Philosophy paper.
I believe that the primary purpose of education should be to equip students with the skills; knowledge, language, and cultural capital that they need to successfully negotiate higher education, and the workplace, so that they can acquire the economic wherewithal to support themselves and their families.
However, recognizing that economic success in this society is not predicated solely on education (the economy, systems of inequality, and many other factors all play a role), and that many students need schools to address their material needs as well as their intellectual ones, I believe that education must also serve other purposes.
I believe that schools should serve as anchors for communities, providing social services (health and dental clinics, daycares, senior centers, adult education courses, etc.) to families who might otherwise have difficulty procuring such services.
The quote, "I believe that education is the fundamental method of social progress and reform." Fits my philosophy. Education should foster connectedness to one’s community, civic engagement, and a strong sense of social justice. It should prepare students for life in a diverse society,
I believe that education should empower students to critique, question, and challenge problematic situations that they encounter. I believe that education (and educators) should both try to answer all of students "Why?" questions, and dare them to ask even more.
I believe that education is currently positioned as the government’s whipping boy continually under-funded, continually in the midst of a political tug-of-war, and yet also continually cited as the root cause of most societal problems. I believe that education is capable of alleviating some (but not all) of these problems, but would argue that educators must demand more resources to address these issues, instead of continually trying to do more and more work with fewer and fewer resources. Importantly, I do not...