Schooling

Schooling or school is a place of learning for persons who wants to gain knowledge in certain things. Is occurs when society or a group or an individual sets up a curriculum to educate people. A school is an institution where students or pupils learn from their teachers. This concept of grouping students in a certain location gives a parallel view to the development of unified, modern and cultural identity. In history, Islam was one of the first cultures to develop a schooling system.

The Islam community focuses on knowledge and discipline and therefore they had to develop a systematic way of teaching. In Europe during the Middle Ages and much of the Early Modern period, the main purpose of schools was to teach the Latin language. This led to the term grammar school which in the United States is used informally to refer to a primary school but in the United Kingdom means a school that selects entrants on their ability or aptitude. Following this, the school curriculum has gradually broadened to include literacy in the vernacular language as well as technical, artistic, scientific and practical subjects.

Types of Schools
There are different types of schools: Preparatory, Primary, Secondary, University and Vocational.

Preparatory

Preparatory level is designed to prepare a student for a higher education. This is the first step or first level of education that must be acquired or finish first before going on to the next level. In this type of school, teachers are not strict about their lessons because this is the first step or new to them. In here they are taught on how to read, write and count numbers.

Primary

Primary or elementary education consists of the first years of formal, structured education that occur during childhood. In most countries, it is compulsory for children to receive primary education. Primary education generally begins when children are four to seven years of age. Typically, primary education is provided in schools, where (in the absence of parental movement or other intervening factors) the child will stay in steadily advancing classes until they complete it and move on to secondary schooling. Children are usually placed in classes with one teacher who will be primarily responsible for their education and welfare for that year. In some countries like in the United States of America, they have a 7th grade which is like a preparatory phase for the Secondary level.

Secondary

This is the last segment of compulsory secondary education. High school is a name used in some parts of the world, and particularly in North America, to describe the last segment of compulsory secondary education. It is preceded by primary education, usually known in North America as elementary education. High school is also the name used to describe the institution in which the final stage of compulsory education takes place. Here in the Philippines, Highschool starts from Grade 7 to 10 or from first year highschool to fourth year highschool. But in the United States, their highschool starts from Grade 9 and ends in Grade 12. So the students their will be graduating in 18 years old by age.

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees at all levels (bachelor, master, and doctorate) in a variety of subjects. A university provides both tertiary and quaternary education. The word university is derived from the Latin universitas magistrorum et scholarium, roughly meaning “community of masters and scholars. In the University level, students can choose his/her specialty in a specific field of study. Years of learning varies from what course you want to take up. A minimum of 4 years of schooling and may last until 10 years which depends on your course.

Vocational

A vocational school, providing vocational education and also sometimes referred to as a trade school or career college, and school was operated for the express purpose of giving its students the skills needed to perform a certain job or jobs. Vocational schools did not exist to further education in the sense of liberal arts, but rather to teach primarily or only job-specific skills, and as such are better considered to be institutions devoted to training, not education. In recent years this has changed with vocational schools providing education at competitively high standards. Vocational courses may last for just about 2 years. This courses is designed for practical use or may not need a longer years of study because it is easy. Examples of these are Care giver, Domestic Helper, etc.

C. Methods of Teaching

Teachings

Teaching is an interaction with students and the knowledge and personality of the teacher. The learned men of ancient times, by default became the teachers. Priests and prophets taught children of the wealthy and noble, the skills to take up their roles as leaders and businessmen. The priests’ position was elevated above many people of society, and they were treated accordingly for their knowledge, and wisdom. Learned men, continued to share their wisdom on into the first years of Christianity, including the writings in the Bible, who were often men that taught law or supreme law of the land that must be followed. Through the first centuries A.D. Roman families often had educated slaves to teach their children, some of which were captives from other countries.

Education in the modern world tended to be a “hit and miss” proposition until the Middle Ages, when the Roman Catholic Church took charge of teaching the sons of nobility, entrusting that charge to monasteries or specially designated learning “centres.” Many of these centres evolved into the distinguished learning institutions of today, including Cambridge University, whose first college was St. Peter’s, founded in 1284. The 17th and 18th centuries saw the greatest growth in education for more than the privileged, and also a dramatic rise in the training of teachers, and propounding of educational theories.

Education in America took root with the landing of the Pilgrims in the early 1600s. The first public school was established in 1635 in Boston, Mass. There followed the creation of “dame” schools and Latin Grammar schools for higher education. Massachusetts was in the forefront of educational reform, when they enacted a law in 1642, that any child not being properly educated, would have to be apprenticed to a trade. Virginia followed with a similar law in 1646.

The Massachusetts Old Deluder Satan Act of 1647, required towns of more than 50 families to hire a teacher for reading and writing, and for more than 100 families, they had to establish a “grammar” school, which served as a college preparation. Many of these were Latin grammar schools, focusing on Latin, Greek, memorization and discipline. They were often taught by ministers, or transient masters. Outside schools could be found whipping posts, were recalcitrant students were tied, and thrashed for misbehavior. The Dame schools taught reading and writing, but primarily to females, as this was all they were expected to learn, not being of the same intellect as men. Their classes were held in the kitchens of the homemaker/teacher who continued her chores while they did their lessons.

Alternative Education

Home education, also called homeschooling or home school, is the education of children at home rather than in an institution such as a public or private school. Prior to the introduction of compulsory school attendance laws in the 19th century, most education worldwide occurred within the family or community, with only a small proportion of the population attending schools or employing tutors. The terms homeschooling or home education may refer to instruction in the home under the supervision of correspondence schools or umbrella schools. Some people say that home schooled children are special child. But not all home schooled children are specail child, there are some parents who like to have their children home schooled because they are afraid of the outside world. The influence of other people which may cause their children to misbehave or maybe they want their children to be home schooled because the environment is not safe. In fact, some home schooled children are smarter than regular students in schools.

Sources:

http://www.historyeducationinfo.com/edu1.htm.2003
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primary_school.2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secondary_School.2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University.2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocational_school.2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_schooling.2006
http://www.historyeducationinfo.com/edu1.htm.2002

What really is science and technology?

Science in the broadest sense refers to any system of objective knowledge. In a more restricted sense, science refers to a system of acquiring knowledge based on the scientific method, as well as to the organized body of knowledge humans have gained by such research. Science is derived from the latin word scientia for knowledge which in turns come from sci- I know. Traditionally, Science is systematic inquiry into nature like the explanation of things, knowledge like the natural phenomena happening arund us, human cultural activity where humans are distinct from others and a total enterprise. Science is a knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through scientific method. Such knowledge or such a system of knowledge concerned with the physical world and it’s phenomena.

Traditionally, technology is defined as a) technic b) technolgy in itself c) as a human cultural activity and d) total societal enterprise. Technology as a technic means that the term technology will refer to material products or the gadget itself. Technology will be the hardware itself, the object people are using everyday. For example, the frying pan is a technology in itself. The frying pan being an object is already considered a technology. Technology as a technology in itself refes to the complex of knowledge , methods, materials and if applicable, constituent parts used in making a technic. This means that it dos not only refer to the hardware itself but also the way it was created and all the materials or “gadgets” used in creating it. An example of technolgy as technology in itself is the creation of the cellphone. the cellphone is comprised of several technologies and thus it is not only a technology or technic but a combination of technologies. Technology as a human cultural activity means that it will be more than a hardware but can also refer to the general occupation of a person. Like law, medicine and religion, technology will also be a category in which people are actually involved as practitioners. as an example, we could say scientists and inventors are practitioners of technology. Lastly technology as a total societal enterprise means that technology is not just a hardware nor a category for an occupation but is the whole complex combination of all the things, people, facilities, knowledge involved in creating something. Technology is the conjugation of everything in the society that was used in creating a technic. A great example of this is the Japanese technology. Their creation of a single “hi-tech” gadget is made possible through the conjugation of all the resources from the society-knowledge, facilities, etc.

In my own definition, Science is a systematic study based on facts. Science is a knowledge in a sense that it is made of grouped facts and ideas. For example the theories made by several scientists. Those theories are based on facts or ideas grouped together to form a one big knowledge. To sum it up, basically science is based on facts. it cannot be a guess because it needs a corresponding scientific proof to support your hypothesis. Though a hypothesis is accepted in the scientific world, it will not be recognized until it is proven.

For me, technology is an innovation, something that will improve people’s lives. It is a movement from the past to the present way of doing things and even to the futuristic way. In general, I believe that technology is composed of the new inventions. Gadgets that are futuristic and are easier to use but when you think of it, technology isn’t just the fancy gizmos but also the primitive things. Fire for instance was created way way before we were born but it is actually one the best technologies ever created. After all the readings, inquiries,etc. I believe technology is everything that is created, accidental or intentional. Primitive or futuristic, as long as it is created and has a function, it is technology.

The traditional meaning of Science is different from my own definition like in the traditional meaning, knowledge is a natural phenomena where in my own definition, knowledge is a group of ideas or facts. The traditional definition of technology differs with my definition of technology in a sense that the tradition definition is more broad and yet definite. The traditional definition considers technology as everything involved in the production of a hardware, the whole societal technology but my definition is simply takes technology as an invention with a purpose,nothing more, nothing less.