Eurydice_News_20151207

The purpose of education

‘Democracy has to be born anew every generation, and education is its midwife’. – John Dewey, The Need of an Industrial Education in an Industrial Democracy (1916).
In the aftermath of the shocking attacks in Paris and Copenhagen in early 2015, the Ministries of Education of the European Union met to discuss the role that education could play in countering the terror brought to our cities. The result was the Paris declaration, a text focusing on the promotion of citizenship and the common values of freedom, tolerance and non-discrimination through education. Ministries agreed that education’s primary purpose ‘is not only to develop knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes’ but to nourish and transmit the fundamental values of our societies. Read more

Will new technology ever improve education?

‘Any teacher that can be replaced by a machine should be!’ – Sir Arthur C. Clarke If there is one thing we can be sure of for the future, it is that new technology will be ever present. Indeed the promise of new technology has been with us throughout our lives, and will stay with us – even if the latest specific new technologies are constantly changing. This reality presents opportunities and challenges for all sectors of education. Read more

What makes a good teacher?

‘Most great learning happens in groups. Collaboration is the stuff of growth’ – Sir Ken Robinson Ph.D. Teachers are considered, rightly, the most important element within schools influencing student learning. In other words: it takes a good teacher to make a good learner. But what makes a good teacher? Undoubtedly vocational abilities, personal characteristics, and individual attitudes are part of the picture. However, this is also true for many other professions.  Read more

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