education Essay Examples

How to Write a Effective Educational Essay: Topics, Templates and Examples from EliteEssayWriters

How can good education change one’s life?

Not all students are the same, have the same qualities, same long-term objectives or same learning styles, yet all of them are special and unique in their own way. They should be taught the differences between good and bad values, the importance of relationships with other people and how a good person should be. Thus, they will grow up to become valuable people. Each and every one of them has the right to be educated and deserves to grow up in a positive environment. A student that feels safe, motivated, comfortable and is eager to learn will benefit from a harmonious growth. This is actually the very place where educators intervene. I’m an educator too and I find education, if not the first, one of the top three priorities I have in life. And I’m trying to convince my students to think the same. I believe that helping children and teenagers become life-long learners is crucial, because by giving them the right and needed guidance now, I can help them make some wise decisions later on in their lives.

A perspective on education

In my opinion, good education is much more than just the subjects that students are being taught in class. It implies for an educator to go way beyond the basics, to be aware that each student is unique and has a different set of needs, and to know how to adapt their teaching skills and techniques for each student as much as possible. With the right assistance, the possibilities are limitless regarding what a student can learn. They should also find in their educator a person whom they can talk to and ask for advice whenever they feel the need to. When I think of education, I see more than just the ability to gain knowledge and a specific set of skills that will help you later on in life when you start seeking a job. I see a way of living and thinking, a way of becoming better and more productive citizens and a way of acknowledging what you can do with your knowledge and skills.

Education and society mingled together

An ideal society is one in which all citizens receive a good education. But this will never be achieved. Nevertheless, even though the society you live in today is not as good as you would want it to be, through educating your children, you increase the chances of some changes happening there in the future. Because only by offering our children proper education we can make our society a better place to live in. Education can actually be seen as the major contributor to shaping society and making it better. Through learning what social skills are and how important relationships with other people are, students will be able to build a much more solid and durable society. With proper education, today’s students will become tomorrow’s leaders.

Philosophy of life

Of course, each person has a different perspective not only on education but on life as well, due to the fact that we live in different ways and experience different things every day. Life is the sum of the things you do and actions you take, and the most important thing you need to remember is that you and only you are in control of your own life and are responsible for your actions. Always having a negative perception of the world around you will lead to nothing good, on the contrary, it will only make you see your life unhappy. Both good and bad things are happening all over the world at this moment and it’s our duty to work together and to try to make the world we live in a better place. Learning from our actions and the actions of those around us is highly important, because this is the best way we can make the difference between good and bad. Each choice you make is followed by a series of consequences, which means that you have to carefully and wisely make the right choices and be aware of the consequences of those choices, especially if those consequences are to affect other people as well. The common saying “Actions speak louder than words” is actually true and in my opinion, the more educated a person is, the better the choices they make are and the more they influence the society in a good way. Growing up in a loving and supportive family has a huge impact on a child’s development process. Unfortunately, this is not something that everyone has, but in many cases, this doesn’t prove to be an impediment in their lives and doesn’t stop them from achieving their goals. And it’s that moment when you finally achieve your goals and fulfil your dreams that you actually feel how amazing life can be.

On schools and learning

I’ve said it before and will continue saying it one hundred times more if necessary – education is the key for every student to succeed in life and have a brighter future. And good quality education can only be provided by highly trained and professional educators, as they are the forerunners that need to show students the right way and teach them to distinguish the good from the bad. The educator should decide upon the best classroom curriculum necessary for his or her students, as well as set up some clear goals with respect to what he or she expects in return from the students. In their turn, students should work hard and do their best to attain those goals. The main role of school is not to reshape society in a radical way but rather to transmit intellectual knowledge as well as moral values in order to help students become better citizens. In some cases, children come to schools without having been taught at home about the importance of good values, so it’s the educators’ duty to teach their students this. By doing so, educators will help students build their way of thinking and their character. Thus, the moment students graduate and have to face reality as it is, they will be prepared for it and will have a clearer idea about what decisions they should make and why. Classroom management is another essential aspect that has a huge impact on one’s education. Discipline and respect are only two of the most important things that students should be taught as soon as possible. Educators should start by teaching students how to respect themselves first, as this way they will eventually learn the importance of showing other people around them respect. Teachers should establish certain rules in the classroom and show firmness to students, while at the same time making them feel comfortable and safe. Another important part of the education process is the reward. Many researchers and philosophers have stated throughout time that rewards have the ability to motivate students in the learning process, even though students don’t completely understand why or how these rewards will have significance in their futures. Nevertheless, it’s generally agreed that students deserve having their efforts recognized and praised.

Going beyond curriculum

As it was previously stated, establishing a clear curriculum for the classroom is crucial. However, there are many situations in which the education process goes even further than subject matter, as many students face different obstacles every now and then that actually interfere with the process of learning. When this happens, the teacher is responsible for finding out the things that student is lacking, establishing a strategy and helping that student to successfully achieve their goals. Teachers should know how to build rapport with the students, because having good relationships with them will make things a lot easier for both parties. Furthermore, good relationships with students can also be used as an opportunity for teachers to see exactly what types of qualities and values each of their students possess.

Instructional practice

The learning process implies acquiring both knowledge and a set of skills. And there are many ways in which this can be done, some of them are listening, observation, and hands-on learning. The person being taught has to stay focused throughout the teaching process in order to be able to learn and understand the specific content the teacher introduces to them. Of course, there are other methods through which one can learn and one very good example is through experiencing or being exposed to certain situations. In such cases, the minds of students are stimulated, which automatically makes them think critically and assimilate whatever the educator teaches them. I too encourage participation and going through various experiences, because, in my opinion, this is a great opportunity for students to learn new things. I’m convinced that organization is one of the keys to lead a classroom, because having everything well-organized makes things flow smoothly. There are many strategies that teachers can apply in their own classrooms in order to obtain better results and some of them I’m going to apply in my classroom as well. One of them is related to the use of visuals and various hands-on activities. I’ve seen and read about many cases in which these types of activities made great differences in the classroom and helped numerous students learn faster. I know that each student has their own style of learning and I believe that providing them with a range of learning methods will make things a lot easier for them. That’s why I personally will do my best to continue improving my lessons and making them more and more interesting with the use of hands-on activities and visuals. This will keep my students motivated and will engage them even more in the strenuous process of learning. Including technology in the education process was considered a big mistake until a few decades ago, but today, I believe it’s one of the greatest advantages teachers have access to. Many studies have shown that throughout the past several years, technology has made a huge impact on language acquisition, enhanced students’ self-esteem and literacy development, provided even more access to information and supported the process of learning. Another strategy I will resort to in my classroom is related to activities that make students work in groups. This way, they will develop social skills and will benefit from the perfect opportunity to learn different things from and about each other. Open discussions will also make an important part of the teaching strategies I intend to apply. I believe that these discussions will help students feel more comfortable with sharing their ideas with their classmates. Students that get involved in the process of decision making when it comes to various assignments can also have a good impact on them. Assessments have the purpose of monitoring students’ process of learning and of providing them with prompt feedback regarding assignments. It’s a must to use assessments in the classroom, as this is probably the best way to see if there are any students who didn’t understand what you were teaching them and need further guidance. I believe that if I use all these teaching strategies together, students will be able to reach the desired result and successfully learn everything the educator is trying to teach them. The goal is to make each student leave the class with new skills and more knowledge acquired. In my opinion, the teacher should be a positive role model in the eyes of his or her students and should always provide them the best environment to ask for advice, in case they are looking for someone whom they can talk to. A teacher should encourage his or her students and convince them that they have the ability to achieve any goal and fulfil any dream if they believe in it and work hard enough.

The relationship between teacher and students

The teaching-learning process means that there are two parties involved – the teacher and the students. It’s true that students have numerous responsibilities, not only in school but also outside it. However, one of the greatest responsibilities is that they have to come to the classroom prepared for learning. Also, they have to do this on a daily basis, preferably without skipping even a day, as they might fall behind if they constantly miss the classes. It’s essential that they arrive on time in order to avoid missing any important parts of the lesson that can jeopardize their understanding of the lesson. They have to stay focused during the entire period they are at school and they have to bring all the necessary materials in order to complete all the assigned projects and activities. On the other hand, teachers have to provide students with a propitious environment so that the learning process can be carried out in optimal conditions. They have not only to train but also to lead and guide each and every student. The greatest responsibility of teachers is to supply their students with accurate and updated information in order to facilitate their learning process of the subject matter. Lesson plans must be prepared before the class, as they have to be utilized as guides when teaching students. Also, teachers have to assess both weaknesses and strengths of each student, especially when preparing the tests. Clear goals have to be established for the students, as well as realistic expectations, in order to avoid any misunderstandings. I’ve previously talked about classroom management and I bring it forth once again, as I find this extremely important and one of the main responsibilities of every teacher. Proper managing will exempt you from facing situations in which the learning process is disrupted. Establishing some ground rules for your classroom in order to ensure students treat each other equally and with respect is one of the first things teachers should do the moment they walk in the classroom. Grading papers and meeting with students’ parents every once in a while for conferences in order to offer them a clearer perspective with respect to their children’s progress is also part of the teacher’s duties. The classroom should be a safe place and a nurturing environment for learning students. Teachers should understand that their work doesn’t stop the moment they walk out of the school but it continues even when they get home. Besides preparing the lessons, grading tests and other papers or reviewing their teaching techniques, educators also need to assure students that they can benefit from guidance even outside the classroom. The teacher is the students’ role model, which means he or she has to show patience, availability to talk regardless of the time of day, and compassion.

Handling diversity

Most of the time, your classroom will be formed by diverse students. The differences between them might be in their abilities, religious beliefs, race and culture, or backgrounds, but regardless of any of them, you should continue to do your work as a teacher flawlessly. Diversity involves a variety of experiences and backgrounds that have a huge impact on students’ uniqueness and contribute to it. It’s not only about the race! It’s about all the previously mentioned aspects that are part of each student’s life and that define them. Under no circumstances should this be a way of categorizing your students or a criterion based on which you split them into groups when, for instance, you engage them in different activities in the classroom. Consider your classroom as a mixture of diverse learners. Your duty is to identify a way of encouraging students to take advantage of those defining aspects and live up to their potential as strong, unique and special individuals. It’s true that most of the time, this diversity existing in the classroom is what will give you most challenges, as you’ll have to meet the needs of each of them. That’s why you should resort to a variety of techniques in the teaching process and deliver the content not only through lectures but also through handouts, videos or hands-on activities. You are also advised to introduce technology in your lessons and to take advantage of the many benefits it comes with, especially in the educational field. Considering that today you can find a range of applications, sites or programs that can help you in the classroom, regardless of the subject you are teaching, the only thing you need to do is find which one would best suit the needs of your students and help you the most in class. Believe it or not, there are many schools around the world that are not that fond of the idea of diversity. Many factors can influence a school’s perception of culturally diverse students, including community’s involvement, school’s general atmosphere, school’s attitude towards diversity, and many more. Of all the mentioned factors, probably the one that has the greatest influence is the relationship teachers establish with their students, both on the personal and academic level. If the teacher provides students with support and confidence and responds to their needs whenever it’s necessary, there are high chances students are not affected by the other mentioned factors and their learning process is not perturbed. This is the main reason why it’s crucial to establish good relationships with students from the very beginning and to try and win their trust. Of course, the first place where children start to acknowledge the idea of diversity and where they first start learning is at home, next to their parents. Adults play a great part in their children’s education and it’s parents who should first encourage the little ones and support them in their learning process. Parents are the first role models that children see and, in most cases, the little ones will try and copy their parents’ actions, without being aware initially of whether what they’re doing is good or wrong. For this reason, parents and teachers are advised to work together and have their part in the learning process. Teaching students is not something that should be done by one adult only – the teacher – but by parents as well. There’s one issue that I find unhelpful and critical in today’s educational system and that is standardized testing. I know there are both pros and cons with respect to this type of testing, but I honestly think that this should be replaced with something better. Throughout the years, I’ve seen students preparing for this type of tests and all of them, whether they were fast learners or not, were highly stressed out due to these tests, not to mention that most of the times that stress passes on to teachers as well. Sure, standardized testing is a fast and efficient way to see whether or not students have understood what you’ve been trying to teach them in class and whether or not teachers do their job well, but there are many other alternatives that schools and teachers can resort to.

Final thoughts

Overall, I believe we all agree on the same aspect – that good education is the key to success in life and it’s imperative to have it in today’s society. In my opinion, education should not be strictly equalled to acquiring new knowledge on a certain subject because it implies much more. It’s about gaining a new set of skills or improving the ones that students’ already have, about becoming a valuable person, and about making the difference between good and wrong. I think of education as an ongoing process that lasts throughout one’s entire life, as people will always have something new to learn. Also, I think that teachers are the students’ forerunners and should show them the right paths to go through in life. A professional and effective educator, who, most importantly, cares about his or her students’ needs, will easily gain their trust and make the teaching-learning process seem effortless and more fun. Even though the amount of time you spend with your students is short (in many cases, one year), this doesn’t mean it’s not enough to make a difference and to change those students’ lives completely. Ultimately, good education leads to good jobs in the future. This means that teachers need to facilitate students’ learning process through all possible means and to utilize diverse methods in order to ease the process. Technology should be teachers’ best friend and they should make the most out of it and include it in their lessons as much as possible. Providing students with a proper, comfortable environment for learning, showing them respect and confidence and encouraging them all the time will eventually make those students aware of the importance of good education and will help them see the difference between good and wrong. They will grow up and become the image of the community which they live in. As it was mentioned earlier, today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders.