22) Conventional schooling in belarus: problems and ways of their solution.
School's mission is to promote intellectual growth in students providing a healthy emotional atmosphere, developed by positive interpersonal relationships between the stuff, students and community.
However, the possibility of schools to reach its main target depends:
on the approach which is chosen to fulfill educational goals and reach high academic standards and
on the role that is ascribed to teaching and learning processes.
Conventional schooling presupposes traditional forms of educating students through a teacher-centered approach, relying on
1) lecturing as a way of transmitting information and
2) test examination system as a way of knowledge control.
The Republic of Belarus has a highly developed system of education, which proves adult literacy rate (99.8%). However, the system of school teaching here -- conventional schooling -- has become nowadays the subject of multiple critiques. There are those who believe that this type of schooling does not well foster children's potential. Conventional schooling stifles curiosity and kills motivation. Children are regarded just as numbers.
Due
to the big number of students in classes and limited amount of time
it's
impossible for teachers to find an individual
approach
to each student and to create a high motivation level for the
subject. Teachers, due to low salaries, lack incentive
and
inspiration
to give off their best. Rather than nurturing learning, the teacher's
presence and questions often inhibit in children thinking more about
what the teacher wants rather than the actual subject at hand.
Truancy, lack of interest and important extra-curricular activities, lack of financing and of new modern equipment and appropriate discipline are the issues that Belarusian conventional schooling faces today and that demand thorough consideration and resolution.
Among the ways of improving the situation is to make education more learner-centered based on the pedagogy of cooperation where the learner shares the responsibility for decisions in the learning process, to minimize pressure upon students and give them more freedom to express their thoughts and opinions, to put the emphasis on creative thinking, to shorten the amount of students in each classroom and thus to establish a contact with each child, to create the atmosphere of trust, to make teacher's schedule less taxing without the detriment to their wages. There should be emphasis on universal human values. Teachers are to respect the view of students.
Thus the key targets of conventional schooling should be the development of personality, democratization and creative thinking. Conventional education should be geared to all aspects of life, including employment. Such steps will help to inspire students to go to schools. On the whole, schools, parents and the state should integrate in order to build an educated society.
For every family the future of their kids is the most important question. Parents are ready to spend an enormous sum of money for the education of their children.
Choosing a school is of an exceptional importance. Because our decision will influence the march of events and will be a turning-point in the life of our kids. That’s why we have to choose the school where we would like our children to study and to what sphere of life we want to dedicate their life very carefully. But what are the criteria for the good school? How not to mistake while choosing one? Schools have for many years set out their purposes, often in clear and helpful statements of aims and objectives.
School’s mission is to promote intellectual growth in students through a meaningful education. However, the possibility of schools to reach the set up target depends on the approach they take to fulfill educational goals and reach high academic standards.
The reality nowadays shows that parents more often give their preference to private schools, choosing the name of the school but not its teaching methods. Conventional schooling presupposes traditional forms of educating students through a teacher-centered approach, relying on lecturing as a way of transmitting information and test examination system as a way of knowledge control. This type of schooling exists in Belarus. It should be mentioned that Belarus has a highly developed system of education, as evidenced by such statistical indicators as adult literacy rate (99.8%) and ratio of employed population who received basic, general secondary or vocational education (98%).
However conventional schooling has become nowadays the subject of multiple critiques. There are those who believe that this type of schooling does not well reveal children’s potential, moreover it stifles curiosity and kills motivation. Children are regarded as just numbers. Due to the big numbers of students in classes and limited amount of time it is next to impossible for teachers to find an individual approach to each student and to create high motivation for the subject. In their turn, some teachers, due to low salaries, lack incentive and inspiration to give off their best.
Truancy, lack of interest and important extra-curricular activities, lack of financing and of new modern equipment are the issues that Belarusian conventional schooling faces today and that demand thorough consideration and resolution.
Among the ways of improving the situation is to make education more learner-centered based on the pedagogy of cooperation where the learner shares the responsibilities for decisions in the learning process; it minimizes pressure upon students and give them more freedom to express their thoughts and opinions, puts the emphasis on creative thinking. This approach shortens the amount of students in each classroom and thus establishes a contact with each child, creates the atmosphere of trust.
Teachers are to respect the views of students and by no means to penalize them for the views different from the accepted norm. Thus the key targets of conventional schooling should be the development of personality and also the creative thinking.
On the whole, schools, parents and the state should integrate in order to build an educated society.