The Teacher and the Community, School Culture and

Organizational Leadership |

(Midterm Handout)
Push yourself because no one
else is going to do it for you
Philosophical Thoughts on Education

• Isolated Facts and the Banking Method

• Depicted in the question and answer proceeding in class are a common classroom
scenario. Most lessons are devoted to teacher asking low-level questions and
students answering with what they memorized the night before. Teacher deposited
these facts a day before and withdraws them the next day. A perfect of the banking
system of education that Paulo Freire is very much against as it does not make the
learner reflect and connect what he/she was taught to real-life.

We have nothing against facts. But isolated facts make no sense but become
meaningful when seen in relation to other facts. These facts when combined with
other facts (with further questioning from the teacher) help the learner see meaning
and connection to his/ her life.

Below are summaries of thoughts of education philosophers on what should be

taught and how learners should be taught.

• John Locke (1632-1704): The Empiricist Educator

• For John Locke education is not acquisition of knowledge contained in the
Great Books. It is learners interacting with concrete experience, comparing
and reflecting on the same concrete experience, comparing. The learner is
an active not a passive agent of his/her own learning.
• From the social dimension, education is seeing citizens participate actively
and intelligently in establishing their government and in choosing. who will
govern them from among themselves because they are convinced that no
one person is destined to be ruler forever.

Herbert Spencer (1820-1903): Utilitarian Education

Specialized Education of Spencer vs. General Education

• To survive in a complex society, Spencer favors specialized education over

that of general education. We are in need of social engineers who can
combine harmoniously the findings of specialized knowledge. This is
particularly true in the field of medicine.
• The expert who concentrates on a limited field is useful, but if he loses
sight of the interdependence of things, he becomes a man who knows
more and more about less and less. We must be warned of the deadly peril
of over specialism. Of course, we do not prefer the other extreme, the
superficial person who knows less and less about more and more.
Herbert Spencer (1820-1903): Utilitarian Education
Spencer's Survival of the Fittest

• He who is fittest survives. Individual competition leads to social progress.

The competition in class is what advocates of whole-child approach and
Socio-emotional Learning (SEL) atmosphere negate. The whole child
approach a powerful tool for SELF-focused schools has as tenets "each
student learns in an environment that is physically and emotionally safe for
students and adults" and "each student has access to personalized
learning and is supported by qualified and caring adults..." (Frey, N. 2019)

John Dewey (1859-1952): Learning through Experience

The Fund of Knowledge of the Human Race

• Dewey does not disregard the accumulated wisdom of the past. These past
ideas, discoveries and inventions, our cultural heritage, will be used as the
material for dealing with problems and so will be tested. If they are of help,
they become part of a reconstructed experience. If they are not totally
accurate, they will be part of a reconstructed experience. This means that
the ideal learner for Dewey is not just one who can learn by doing, e.g.,
conduct an experiment but one who can connect accumulated wisdom of
the past to the present.

Schools are FOR the people and BY the people

• Schools are democratic institutions where everyone regardless of age,

ethnicity, social status is welcome and is encouraged to participate in the
democratic process of decision-making. Learners and stakeholders’
practice and experience democracy in schools.

George Counts (1889-1974): Building a New Social Order

Schools and Teachers as Agents of Change

• For George Counts, schools and teachers should be agents of change.

Schools are considered instruments for social improvement rather than
as agencies for preserving the status quo. Whatever change we work
for should always be change for the better not just change for the sake
of change.
• Teachers are called to make decisions on controversial issues Not to
make a decision is to actually making a decision.
• Like Dewey, problem solving, should be the dominant method for
instruction.
George Counts (1889-1974): Building a New Social Order
Lag Between Material Progress and Ethical Values

• Counts asserts that "there is a cultural lag between material progress

and social institutions and ethical values." Material progress of
humankind is very evident but moral and ethical development seem to
have lagged behind. A friend once wrote: "The Egyptians had their
horses. Modern man has his jets but today it is still the same moral
problems that plague humankind." Indeed, with science and
technology, we have become very powerful and yet powerless. We
have conquered a number of diseases and even postponed death for
many, we have conquered aging, the planets, the seas but we have not
conquered ourselves.

Theodore Brameld (1904-1987) Social

Reconstructionism
Lag Between Material Progress and Ethical Values

• Like John Dewey and George Counts, social reconstructionist Brameld

believe in active problem- solving as the method of teaching and
learning.
• Social reconstructionist are convinced that education is not a privilege
of the few but a right to be enjoyed by all.
• Education is a right that all citizens regardless of race and social status
must enjoy.

Paulo Freire (1921-

Critical Pedagogy and Dialogue vs. the Banking Model of Education

• Paulo Freire, a critical theorist, like social reconstructionist, that systems

must be Changed to overcome oppression and improve human
conditions.
• Education and literacy are the vehicle for social change. In his thew,
humans must learn to resist oppression and not become its victims,
nor oppress others. To do so requires dialogue and critical
consciousness, the development of awareness to overcome
domination and oppression.
• Rather than "teaching as banking," in which the educator deposits
information into students' heads, Freire saw teaching and learning as a
process of inquiry in which the child must invent and reinvent the
world.
• Teachers must not see themselves as the sole possessors of knowledge
and their students as empty receptacles He calls this pedagogical
Social Science Theories and Their Implication to Education

Sociologists today employ three primary theoretical perspectives: the functionalist

perspective, the conflict perspective and the symbolic interactionist perspective.
These perspectives offer sociologists theoretical paradigms for explaining how
society influences people, and how people influence society. Each perspective
uniquely conceptualizes society, social forces, and human behavior.

Three Social Theories

1. Structural-Functional Theory
• Functionalism is a theory of society that focuses on the structures that
create the society and how the society is able to remain stable.
• Functionalists are for stability and a state of equilibrium in society.
• To maintain this state of stability, various institutions are expected to
do their part.
• For the functionalists, change is necessary only when things get
unstable.

Purposes of Schooling according to Functionalists

The purposes of schooling according to the functionalist theory are:

• Intellectual purposes - acquisition of cognitive skills, inquiry skills

• Political purposes -educate future citizens; promote patriotism; promote
assimilation of immigrants; ensure order, public civility and conformity to
laws
• Economic purposes - prepare students for later work roles; select and train
the labor force needed by society
• Social purposes promote a sense of social and moral responsibility; serve
as a site for the solution or resolution of social problems; supplement the
efforts of other institutions of socialization such as the family and the
church.

An examination of the present curricula in basic and in tertiary education shows

that these 4 functions are given attention to.
Three Social Theories
2. Conflict Theory
• Conflict theory welcomes conflict for conflict paves the way to change,
to the establishment of a new society.

How Proponents of Conflict Theory Regard Education

• According to the conflict theory, education is not truly a social benefit

or opportunity as seen by the functionalists. Rather, education is a
powerful means of maintaining power structures and creating a docile
work force for capitalism. The purpose of education is to maintain
social inequality and to preserve the power of those who dominate
society and teach those in the working class to accept their position as
a lower-class worker of society. Conflict theorists call this the "hidden
curriculum". The "hidden" curriculum socializes young people into
obedience and conformity for them to be developed as docile workers.
• Functionalists disagree strongly. They assert that if schools teach
adherence to policies, obedience to rules, respect for persons including
authorities, punctuality and honesty, civil right it is because they are
the very principles dear to a democratic way of life. It is not because
they want to make the workers remain docile, unquestioning and
subservient forever while those in power remain in power.

Three Social Theories

3. The Symbolic Interactionist Theory Perspective
• Symbolic-interactionist theory is focused on individuals who act based
on meaning which is based on the individual’s experience. These
meanings are not permanent. They change over time as the individual
continues to interact with others and with symbols.

Implications to Teaching

• Let us continue to teach for meaning. Let us promote and create

opportunities for genuine interaction among our students, teachers,
between students and teachers. Interaction does not only mean
dealing with warm bodies. Interaction includes reading, listening,
viewing. Other people's views and meanings are conveyed in what they
have written, in speeches and lectures they have delivered.
Three Social Theories
3. The Symbolic Interactionist Theory Perspective

Implications to Teaching

• Let us use positive symbols - in the form of gestures, words, actions,

and appearances — to express our trust, belief in our students'
abilities, an affirmation of their being. In fact, our belief in our students
also has positive effect in us. We find ourselves more prepared in class,
more caring, truly professional.
• The symbolic interactionist perspective, also known as symbolic
interactionism, directs sociologists to consider the symbols and details
of everyday life, what these symbols mean, and how people interact
with each other.
• As the term implies, symbolic interactionist theory states that people
interact with one another through symbols. Language is a pre-
dominant symbol among people. According to the symbolic
interactionist perspective, people attach meanings to symbols, and
then they act according to their subjective interpretation of these
symbols. Verbal conversations, in which spoken words sente as the
predominant symbols, make this subjective interpretation especially
evident. The words have a certain meaning for the "sender," and,
during effective communication, they hopefully have the same
meaning for the "receiver." In other terms, words are not static
"things"; they require intention and interpretation, Conversation is an
interaction of symbols between individuals who constantly interpret
the world around them. To ensure mutual understanding, the sender of
the symbol and the receiver of the symbol must give the same
meaning to the symbol or run the risk of misunderstanding.
• Faulty communication can result from differences in the perception of
the same events and symbols. Did you experience this in your activity
of giving symbols of caring? While you looked at your symbol as
something expressing your love and care, your partner may have not
understood it that way at all. This happens in real life. It is important
that our symbols are understood by others in the way they were
intended to be. sometimes it happens in the language (which is a
symbol) we speak. Often, we are misunderstood or we misunderstand
others. So, let's keep on communicating.
 Three Social Theories
3. The Symbolic Interactionist Theory Perspective

Weakness of Symbolic Interaction Theory

• Critics claim that symbolic interactionism neglects the macro level of

social interpretation—the "big picture." In other words, symbolic
interactionists may miss the larger issues of society by focusing too
closely on the "trees" or by restricting themselves to small or individual
interactions.
• Symbolic interactionism traces its origins to Max Weber's assertion that
individuals act according to their interpretation of the meaning of their
world. However, it was the American philosopher George H. Mead
(1863—1931) who introduced this perspective to American sociology
in the 1920s. (which is a symbol) we speak.

The Why and How of School and Community Partnership

School and community partnership means school head, teachers, learners, parents
of learners and non-teaching personnel working together with civic and religious
leaders, alumni, other parents, non-government organization, government
organizations for the good of children.

The upbringing of children is the main and irreplaceable duty and responsibility of
the family. But with the weakening influence of the family on the upbringing of
children and with children’s unlimited exposure to modern technology like the
internet, the challenge for schools to teach young has become even greater. So,
schools do it all. They have to partner with community.

In this partnership, children, the primary customers of schools, are most benefited
but school and community are likewise mutually benefited. Here are examples of
what a community can do for schools:
 • Brigada Eskwela - This program engages All education stakeholders to
contribute their time, effort and resources in ensuring that public school
facilities are set in time for the forthcoming school opening It takes place
more or less two weeks before classes begin in June. This is a school
maintenance program that has been institutionalized since 2009 when
DepEd issued DepEd Order # 100.
• Curriculum Development — This can mean use of community resource%
for learning. e.g., museum, elders of the community as key informants in
research or resource persons in the study of local history
• Work Experience Programs - Business establishments and offices in the
community can serve as training ground for learners. A concrete example
is the 'Work Immersion required of Senior High School students, in this
Work Immersion, students are given the opportunity to work in relevant
establishments or offices in the community to help develop in them "the
competencies, work ethics, and values relevant to pursuing further
education and lor joining the world of work.... Partner offices for
immersion provide Senior High School Students with opportunities: "1) to
become familiar with the work place; 2) for employment simulation; and 3)
to apply their competencies in areas of specialization /applied subjects in
authentic work environments (Enclosure to DepEd Order No. 30, 3. 2017).

In this school-community partnership, the school can what curriculum requires and
may improve on their curriculU11 based on community feedback, enables the
students to undergo hands-on work experience, while community establishment
contribute to the formation of graduates who are more ready for life and more
equipped for the world of work Business establishment or any world of work in the
community are the ultimate beneficiaries of these graduates who have been more
prepared through work immersion.

Some schools call this service learning since it actively involves students in a wide
range of experiences which benefits, students and the community at the same time
fulfilling the requirement of a curriculum.

• Remediation and enrichment classes - Parents and retired teachers may

be involved in the School Reading remediation and Learning Enrichment
Programs.
• Youth Development Programs - The young may involve themselves in
youth development programs and develop their skills and talents, learn how
to deal positively with peers and adults and serve as resources in their
communities.
• Community Service - examples of community service are students
participating in tutorial programs, community reforestation programs, clean
up drive for a river, assisting in medical mission; school head involved in
planning local celebrations, teachers managing programs, projects,
activities; school band playing in fiesta parade
 RA 9155, also known as the Governance of Basic Education Act, BP 232 which is the
Education Act of 1982, RA, Adopt-A-School Program Act and Agenda 2030 stipulate
school and community partnership.

RA 9155, states that partnership between school and community also ensures… that

1. Educational programs, projects and services take into account the interest
of all members of the community (Sec 3, d);
2. The schools and learning centers reflect the values of the community by
allowing teachers/learning facilitators and other staff to have the flexibility
to serve the needs of all learners (Sec 3, e); and
3. Local initiatives for the improvement of schools and learning centers are
encouraged and the means by which these improvements may be achieved
and sustained are provided (Sec 3, f).

So, schools and communities function better when they work as a team.

Keep going and keep believing and do what

makes you feel good. And when you feel good
and get to the point where no-one can take
that from you, then that feeling will the
best feeling.

On to the next other half of this course!

- Sir G