EDUCATION- CONCEPT, MEANING AND DEFINITION

INDIAN CONCEPT OF EDUCATION

•            Spiritual aspect as a part of development by education
•            Yajnavalkya – Education which gives sterling character to an individual and renders him useful for the world
•            Shankaracharya – Education leads to salvation. He regards Education as ‘the realization of self’
•            Spiritual tradition has been carried on by contemporary Indian philosophers of Education in their integral approach, synthesis of idealism and pragmatism, rationalism and humanism, diversity in unity and harmony of the individual and society
•            Swami Vivekananda – Religion is the innermost core of Education
•            Sri Aurobindo – child’s education – outpouring of all that best, most powerful, most intimate and living in his nature- must acquire new things – on the basis of his own developed type and inborn face
•            M.K. Gandhi – “By education, I mean an all round drawing of the best in child and man, body, mind and spirit. Literacy is not the end of education not even the beginning. It is one of the means whereby man and woman can be educated. Literacy in itself is no education”
•            Ancient Indian thinkers – idealistic or spiritual view of education
•            Modern Indian thinkers – Practical point of view

  SYNTHESIZED CONCEPT OF EDUCATION

•            Life long process
•            Unfolding
•            Based on child psychology
•            Individual as well as social
•            Total development

   

           MODERN CONCEPT OF EDUCATION

•              MEANING                               – Development

•              AIMS                                        – i)Development of total personality       

                                                              ii)social efficiency

•              CURRICULUM                        – activity centered

•              METHODS                                - Learning by doing, project,    etc.,

•              DISCIPLINE                             - self -discipline

•              EXAMINATION                       - objective type tests,  evaluation

•              AGENCIES                               - formal and informal

•              TEACHER                                 - friend, philosopher and  guide

•              CHILD                                       - active, dynamic

•              SCHOOL                                    - miniature of society

                                                        EDUCATION - MEANING

ETYMOLOGICAL MEANING
The word 'Education'is derived from Latin words,

•Educatum(to train)

•Educare(to raise, to nourish, to bring up)

•Educere(to draw out, to lead out)

•Educo (to lead out)

BROAD MEANING OF EDUCATION

•     Life-long process - Education of an individual begins from ‘conception’ and continues till ‘cremation’ (birth to death)
•            Experiences gained – through various formal and informal agencies of education
•            All experience is said to be educative
•            Receiving education many time when not in conscious of it

NARROW MEANING OF EDUCATION

•            Imparted in planned institutions
•             Synonymous with instruction
•         Deliberate, conscious and systematic influence exerted by the mature person on the immature person
•            Intentional education
•            Knowledge is considered as accumulated experience of the human race. It is more or less fixed

  EDUCATION - DEFINITION

FUNCTIONAL AND OPERATIONAL DEFINITION

•           “Education is a process which draws out the best in the child with the aim of producing well balanced personalities, culturally refined, emotionally stable, ethically sound, mentally alert, morally upright, physically strong, social efficient, spiritually upright, vocationally self-sufficient and internationally liberal”

DEFINITIONS BY SOME PHILOSOPHERS

•            Aristotle- creation of a sound mind in a sound body
•            Comenius –development of the whole man
•            Froebel – leading and guiding for peace and unity with god
•            Montessori – helping in the complete unfolding of the child’s individuality
•            Radha Krishnan – training the intellect, refinement of the heart and the discipline of the spirit
•            Tagore – making life in harmony with existence
•            Swami Vivekananda – manifestation of divine perfection already existing in man
•            M.K.Gandhi – an all round drawing out of the best in the child and man-body, mind and spirit

                                    ‘Drawing out’ and not pouring in – stressed by Gandhiji

                                  ‘all-round’ –  a proper and harmonious combination  of intellectual, moral and                                            other developments are required

                    best in man’ – related to three aspects: body, mind and spirit