MODULE III
Psychology
CHAPTER III: HISTORICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION
Education or school is an institution created by society. Education is
a function of society and as such arises from the nature and
character of society itself. Society seeks to preserves itself and to do
this it maintains its functions and institutions, one of which is
education, to assure its survival, stability and convenience.
As John Dewey claimed, it is the school that “introduces and trains
each child of society into membership within such a little
community, saturation him with the spirit of service, and providing
him with the instruments of effective self-direction...” When schools
succeed to do this, in the words of Dewey “we shall have the
deepest and best guaranty of a larger society which is worthy,
harmonious, and lovely.
This is called the socialization process. Socialization is the “process
of learning the roles, statuses, and values necessary for participation
in social institution. ...” (Brinkerhoff, D. 1989)
Socialization is a lifelong process. It occurs primarily during early
childhood but as we progress from infancy to old age, we shed old
roles and adopt new ones. Role learning that prepares us for future
roles is termed anticipatory socialization. (Brinkerhoff, D. 1989).
Because of anticipatory socialization most of us are more or less
prepared for our future roles like spouse, parent, professional
teacher.
The family is the most important agent of socialization.
tells us that the self-concept formed during childhood has lasting
consequences. Besides, “the parents’ religion, social class and
ethnicity the child’s social roles and self-concept which in turn
influence the expectations that others have for the child, and they
determine the groups with which the child will interact outside the
family”. (Brinkerhoff, D., 1989)
The school is also an important agent of socialization. It is an
institution charged by society to impart specific knowledge and skills
necessary for functioning in a society. They are also charged with
the task of transmitting society’s cultural values. The next part of
this Chapter is devoted to how schools (formal and informal) did
their task as agents of socialization in different periods of history.
Education in Primitive Society
Brinkerhoff (1989) explains further:
In primitive societies, preliterate persons faced the problem of
survival in an environment that pitted them against natural forces
and wild animals. To survive, human beings needed food, shelter,
warmth and clothing. To transform a hostile environment into one
that is life-sustaining, humankind developed life skills that
eventually became cultural patterns.