Parenting is a matter of course for most people. They hardly have to think about it. They just do it, without explicitly considering educational goals, parenting methods and the like in advance.
Values
There is often no time for this during parenting times. There must be an immediate response to the actions and behavior of children/young people. When you realize this, you get the feeling that raising children is in fact a series of partial actions, without an identifiable plan. However, the latter is not the case. It is quite possible that educators have not explicitly thought about the purpose of their educational activities and the way in which they should educate.
However, this does not mean that there is no line or purposefulness in action. On closer inspection it appears that educators in comparable situations often act in the same way towards children/young people.
That is not surprising. It is very clear that parents attach importance to values such as honesty, sincerity, respect for other people’s property, etc. in their lives. They themselves live by such values and are an example for children in their environment. They find certain values, rules of life, views, attitudes and behavior so important and valuable in their own lives that they try to pass these on to children through education.
However, we must also note that not all parents consider the same values important and have the same view of life and reality. Other parents will also raise children consistently , but with a different vision of life and therefore different goals.
The conclusion
The conclusion we draw from this is obvious. In short, it comes down to the following:
Educators live from a certain view of life, with a set of rules of life that they find valuable. They also educate from this vision of life, from this philosophy of life . They try, as it were, to pass on their philosophy of life.
We see it happening around us every day in home situations, homes, schools, etc. One cannot parent neutrally or without values. The behavior of educators simply reflects what they find valuable and important.
For example, if we look in schools, we see how teachers interact with colleagues. Hopefully they set a good example for students in how to deal with fellow human beings.
But more directly you also see teachers respond to the way in which students interact with each other and to the views that are put forward. They also pay attention to the attitude with which work is done. are carried out (safety, accuracy, commitment, etc.).
More systematically, however, an appreciative point of view is expressed in the choices that schools make with regard to:
- the range of subjects on offer: religion or not, compulsory and elective subjects?;
- the content of the subjects: attention to different forms of society, forms of relationships?, attention to wasting building materials?;
- the way in which learning material is discussed: with one clear appreciative point of view, or with multiple points of view?
- the educational organization: attention to group work, project education, etc.?;
- the way in which students are assessed: based on a class standard or an individual standard?;
- the manner in which and the extent to which students can and may influence school events.
Schools make choices in these matters, whether they do so consciously or not. The answers given by the schools differ and on this basis schools have their own identity.
Education is therefore never neutral or value-free. It is based on different philosophies. The possibility of this is laid down in the constitution in the Netherlands and is known as the freedom of education. Based on this law, it is up to parents to choose education that matches the education they give their children at home.