planned with a particular end in view. It is given in school, college and similar other institutions which are established with the purpose. In this way it is direct schooling, instruction and tuition.

(ii) Limited to a specific period

Formal education is limited to a specific period or stage. It is provided according to certain set rule and regulations. It is in the form of systematic, planned and guided instruction.

(iii) Well-defined and systematic curriculum

Formal education has a well-defined and systematic curriculum. This curriculum is based on certain aims and objectives. These aims are in conformity with the needs of the society and the state.

(iv) Given by specially qualified teachers

Formal education given by specially qualified teachers they are supposed to be efficient in the art of instruction.

(v) Includes activities outside the class-room

In modern progressive schools, the process of education is not merely restricted the four walls of the class-room. There are more activities outside the class-room than inside it.

(vi) Observes strict discipline

Formal education observes strict discipline. The pupil and the teacher are both aware of the fact an engage themselves in the process of education.

It may, however, be mentioned that any process of teaching which involves supervision, instruction, set plan, definite aims and principles amounts to formal education.

(B) Informal Education

Highlights

(i) Incidental and spontaneous

(ii) Not-pre-planned.

(iii) Not imparted by any specialised agency.

(iv) No prescribed time-table or curriculum.

(v) May be negative also

(i) Incidental and spontaneous

Informal education is incidents and spontaneous. There is no conscious effort involved in it. Courtesies gentleness, etc. learnt in a market place or in a hotel or in one’s sitting room amount to informal education.

(ii) Not-pre-planned nor deliberate

Informal education is an educative activity which is neither pre-planned nor deliberate. The child learns many habits, manners and patterns while living with others or moving in different spheres like home, society, groups etc.

(iii) Not imparted by any specialised agency

Unlike formal education, informal education is not imparted by any specialised agency such as school or college.

(iv) No prescribed time-table or curriculum

Informal education is not given according to any fixed time-table or through formal means of education. There is no set curriculum required. Informal education consists in experiences and actual living in the family or community.

(v) May be negative education also

Informal education may take to negative direction also. Instances are not rare when one learns stealing, or some other forms of misbehaviour from the experiences which the child may casually have in the street, in the market, in the cinema hall or in some other such place.

In the words of an expert, Informal Education is “the process, by which a person imbibes attitudes, develops skills, cultivates values and acquires knowledge, without there being any organisation or system about it. This would include the deliberate attempts of parents and elders in the family and community to help the young ones grow and adapt themselves to the environment. Informal Education would also include all incidental learning that takes place while at work or at play and during travels-as well as spontaneous learning through films, radio and television.”

(C) Non-Formal Education

Non-formal education is one of the recent concepts getting into use. Indian involvement in non-formal education has increased as a result of our interest in making education a life-long affair rather than a matter of formal schooling.

Highlights

(i) Derived from the expression ‘formal education.

(ii) Outside the realm of formal education.

(iii) Conscious and deliberate.

(iv) To be organised for a homogeneous group.

(v) Serving the need of the identified group.

(i) Derived from the expression ‘formal education

The expression ‘non-formal’ in non-formal education has been derive from the expression ‘formal’ in formal education by using the pre-fix non-

(ii) Outside the realm of formal Education

Unlike inform education which is unstructured, spontaneous and without formality non-formal education would be structured and planned, but outside realm of formal education. “Any organised, systematic education activity, carried outside the framework of the established formal system whether operating separately or as an important feature of some broad activity, that is intended to serve identifiable learning clienteles ai learning objectives.”

(iii) Conscious and deliberate

Non-formal education consciously and deliberately organised and systematically implemented.

(iv) To be organised for a homogeneous group

Non-formal education should be organised for a homogeneous group. Such a grot has to be identified in terms of the learning needs of the group member

(v) Serving the need of the identified group

Non-form, education should be programmed to serve the needs of the identify group. This will necessitate flexibility in design of the curriculum and the scheme of evaluation.

Hridayi Shah