Part A (10%)

Write an essay on: “My Philosophy of Education”.

I believe the key to a happy and successful life is having the choice to do what you really want,
whether it’s being a sail boat captain, a scientist, or a tax collector. The only way to have these choices
in life is through education. As a child, when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always said
that I wanted to do something to help other people. I realized that even though teachers do not get a lot
of respect, or money, they have the greatest job anyone could ever hope for. They help children
become adults. All children are inspired by someone to be what they will become in the future.
Teachers inspire those of all professions such as police officers, firefighters, secretaries, carpenters,
bankers, trash collectors, actors, truck drivers, fast food workers, scientists, inventors, doctors, lawyers,
even the president. Imagine how it would feel to know that you are the reason someone developed
something to benefit mankind.

The more information you have and the clearer you can think, the more power you have over
your future. This is why education is so important. It gives children the power to get out of bad
neighborhoods or the courage to pursue an unorthodox career. Education is responsible for all
advancements in science and technology and allows us to avoid mistakes made in the past. As a
teacher, I hope to equip my students with the information they need in order to make good, informed
fully knowledgeable lesson. Teacher’s must play many other roles in the classroom; role model,
mentor, and entertainer. However, I believe educator and disciplinarian are the two most important.

As the art of teaching has progressed in the past century, we have begun to realize that there are
many different types of learning styles. It is the teacher’s responsibility to accommodate all of these
types into her lesson plans each day to ensure that each student receives information in the best
possible way. I recognize this need and am prepared to incorporate as many different teaching methods
as possible. I would love to use music, art, sports, and literature to convey mathematical ideas in ways
that the students can relate to and understand better. I realize that many students have no interest in
math so using these different mediums to express mathematical ideas may spark interest in learning
more.

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 One of the hardest aspects of being a teacher is dealing with children. It’s very hard for an adult

to identify with young kids and to present material in a way that students will understand. Education is
an ongoing process based upon experience. The old adage you learn something new every day is very
true, and nothing fascinates me more than simply talking to other people. You can learn so much from
them. Education is the foundation of our society, and the children of today are the future of our
country, but educating them is not enough. But must give the experience of the life is most important
to educate the children.

It is up to us as teachers to inspire our students to grasp the freedom they have, bring meaning
into their life, and use that excitement to find meaning in all that they do. Also, in sparking critical
thinking, students will engage in a thoughtful and reflective process where a number of levels of
learning are happening, dependent on how information in the classroom affects them and their
existence as well as essence. Another important tool we can use to define our philosophy as a teacher
is the Ways of Knowing.

I feel like I identify most with the Eastern Way of Knowing, particularly the Chinese thought
because of the emphasis on moral development. Understanding facts and theories is important in
education, but sometimes it is hard to distinguish what is actually necessary from what is trivial.
Preaching morals allows us to respect others, particularly elders, and gain from their knowledge,
something that cannot always be taught in the classroom. Also, it will foster a more productive and
peaceful society, one that is the best to learn in.

I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people
will never forget how you made them feel.” This is what was said by Angelou ,2009. This is a truth
that I have witnessed firsthand. As a child, at the tender age of twelve years old, I was blessed with
an educator, Mrs. Kogila, whose commitment to her students was so profound until I have never
forgotten her. She made me feel like I was the most important person in her classroom. Her
encouraging words instilled a level of confidence within me that I still calling to and apply more
than 100 years later. Her commitment is directly responsible for my personal philosophy of
education also being commitment. Other philosophies of education like dedication and
responsibility.

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 Parents should be made to feel free to visit the schools, get involved in the parent, teacher
association and volunteer. Parents should know the teacher’s schedule and their off periods as well
as when they will be absent for extended period of times. Parents should be notified at the onset of
their child falling below standards, not during report card conference. When parents and teachers
come together, the student does better. A teacher’s commitment to the community is ongoing.

What is meant by this is a teacher should carry herself as becoming of an educator at all
times not just during school time. She should be careful not to let her good be evil spoken of by
engaging in anything that would bring a negative light to her reputation or the reputation of the
school system. An educator is under the same type of scrutiny as a preacher or politician.

She cannot behave in ways that are frowned upon by society. Finally, the teacher’s
commitment should be to herself. She should be the best educator that she can be. She should take
care of herself physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally in order that she can give her best at
all times. She should place a healthy balance between school, family, and personal so that no one
area is over or under nourished. As learned in class, personal philosophies can change and I am
opened to and welcome the change.

My most prominent philosophy is progressivism because of my respect for other’s

individuality and development of social skills. I don’t believe that students can learn only by reading
and listening to lectures. They must be active in the learning process. As a progressivism, I will
encourage students to develop skills such as cooperation and tolerance for different points of view.
They will learn to become problem solvers. Become aware of the problem. Define the matter. Propose
various hypotheses to solve the problem. Examine the consequences of each hypothesis in light of
previous experience and test the most likely solution. This approach to problem solving also teaches
the students to think their actions through before they act.

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 The main goal of philosophy is to prepare individuals to be contributing citizens of our society
and to help them reach their true potential. Education provides the foundation that enables students to
be successful lifelong learners that thrive in society. While schools are the catalyst for the
dissemination of education, it is a successful partnership between schools, government family and
community that ensures the ultimate success of education.

A clear focus on educating all students despite their diverse needs and differentiated instruction
are essential. Teachers serve as facilitators who guide students in the learning process. Students are
active participants in their education, who expand their horizons through hands on.

Government, family and community are important partners in education. Government needs to
provide standards for education and adequate funding to offer programs and instruction for all.
Families serve as important support systems that support teachers and students in the quest for each
student to reach his or her full potential. The support of society, community and business members is
crucial for the success of education.

Community members and organizations can provide financial support and mentoring services.
Community support strengthens the school community and enables schools to provide additional
academic and enrichment opportunities. Spiritual centers serve as important contributors to the
spiritual growth of students and may serve as support systems within the school community. Students
are the focus of our educational system.

They are the future citizens and leaders of our nation, and it is therefore imperative that
education prepares them to be creative problem solvers that find solutions to the challenges of the
future. Each child has the potential to make unique contributions to the world. To reach his or her full
potential a student needs a nurturing and stimulating learning environment that enables an exploration
of individual talents and interests. Students need to be motivated to inquire about and explore the
world.

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Part B (20%) – 8 pages

Select any TWO Western philosophers and any TWO Eastern philosophers from the Table below:

WESTERN PHILISOPHERS EASTERN PHILOSOPHER

Socrates Al-Farabi

Plato Ibn Sina

Aristotle Confucius

Rousseau Mencius

Locke Tagore

Dewey Vivekananda

a) Compare and Contrast their views or opinions on the goals or aims of education – 2 pages
(5%)
b) Their opinions and views on what should be taught in schools – 3 pages (7%)
c) Your conclusions about their views on education 3 pages (8%)

According to Socrates, education is to produce a virtues man. Plato talked about four cardinal
virtues to be developed through a process of education , these are wisdom , courage , self-control and
justice .For Aristotle , education aims at the development of body , mind and soul. Behind every school and
every teacher is a set of related beliefs of a philosophy of education. This influences what and how students

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are taught. A philosophy of education represents answers to questions about the purpose of schooling, a
teacher’s role and what should be taught and by what methods.

Socrates and Plato are the two most legendary ancient Greek philosophers. Socrates

(c 470 BC – 399 BC) was a renowned Greek teacher, now recognized as the father of Western philosophy.
During his life, Socrates often disrupted the status quo by questioning the public and creating controversy.
His views on knowledge and truth have influenced the way many people view learning. Socrates is hailed
today as the personification of wisdom and the philosophical life. He gave rise to what is now called the
Socratic method, in which the teacher repeatedly questions students to help them clarify their own deepest
thoughts. Socrates' pedagogical method, commonly known as the Socratic dialogue or Socratic method, is
adopted in many schools to promote critical thinking in students.

Their views were subsequently recorded by their disciples, leading to debate on the authenticity
and accuracy of these writings. Nevertheless, scholars believe that the existing literature is sufficient to give
contemporary readers a fairly accurate picture of the philosophies of Socrates and Confucius. Another
similarity between the two is that both lived in periods of political and social changes during which
traditional values and practices were being challenged. Another parallel between Socrates and Plato is that
both did not discriminate against anyone because of their status or wealth, and were prepared to teach
anyone who was teachable and diligent. The aim of this education was to produce thoughtful and civic-
minded individuals with a lofty sense of their social obligations. Such individuals would have the moral and
intellectual resources to take responsibility for the affairs of the state without being tempted or seduced by
the trappings of wealth and power.

On the basis of their cultivation and learning, the class of gentlemen was expected to elevate the
moral character of the people and enrich the cultural and intellectual life of the community. In contrast to
contemporary education, it could be said that classical education focused more on the arts and humanities
than on the sciences and commerce. As far as classical education was concerned, it was more important to
deal with the good of the soul rather than the good of the body. The central problem for classical education
was the problem of justice, of how human beings treat one another. This problem could not be fully
understood without addressing the deeper question of what is the best way of life for human beings.

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 In their different approaches to this question, the classical thinkers had in common the view that the
best way of life had to be one that realised the moral or spiritual potential of human beings, for this aspect
of human nature is ultimately what distinguishes human beings from animals.Plato, Socrates's pupil, crafted
eloquent dialogues that present different philosophical positions on a number of profound questions. Plato
believed that a realm of externally existing "ideas," or "forms," underlies the physical world. Socrates
proposed an all-rounded curriculum to prepare the “guardians” to be leaders of the state. According to Plato
in the Republic, Socrates believed that education should start early with music, poetry and physical training
(Plato, trans. 1992).

Students would then study science, which was the advanced studies in mathematics, and the subject
of “dialectic”, which Socrates regarded as most important. The goal was to develop the reasoning ability of
students, who, coupled with practical experiences, would be ready to be leaders of the community.

Socrates employed a conversational mode known as the dialectic to educate his students. Drawing
on the aspirations and ambitions of the students, the Socratic dialectic sought to expose the ignorance of
the students in order to arouse in them a longing for knowledge of those things necessary to fulfil their
ambitions. Some of his students came to realise that the pursuit of knowledge of the most important things
was itself the most important thing.

Another parallel between Socrates and Plato is that both did not discriminate against anyone
because of their status or wealth, and were prepared to teach anyone who was teachable and diligent.
Socrates and Plato had much in common in their understanding of and their approach to the education of
their students, most of whom aspired to become leaders in their communities. Both of them sought to
foster in their students the desire for the life of virtue. The chief concern of classical education.

. To love cleverness without loving learning is liable to lead to deviation from the right path. Socrates
proposed an all-rounded curriculum to prepare the “guardians” to be leaders of the state. According to Plato
in the Republic, Socrates believed that education should start early with music, poetry and physical training
(Plato, trans. 1992). Students would then study science, which was the advanced studies in mathematics,
and the subject of “dialectic”, which Socrates regarded as most important. The goal was to develop the

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reasoning ability of students, who, coupled with practical experiences, would be ready to be leaders of the
community.

Socrates employed a conversational mode known as the dialectic to educate his students. Drawing on the
aspirations and ambitions of the students, the Socratic dialectic sought to expose the ignorance of the
students in order to arouse in them a longing for knowledge of those things necessary to fulfill their
ambitions.

Another significant similarity between Socrates and Plato is that both adapted their teaching to suit the
interests and abilities of their students. Their students naturally varied in intellectual capacity, as some were
clearly superior to others. But both saw no reason why their students should not be equal in their capacity
to act in accordance with virtue.

To achieve the above aims, the curriculum should be one that underscores the development of rational
autonomy, virtues and spirituality in students. Values education such as moral education, civic education,
citizenship education and religious education should take centre stage in the curriculum. However, there is a
need to focus on the teaching and learning of moral values that go beyond economic and political
socialisation. Moral education should guide students towards more considerations.

Education is one of the most important social phenomena in al- Farabi's philosophical
system. It is concerned with the human soul and makes sure that the individual is prepared from an
early age to become a member of society, to achieve his own level of perfection, and thus to reach
the goal for which he was created. However, while it is true that there are no writings specifically
devoted to education in al-Farabi's books, anyone who follows his writings with care will come upon
many kind of texts scattered here and there containing clear educational elements corresponding to
his overall philosophical views, which incline to integrate separate concepts and thoughts into a
unified world view.

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 The ultimate aim of all education and all training, according to Swami Vivekananda, is man-
making. Every child as it comes to this world is not man, in the real senses of the term. He is only an
individual. It is only through education and training that his individuality is transformed into the
personality of a man, fit for civilized social life of the time. Gradual transition from ego-centricity to
sociability brings a person nearer to human goals. Creation of Self-Confidence and Self-Realization
are main aim of education were told by Swami Vivekananda.
Education must make a man conscious of his hidden powers. Man must know that he is
neither the perishable bodily frame nor the changing mind. He is the immortal soul which is the
treasure-house of infinite power. All knowledge he discovers within himself. With this knowledge or
divine light, he can work wonders. Man should, therefore, have full confidence in himself and strive
to reach the highest goal of his life. Self-confidence leads to self- realization. In Swamiji’s own
words, Faith in our self and faith in God this is the secret of greatness.” A person, who possesses self
- confidence, can do much, individually as well as socially.

Indeed, the whole activity of education, in al-Farabi's view, can be summed up as the
acquisition of values, knowledge and practical skills by the individual, within a particular period and
a particular culture. The goal of education is to lead the individual to perfection since the human
being was created for this purpose, and the goal of humanity's existence in this world is to attain
happiness. The perfect human being thought al-Farabi, is the one who has obtained theoretical
virtue thus completing his intellectual knowledge and has acquired practical moral virtues thus
becoming perfect in his moral behavior.

Character is the aggregate of a man’s tendencies, the sum-total of the bent of his mind. We
are what our thoughts have made us. This what Swamiji told. Good and evil thoughts have an equal
share in mould character. It is, therefore, that education should aim at sublimating Personality is the
influence, the impression, one creates on the others. It is the personality of a man that counts.
According to Vivekananda, personality is two-third and his intellect and words are only one-third in
making the real man. The ideal of all education and all trainings should be this man-making. The
man who influences, who throws his magic upon his fellow beings, is a dynamo of power. When that
man is ready he can do anything and everything that he likes. That personality, put upon anything,
will make it work.

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Service of mankind important aim of education is serving the God in man. It is not the God in
symbols and images that we generally find in temples. It is the God in the sick, the poor, the
miserable, the ignorant and the down-trodden what we should worship. In Swamiji’s own words, If
you want to find God, serve man. He was pained to see the wretched poverty of his countrymen. He,
therefore, wanted that education must enable everyone to stand on his own feet and satisfy his own
primary needs, at least. Here he suggested a system of education through work experiences and
workshops.

Then, crowning these theoretical and moral virtues with effective power, they are anchored
in the souls of individual members of the community when they assume the responsibility of
political leadership, thus becoming role models for other people. Al-Farabi unites moral and
aesthetic values such as good is beautiful, and beauty is good. The beautiful is that which is valued
by the intelligentsia. So this perfection which he expects from education combines knowledge and
virtuous behavior; it is happiness and goodness at one and the same time.

One of the aims of education is the formation of political leaders, because ignorance is more
harmful in monarchs than it is in the common people. So, in al-Farabi's view, just as the body needs
food and the ship must have a captain, moral conduct must proceed from the soul and the citizens
have a real need for a leader who conducts an acceptable policy, directing their affairs in a
praiseworthy manner and improving their situation.

There is integration between the individual, the family and the city in social life. ‘What we
say about all cities is also true of the single household, and of each person'. The political leader, al-
Farabi considers, has the function of a doctor who treats souls and his political skill is to the
wellbeing of the city what the physician's skill is to bodily health. The work of the politician should
not be restricted to the organization and management of cities, in as much as he encourages people to
help one another in achieving good things and overcoming evil, he must use his political skills to
protect the virtues and praiseworthy activities that he has been encouraging in the citizens so that
they are free of failings.

The soundness of the city is a reflection of ‘the good balance of morals among its people',
and achieving this balance is one of the most important aims of education. When moral behavior
declines and there is doubt over behavior and opinions, the absence of these common values

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governing people's conduct disturbs the city. Morality, then, is a fundamental objective of education.
Al-Farabi defines virtues as ‘states of mind in which the human being carries out good and kind
deeds. They can be either ethical or rational the latter are virtues of the rational element in the
intelligent human being, such as wisdom, common sense, inventiveness and cleverness. Among the
other aims assigned to education, al-Farabi includes ‘proficiency in the arts', because, in his view,
perfection in theoretical and practical arts is one of the expressions of wisdom; for the wise are
‘those who are very proficient in the arts, and reach perfection in them'.

While Swami Vivekananda was a patriot and a nationalist to the core of his heart, he was also
a great internationalist. His love for mankind knew no geographical boundaries. He always pleaded
for the harmony and good relationship of all nations. He said, “Through education, we should
gradually reach the idea of universal brotherhood by flinging down the walls of separation and
inequality. In every man, in every animal, however weak or miserable, great or small, resides the
same omnipresent and omniscient soul. The difference is not in the soul, but in manifestation.

Thus his internationalism was spiritual, based on the Vadantic principle of universality of
self. He insisted that education must call forth this power in every person and broaden it to such an
extent that it may cover the whole world. Such a programmed will annihilate all misery and
discomfort from this earth. He said, I am thoroughly convinced that no individual or nation can live
by holding itself apart from the community of others.

Wherever such an attempt will be made, under the false ideas of greatness or policy or
holiness, the result will always be disastrous. Our isolation from all the other nation of the world has
been the cause of our degradation and its only remedy is getting back into the current of the rest of
the world.” Thus Swami Vivekananda advocated internationalism of world society into a compact
union of hearts and souls.

Thus, in al-Farabi's view, one of the goals of education is to combine learning with practical
action, for the purpose of knowledge is that it should be applied, and perfection lies in its being
transformed into action whatever by its nature should be known and practiced, its perfection lies in it

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actually being practiced. The sciences have no meaning unless they can be applied in practical
reality, otherwise they are void and useless.

Concerning the realization of these aims and the supervision of education and teaching, al-
Farabi agrees with Plato and the priest, ruler or philosopher who should be responsible. Issuing laws
for society does not simply mean that citizens should be obedient and diligent, but also that they
should have praiseworthy morals and acceptable behavior.

According to my view, I knew that or I can conclude that all this western or eastern
philosophers are more to give important to the educator and education system. They taught
education can change the whole world and the ruler of the world. The main aim of the education
were attitude and the way of the students performs their knowledge in community. This will help
them to survive in this world easily.

Part C (30%) – 10 pages

The following are FOUR statements made by various philosophers on education.

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Statement 1: “Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man”

- Vivekananda
- 2.5 pages (7%)

Statement 2: “The perfect human being is one who has acquired both
theoretical virtues and practical virtues” – al Farabi

- 2.5 pages (7%)

Statement 3: “Education should aim to raise the level of individual morality if

the moral level of society is to be raised” – Confucius

- 2.5 pages (8%)

Statement 4: “Education should free people from false opinions and students

should learn the truth on their own rather than by force” – Plato

– Analogy of the cave.

- 2.5 pages (8%)

Explain each of the statements above with specific examples.

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 According to Wikipedia about Swami Vivekananda was a Hindu monk from India. He
played significant role in the growing Indian nationalism of the 19 th and 20th century, reinterpreting
and harmonizing certain aspects of Hinduism. His teachings and philosophy applied this
reinterpretation to various aspects of education, faith, character building as well as social issues
pertaining to India, and was also instrumental in introducing Yoga to the west. According to
Vivekananda a country's future depends on its people, stating that "man-making is my mission."
Religion plays a central role in this man-making, stating " to preach unto mankind their divinity, and
how to make it manifest in every movement of life.

In education we always need to search for something new and always be open to learn
something new. As Swami Vivekananda says: “Education is the manifestation of the perfection
already present in man”. In the present scenario, everyone thinks that education is simply forming a
time table to which we stick to in which you need to get up early in the morning study something
then pack up your bags go to a place to learn something and then come back home and remain to the
same time table every day. Ultimately your efforts get rated one fine day in the form of marks or
grades which given by the educators or the institute.

Is this real education that we think it is? Probably not I think. Education is much beyond it.
In education we always need to search for something new and always be open to learn something
new. As Swami Vivekananda says. So education is something which is there within us it’s just how
much we strive for it and how much we desire to learn something new everyday with every new
people we see. In order to learn something we should convert ourselves into a disciple rather than
being just a student. Always we need to listen to what our inner soul says because your inner self
will never do injustice to you. Unfortunately in recent time’s education is nothing more than a
degree and marks. Marks have spoiled the true performance of the generation. So I think we need to
reform education system which focuses only on marks and degree.

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 The benefit of attending educational institutions is largely literacy and less education.
Learning is something, which is not bound by time, place or age. If a person intends to learn, then
every moment is a learning opportunity, when one can gain knowledge and experience. The outlook
of a person is of primary importance in respect of learning and acquiring knowledge.

I would like to state a small example which states as to how we should behave in order to
really educate ourselves, “Always learn to live like a elephant and not like a dog! because when an
elephant walks elegantly a dog seeing it starts barking but then too the elephant does not seem to get
distracted but keeps on moving elegantly” What we understand from this is that an elephant knows
its power and that is why it does not care about that dog. Likewise we need to know our strengths
and keep on moving who so ever comes in between to distract us from our path.

According to Al-Farabi, he is considered as one of the great Arab philosophers. He studied

Greek philosophy, especially Plato and Aristotle, whose works he translated, transposed in aphoristic
form and imitated them. Following the tradition of later Greek commentators of Aristotle, he be-
lieved that Aristotle and Plato in essential matters were in solidarity with each other, and vigorously
tried to reconcile those moments in which they disagreed. In contrast to empiricism of Razi, Al-
Farabi remained true deductive method; he believed that the world is not eternal, but was created,
and sought to prove that Aristotle had same view and that the gap between the absolute unity of God
and the multiplicity of the real world is filled with a series of successive emanations. Humanistic
principles of the great scientist always attracted special attention because they are still relevant and
in demand in our modern globalized world.
Al-Farabi accepted the Aristotelian principle of eternal and not generated world. The task of
philosophy he thought a description and explanation of existing forever and eternity of existence
through a qualitative analysis of the various parts of the universe, a qualitative description of the pro-
cesses in detail in it, understood as the actualization of potential though, but the existing one. Ethics
in the modern sense of the category of "virtue" for Al-Farabi is the key to the teleological interpreta -
tion of being as the universe and human itself, and human in society, as a virtue is a way of thinking,
knowledge.
In fact, education is one of the most important social phenomena in Al-Farabi's philosophical
system. It is concerned with the human soul and makes sure that the individual is prepared from an
early age to become a member of society, to achieve his own level of perfection, and thus to reach
the goal for which he was created. However, while it is true that there are no writings specifically de-

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voted to education in al-Farabi's books, anyone who follows his writings with care will come upon
various texts scattered here and there containing clear educational elements corresponding to his
overall philosophical views, which incline to integrate separate concepts and thoughts into a ‘unified
world view’.
The goal of education is to lead the individual to perfection since the human being was cre-
ated for this purpose. The perfect human being (al-insan al-kamil), thought Al-Farabi, is the one who
has obtained theoretical virtue thus completing his intellectual knowledge and has acquired practical
moral virtues thus becoming perfect in his moral behavior. Then, crowning these theoretical and
moral virtues with effective power, they are anchored in the souls of individual members of the com-
munity when they assume the responsibility of political leadership, thus becoming role models for
other people. Al-Farabi unites moral and aesthetic values: good is beautiful, and beauty is good; the
beautiful is that which is valued by the intelligentsia.
So this perfection which he expects from education combines knowledge and virtuous behav-
ior, it is happiness and goodness at one and the same time. Al-Farabi concerned not only personal,
but also social perfection and his "virtuous city" (madina fadylya) built on principles borrowed pri-
marily from Platonism, Neo-Platonic and Aristotelian although construction elements of his teaching
cannot be underestimated. The political philosophy of Al-Farabi had little to do with the political
theory in the Arab-Muslim culture, which was focused on the realities of the Islamic state.
True happiness Al-Farabi considered achievable only in the afterlife. Happiness is good in its
absolute sense, but an absolute good it is absolute being. Such has the first principle, understood in
the spirit of neo-Platonic, but often referred in Aristotelian terms as an effective mind. The di-
chotomy of body and soul is very clearly stated in Al-Farabi: the soul is tormented by a "prison",
composed of the four elements, and its only hope of release - wisdom (hikma), true and complete
knowledge that will cause "unity" (it- tihad) soul with the metaphysical principles of the universe.

Evaluating the outcomes of teaching was an important aspect of teaching and Al-Farabi was
well aware of it. He emphasized that a learner’s level in the field of study should be examined. After
completing the course of a particular discipline, the learner should be tested to know the level of his
learning. In this regard the question may be asked either an educational or an experimental type. In
the first case, it is directed at the pupil who is supposed to know something so as to demonstrate that
knowledge. A person can also test himself to know if he has made a quantitative or methodological

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mistake. For this purpose, instruments are made available to help us check the compass, the ruler, the
scales, the abacus, astronomic summary tables.

Al-Farabi classified among the rules which are few in number but applicable to many things.
If these are learnt and remembered we can also learn many matters incorporated in them (Al-Farabi,
1968c, p. 58). In the same way that knowledge is tested, so is intelligence: the ability to discriminate;
the capacity for deductive and critical reasoning. Understanding the relationship between isolated
pieces of information and grasping the links between them is Mathematical ability which is one of
the important way of recognizing intelligence.
He has integrated the three basic issues, God, the emanation and hierarchy of beings and the
internal structure of beings. According to Farabi, the concept of perfect human being is the one who
has great intellectual knowledge and sound moral behavior. This should be one of the main goals of
education. The second major aim of education is to produce political leaders. These political leaders
can exploit their skills for the welfare of the society. Al-Farabi considers a person intelligent if has
wisdom, common sense, cleverness temperance, courage, generosity and justice.

Confucius took lifelong delight in learning as well as teaching, and lived to see his reputation
as an accomplished polymath spread far and wide. Before his time, under the Zhou Dynasty, school-
ing took place within government offices and was dispensed by public officials. General education,
the prerogative of the nobility, was denied to the common people, and there was no such thing as a
full-time teaching profession. Young aristocrats received a civil and military education based on the
‘six arts’: rites, music, archery, chariot driving, calligraphy and mathematics. The end of the so-
called Spring and Autumn Period, with which Confucius’ life coincided, was marked by violent up-
heavals as Chinese society based on slave-ownership was transformed into a feudal society; the po-
litical and economic underpinning of ‘education for and by the administration’ was collapsing and
culture was acquiring a more popular base. In breaking the aristocratic monopoly of learning and set-
ting up a private academy that was accessible to rich and poor alike, Confucius was moving with his
times. ‘My teaching’, he declared, ‘is open to everyone, without distinction.’

In the course of this half century, Confucius, not content to give excellent training to a large
number of students, constantly distilled his own teaching experience, thus developing his own edu-

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cational doctrine. The teacher’s first task is to identify his audience. In this connection, Confucius
stated that his lessons were destined for all men, without exception (Analects, Wei Ling gong).

His pupils came from the lowest as well as the highest levels of society, and access to educa-
tion was thereby broadened considerably. Opening the doors of learning more widely, he hastened
the development of general education in Ancient China, thus contributing both to political reform
and to the dissemination of culture. At the same time he helped to reveal the humanist character of
Confucian teaching, which was to have an unquestionable influence on the private schools and acad-
emies of feudal society. This approach also helped to create the conditions whereby the emergent
land-owner class could accede to the authority conferred by learning and produce talented men from
its midst.

Confucius demonstrated that education plays a fundamental role in the development of soci-
ety and of individuals alike. Not only does it offer a means of ensuring the supremacy of virtue; it
can also alter human nature and improve it in qualitative terms. By raising individual moral stan-
dards, it renders society in its entirety more virtuous: the kingdom is well administered, orderly and
law-abiding, to the extent that all within it follow the path of righteousness. Although it may be an
exaggeration to state that the supremacy of virtue can be guaranteed by education alone, special con-
cern for the latter, and the notion that action at the level of individual morality is called for if the
moral level of society is to be raised, remain topical today. The teachers and political leaders of the
feudal era were all imbued with these principles; most of them emphasized that education had an im-
proving effect on individuals, and promoted order and security throughout the land; hence it should
be developed. Confucius was at the origin of that concern for education, which gradually became
one of the great traditions of China’s feudal society.

Moral instruction, which had to take pride of place, since what was needed were individuals
of outstanding virtue who would assist the prince in governing with integrity, thus became the basis
of Confucian teaching. In deference to the interests of the feudal landowning class, Confucius re-
shaped the moral concepts of the past, and proclaimed a series of new rules designed to put an end to
the political chaos and moral decadence of the times.
His ethics, philosophy and politics are in dissociable, the first of these being characterized by
a rare vitality which was the driving force of feudal morality and civilization for more than two mil -

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lennia and which was centered on ‘humanity’ or ‘benevolence’, which also signifies love for one’s
neighbor. This virtue manifests itself in all types of relations between human beings and contains the
germ of other qualities.
It also helps in avoiding all forms of excess, promotes fearlessness in the face of difficulties,
assists in distinguishing what is to be cultivated from what is to be eschewed, and encourages honest
and righteous conduct. All these qualities stem from ren, which enjoins human beings to show mu-
tual sympathy, solicitude and respect, and to watch over one another. In order that all these precepts
might serve to enhance the responsibility of individuals and society alike, Confucius stressed that
each man should cultivate virtue and should receive a moral education.

Thanks to individual efforts in that respect, there would be order in family affairs, the coun-
try would be well governed, the people would live in security, and peace would everywhere prevail.
Moral education was thus for Confucius the means whereby his ideas concerning virtue might be
materialized. As the founder of feudal China’s education system he defined its basic content by
working out his concept of moral instruction, and established guidelines for its further development.
His ethics can, moreover, be said to have codified the whole network of social relationships in feudal
China. However, Confucius was equally concerned with the intellectual development of his disciple,
that is to say with the inculcation of culture, abilities and skills. In order to instill the moral values of
feudal society in them, the basics of an all-round culture and the capacities required to exercise offi-
cial responsibilities

Plato continually reminds us concern with this sort of education gives rise to the famous im-
ages of the sun, the divided line, and the cave. Although I am primarily concerned in this essay with
the cave image and its educational implications, occasionally this will require a look at the sun and
the line and other contiguous passages. The cave image is offered as an analogy for the human con-
dition for our education or lack of it. Imagine prisoners in a cave, chained and unable to turn their
heads; as a result they see only what is directly in front of them. What they see are shadows cast by
objects behind them which are illuminated by firelight further behind and above them. The objects
are carried along and extend above a low wall behind the prisoners. The bearers of the objects are
hidden behind the wall and so cast no shadows but occasionally they speak, and the echoes of these
words reach the prisoners and seem to come from the shadows.

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 The prisoners can talk among themselves, and they naturally assume that the names they use
apply to what they see and hear the shadows passing in front of them. Socrates offers a grim assess-
ment of their plight "The shadows of artifacts constitute the only reality people in this situation
would recognize". As we observes, this is a weird image, and these are weird prisoners. Neverthe-
less, Socrates says, they are like us. Of course we do not really spend our time chained and looking
helplessly at shadows produced by those intent on deceiving us. Yet for Plato something about our
condition makes the cave an apt image.

The prisoners see only shadows, and these shadows are cast by artifacts, likenesses of animals and
person. So the prisoners are, in Plato's view, at least two removes from truth or reality, although they
do not realize this and would object if the suggest ion were made to them. If they were freed and made
to turn around towards the firelight, the prisoners would be dazzled and unable to make out the
objects that cast the shadows on the wall.

The visible realm comprises ordinary perceptible things the intelligible realm comprises what
Plato calls the forms or idea. The bound prisoner and by implication the ordinary uneducated person
has no access to intelligible forms. In fact, he has no idea there are such things. Worse yet, his access
not to perceptible things themselves, but only to shadows of those things.

The objects here are more real or true than the artifacts in the cave, since they are the
originals of which the artifacts are likenesses. The upward journey out of the cave into daylight is the
soul's ascent to the intelligible realm. Having distinguished these realms earlier in the sun simile and
said something about their relations in the divided line analogy, Plato now explicitly intimates that
one can move from one realm to the other. This is precisely the movement to be e ffected by Platonic
education although what is being moved is not the eye but the soul. I shall turn shortly to the nature
of this movement and how Plato thinks it is best accomplished.

Before turning to the process, however, recall briefly what Plato sees as the end result of such
movement, the epistemic condition of the philosopher-ruler. Such a person Plato is willin g to credit
with understanding. Such a person has a secure grasp of the forms, not just in the abstract but as they
manifest themselves in things around us . Such a person's view of things is synoptic: he "sees things
whole" or "has a unified view of things. It is Plato's bold claim that only when such people are allowed

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to rule will a community flourish. The stakes involved are very high, and the value of any process
that can reliably produce such people is obviously very great.

The most important stage of any enterprise is the beginning, especially when something young and
sensitive is involved. That's when most of its formation takes place, and it absorbs every impression anyone
wants to stamp upon it. Stories and songs affect the student's desires, and do so in ways that do not rely on
reasoning. Music does so especially directly: "rhythm and harmony sink more. The goal he aims for with this
physical exercise and effort is the spirited part of the student's nature. This is what he wants to wake up. The
educator "wakes up" the spirited part of the student's soul the same verb is used when Jesus tells his disciples
to go out and raise the dead.

As we have seen, the purpose of Platonic education is to free the soul of the things that turn
its sight downward and to reorient it towards the truth. Such education is liberating. It is also liberal
Plato insists that studies in the mathematical sciences not be compulsory, on the grounds that com-
pulsory intellectual work never remains in the soul. Aristotle suggests a similar distinction between
the liberal sciences and those he calls vulgar. The latter are under taken because they are useful and
necessary; the former contribute to one's happiness by making it possible for one to do something
worthwhile with one's important time. It is doubtful whether Plato's discussion of education had any
direct influence on Aristotle's discussion but together these views exerted a profound influence on
subsequent thinking about education.

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 References

 Al-Farabi, Talkhis nawamis Aflatun, edited by ‘Abd al-Rahman Badawi, in: Aflatan fi l-is-
lam, Beirut, Dar al-Andalus, 1982, p. 54.

 Al- Farabi, The Fusul al-Madani, ed.by D.M.Dunlop. Cambridge, 1961, p.39.

 Al-Farabi.Treatise on the views of the residents of the virtuous city. Alma-Ata, 1970, p.318-
319.

 Al-Farabi. Book of happiness achievement. Hyderabad, 1926, p.44-46. Satybekova S.K. Hu-
manism of Al-Farabi. Alma-Ata.1975, p.136-138.

 Eastern and Western Disciples, Life of Swami Vivekananda, Two Volumes, Kolkata:Advaita
Ashrama.

 Romain Rolland, The Life OfVivekananda, tr.E.K.Malcolm Smith. Kolkata:Advaita

Ashrama.

 Teaching of Swami Vivekananda.Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama.

 Smeyers, P., 1994, “Philosophy of Education: Western European Perspectives”, in The
International Encyclopedia of Education (Volume 8), T. Husen and N. Postlethwaite (eds.),
Oxford: Pergamon, 2nd. Edition, pp. 4456–61.

 Smith, B., and Ennis, R. (eds.), 1961, Language and Concepts in Education, Chicago: Rand
McNally.

 Snook, I., 1972, Indoctrination and Education, London: Routledge.

 Stokes, D., 1997, Pasteur's Quadrant: Basic Science and Technological Innovation,
Washington, DC: Brookings.

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  Stone, L. (ed.), 1994, The Education Feminism Reader, New York: Routledge.

 Ulich, R., 1954, Three Thousand Years of Educational Wisdom, Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, Revised Ed.

 Winch, C., and Gingell, J., 1999, Key Concepts in the Philosophy of Education, London:
Routledge.

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