Analysis
Analysis
Winter 2018 / Issue 56
Education models and how to tell if they are a good fit for your child
Parents of children in the same class can often hold vastly different expectations of what good education looks like . Frequently cited work by Robert Garmston on dominant educational beliefs says that our expectations are shaped by one or several of the following systems :
Social reconstructionism – the belief that teachers should primarily help future citizens take good care of the world ; Academic rationalism – the belief that teachers should primarily transfer knowledge ; Technologist – the belief that teachers should chunk learning into measurable standards , gather specific data , give a diagnosis and prescribe next steps ; Self-actualization – the belief that teachers should primarily nurture the unique qualities , potentials and creativities of each child ; Cognitive process – the belief that teachers should primarily help students learn to think , reason and problem solve ; and , Religious Orthodoxy – the belief that teachers should primarily teach how life ought to be lived in accordance to faith .
It was fascinating for me to see the order in which my colleagues , all working under the same roof , had ranked the above six . I encourage the reader to do the same ; together with a friend or a partner , to rank and discuss these beliefs , knowing that they are not mutually exclusive , and that there are no inferior choices . Rest assured that like parents , experienced education professionals also hold vastly varied expectations of what good education looks like .
Many education models worldwide provide a good fit for the beliefs above . In addition to the
Viktor Novakovski , Head of Nova International School in Skopje public-school system there are alternatives such as magnet and charter schools , bilingual and international schools , day and residential schools , online and distance learning schools , religious and secular schools . There are also pedagogically themed schools , modeled after the Waldorf , Montessori , International Baccalaureate and Reggio Emilia educational philosophies .
20 AmCham Macedonia Magazine