Date Posted: 9/28/2012 8:06:23 AM
Posted By: Brendah Aroko Membership Level: Gold Total Points: 3317
Education as we knew it back then when we were young is not the same today and for this reason i would wish to highlight on the major changes that i have noticed so far. I will try and talk about these changes as regards how education was when i started out in school and how it is today.You must be keen to notice that most of the changes i will discuss are not as evident to the naked eye and require one to be keen in order to notice them.Discipline in Learning InstitutionsWhen we were young during the period between 1995 and 1999, most of the times schools were referred to as centres for discipline and those children who were not taken to school were considered to be undisciplined and very rowdy.During this period teachers were known to be strict and merciless and they were not concerned with what the general public thought as long as they did the work of instilling this discipline.One great example of the fear children had for the teachers is when i was in class one and we had been told to buy a text book for home-science class, when i went home my dad didn't have the money to get me a book and he told me to go to school and he would explain it to my teacher. When i went to school, a whole lot of us who didn't have the book were sent back and so our parents had to accompany us to talk to the teacher.When my dad took me back to school and even after talking to my teacher, i refused to get inside the class.The teacher had to beg me to get back to class but the fear of being punished did not leave me.Nowadays i see young children answering back the teacher and they are excused while their parents don't follow up on their indiscipline allegations. It goes to tell just how much we have denied those teachers our support for them to straighten our children. I believe that is the reason why our youths are so rude and have such an attitude that draws fear from the elderly.The authority of disciplining our children has been taken away from the teachers and it is such a shame when we claim that it is against principles of human rights to punish children while the Bible itself advises parents not to spare the rod.The essence of examinationsWhen we were in school, most of the times we were taught for a whole term and the exams were set in such a way that we went through what we had been taught and the teachers or examiners demanded for our understanding.We were not pressured to take in so much information and we were not given tests that were out of what we learnt in class.Nowadays gauging from the manner in which our exams are set, most of the times the examiners expect the learners to give more than what they taught and it is very unfair because learners are forced to cram so much before exams since they are coming across very new materials that were not recommended as part of the syllabus but are used to test their knowledge.The other reason why i feel that school syllabus is not given the consideration is ought to be given is due to the way in which children are graduated from one class to another even if they are not qualified.Most parents cause chaos and make such a scene when their children are asked to repeat a certain class, they fail to realize that most of the times, such children are slow learners and need to take more time in one level.The aspect of politicking in schools also deprives the teachers the authority to make final and right decisions. This is because they also need to protect their reputation and some parents cannot allow this to happen if they don't give in to their demand.During our days our parents never meddled in the school's management decisions and look at the great products the system brought forth.There's also the concept of competition between schools for the top slot in the national exams. Most teachers train the children to pass exams and not to be wise and knowledgeable. Most schools fail to go through the entire syllabus but instead opt to give the students more training on the most suitable and the expected areas of examination. All schools want a share of the big name "school of the year" and the trophy is given, the students are carried around the school, photos are taken and at the end of the day, the teachers are famous, the parents are content and the chapter is closed until the next year. This is very inconsiderate and most candidates are very raw and when they go into the job market they end up being the last. That is why i wish that we can go back to the older ways and everybody's needs are taken care of, not just the parent''s and the teacher's but also the student's.
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