Philosophy of Education 1

Running head: PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION ASSIGNMENT

Philosophy of Education 1

Alfonse Javed

Liberty University

EDUC 703 Dr. Dr. Reason, Casey

December 12, 2008

 Philosophy of Education 1

Philosophy of Education

Education and Religion are interconnected, education impacts religion and

religion impacts education. One way or another they are essential parts for any society;

and in absence of any of them leads a society to total deplore. Morally, socially, and

economically strong nations always go back to the basic teachings of their religious

institutions. Even those who believe in no god or in many gods practice some sort of

religious belief. Without such beliefs, there would not be any existence of social ethics

and values. Social ethics and values are void without religious influence on Education.

The connection between religion and education is so strong that tearing apart one of them

can paralyze the other. Principles and ethics for a college professor depend on his

personal worldview about, and religious perspective of, education.

It is not possible to separate the religious beliefs from what someone’s teaches or

what students learn in a school. Moreover, ethics and values in a society are a direct

result of a religion influence on education. Generally, the Western world referred to

Christianity, and it is a fact that Christians in the West are going away from their religious

duties, values, and ethics in name of socialism, humanism, and equal rights. The rest of

the world, and particularly the Middle East, use education as a supportive instrument to

strengthen their religious beliefs. The religious institution rules over the educational

institutions and in a bright picture every institution is somehow compelled to promote

religious ties that the citizen of that country may abide to. Subsequently, today the

American youth does not know about their beliefs and Islam is getting more and more

powerful. Muslim youth know their background and where they are heading. Asian

students are apparently hold high ethical values than white American students. There
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domestic culture and the values of their families have developed such high and strong

ethics inside of them that it is very difficult to influence them. However, they are not

isolated from Western influence. There is a big difference between the Western and the

Eastern worldview of education. In the West, the religion does not play any significant

role in education system, matter the fact this idea has been discoursed. Where in the East

education system is based on religion teachings.

America has taken Christian teachings out of schools in the name of democracy.

Dewey (1958), argues that democracy is a much broader topic than its political form. He

writes, “the foundation of democracy is faith in the capacities of human nature; faith in

human intelligence and in the power of pooled and cooperative experience” [59]. A social

belief that holds the idea that it is a natural gift that someone practices power with the

ability and the right to control the conduct of others “laying down principles and rules

and directing the ways in which they are carried out.” The argument goes on, “it would

be foolish to deny that much can be said for this point of view. It is that controlled human

relations in social groups for much the greater part of human history” [59]. If it is true,

than man is trying to take control and while doing so are rejecting the authoritative one,

Sovereign God. Kagan & Lang (1978) writes in their books that “Schools attempt to

teach each pupil the values, motives, and character traits our society believes each citizen

should possess.” [p.35] Civil War brings big change in society, it changed the American

values. In 1800 A.D., religious and secular jingles were part of the book, and encouraged

students to be faithful to Christianity. “ ‘Thy life to mend, God’s Book attend’ and warns

against laziness ‘The idle Fool, is whipt at School’ ” [pp. 36]. Further talking about

Christianity and values writers say, “conflict over the proper balance among achievement,
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friendship, and Christian morality are still apparent in the ways schools teach children to

become American.” Until late 1800 American youth were well aware of their Christian

heritage, and their moral values were high.

Chilcott, Greenberg, & Wilson (1968) write, “In America, education itself is a

value; it is to education that the citizen often turns as he seeks satisfaction and meaning

for his life” [162]. The American nation as a whole gets their first knowledge of values

from public schools. In this regards “the task of education is acculturative, and the

discontinuity between the school and other socializing agents in the community may have

far reaching effects on the behavior and participation level of these individuals as

adults”[162]. When it comes to the point where someone has to analyze the values of

American society, or educational values most of the time it refers to the formal religious

commitments. There are Christian sects who believe that naturally, man was a man of

virtue; according to secular writer Emerson, “Each individual was essentially a part of the

great over soul and his unspoiled inclination was to seek and maintain contact with the

sublime” [179].

However, if someone were to see today’s high school picture it is hard to find any

moral values. America has the highest rates of teen pregnancy and births in the

industrialized world. Annually, it costs America at least $7 billion. The Guttmacher

Institutes (2006) provides statistics regarding Teen pregnancy rates: there are over

750,000 teen pregnancies annually. Eight in ten of these pregnancies are unintended and

81% are to unmarried teens. After increasing 23% between 1972 and 1990 to an all-time

high, the teen pregnancy rate for girls aged 15-19 declined 36% between 1990 and 2002

(the most recent year that nationally-representative data is available). Put another way,
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after reaching 117 pregnancies per 1,000 teens aged 15-19 in 1990, the teen pregnancy

rate declined to 75 pregnancies per 1,000 females aged 15-19 in 2002. Most of the

Eastern countries do not have such problem. Their social ethical laws are stronger than

constitutional law. The discouragement of such behavior through social ties, and

restriction for media to play any immoral drama and movie has reduced the chances of

development of such behavior in youth. However, in the West this restriction is

considered as ignorance.

Violence is another big issue in High schools; it shows that American youth is

morally decayed. Although many studies have been done to find out either gender, race,

and socio-economic factors that are related to violence in schools and conflict resolution;

still there are so many complications regarding this subject. It needs more efforts, time,

surveys, and studies to help those who are seeking a way out for conflict. There is no

doubt that today both boys and girls are involved in violence, it is not any more gender

preference. The society has changed over the years, and with the passage of time the

differences between the ways little girls and little boys display anger and aggression have

shifted as well. Girls are breaking down barriers and diminishing the differences between

their levels of achievement. The girls are not limited to hidden and indirect aggression

but they are turning to physical violence as well. Today the girls’ behaviors is not

isolated, and they challenge traditional ways of thinking at a very basic level. Yet, in

general, mostly older male students rather than female are involved in weapon carrying in

school. More specifically, Hispanics are more active in such acts than whites are and

blacks more than Hispanics. It is also has to do with geographic locations; mostly these

students who are involved in violence with weapon carrying are from urban areas. The
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weapons are more likely to be carried by urban students than in suburban or rural

geographic locations. These weapons which are carried by students to school can be

listed as: guns, starter guns, and toy pistols; knives; brass; box cutters; mace; pipes;

smoke bombs; slapsticks; ax handles; tire irons; a sock with a pool ball inside; scissors;

hatchets; hammers. Razor blades; and bullets. However, students are more likely to carry

knives than any other weapon. The sad fact is this that the weapons in schools are not

brought in by students only but also teachers. When teachers are encouraging such

behavior how would they stop students to bring weapons in the classroom.

There are four main reasons which are told by students for why they carry

weapons. First, to protect themselves against possible aggressors. Second, showing off to

impress friends. Third, to make themselves feel important. Fourth, to emulate their

friends. Why do they need protection? They do not they have security of life because

there is no religious moral values; good ethics encourage a society to provide a safe place

for habilitation. Christian beliefs are based on Love, and care. Christ sums up the Old

Testament commands into one command to love God and love your neighbor. When

some societies lack such love, they suffer violence, hatred, immorality and ultimately

destruction. Islam teaches brotherhood. Since the state and religion are the same

institution it is the duty of an Islamic Government to make sure that youths are getting an

Islamic education. Regardless of their interest, they have to study Islam, which promises

them a better life, better future, and hope that their good values and ethics will straighten

the path for them in the coming life. Islam is the most rapidly growing religion, and the

most common conflicts in the world somehow connect to Islam. Regardless of racial

differences Muslims are committed to develop Muslim brotherhood as it is commanded

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by the Qur’an. Geographical setting can bring few changes in organizational framework

but overall the Muslim brotherhood is influencing the world for Islamic education.

“According to the Muslim Brothers every citizen is guaranteed the freedoms of thought,

worship, expression, education and possession.”[pp.175] In Iran a militant Islamic group

is in power and their government is based on religious teaching. “According to

Khomeini, the Islamic ruler or governor must be learned in Islamic law, and he must be

just. Such is the importance of the law that even the ruler must seek the guidance of the

theologians: ‘thus the real governors are the theologians themselves, and thus government

must rightfully belong to the theologians, not those who, due to their ignorance of the

law, must follow their guidance’” [179]. Religious institutions are more powerful than

any other institution. The Impact of Islam on education in Islamic countries is evident of

their well-mannered and ethical behaviors toward older people, parents, immediate and

extended family, friends and community. It is forbidden to talk about sex in class or with

teachers, friends, or parents. It is very personal, no one is allow to talk about it. Sexual

immorality is discouraged on all its stages. Violence inside the community (as Muslim

brotherhood) is very rare. Most of the cases are resolved by family members or Alders in

the society before it gets to court. The decision of a teacher or older person is considered

as final authority.

To reduce the weapon carrying and to prevent the school from all kind of violence

behavior, three methods are being used by a few schools. Education: It provides

information and teaches skills. Many schools are starting an assortment of violence

prevention programs, including conflict resolution curricula, mentoring programs, and

general education about violence and its impact on the live of students , their families,
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and their communities. Legal Regulatory Change: It includes laws or rules that may

reduce the risk of violent behavior and of students’ carrying weapons. Environmental

Modifications: It is about metal detector programs, security patrols, and school

surveillance methods. Nevertheless, metal detectors might create a false opinion about a

school’s environment. The students are going to think that the school environment is

unsafe. Therefore, security patrols are good idea as long as it stays confidential.

A common person has a desire to practice his religious beliefs, if state’s law

allows such practice. Education is a simple instrument to promote the religious beliefs.

Someone perhaps would not agree but Webster defines education as the process of

educating or teaching. Education is further defined as "to develop the knowledge, skill, or

character of..." Thus, from these definitions, someone might assume that the purpose of

education is to develop the knowledge, skill, or character of students. In order to

understand the full meaning of above mentioned definitions it is essential to define words

such as develop, knowledge, and character. When someone will attempt to define such

words, ultimately it will include religious belief of a person who is defining such terms.

Collectively, it totally depends on the religious beliefs of such a society who intends to

define each word (develop, knowledge, and character) into a certain cultural setting.

Education reflects the beliefs of someone who teaches in his or her teachings. Eavey

(1964) highlights the definition of education according to Christian perspective. “A

human being’s reactions are controlled by religion; therefore religious education is

inevitable, Christianity, from which Christian education is inseparable, is, of course, a

religion; but essentially and fundamentally it is the life of God in the soul, Christian

education is education founded on truth revealed by God. The history of Christian

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education is the record of objective facts connected with that education which centers in

God.”

Today’s most reputed and famous schools which are considered as liberal schools

were founded on the basis of Christianity. Moreover, for a long time these Bible

institutions were committed to their call and mission statement. Witmer (1962) writes,

“the first, Harvard, was essentially a Bible college in its early years. In a pamphlet

published in 1754. President Clap of Yale declared that ‘Colleges are Societies of

Ministers, for training up Persons for the Work of the Ministry,’” [27]. The question is

where is that passion, why is it not the focal center of all education institutions anymore,

how will the American government abundantly use scripture in class, why is it illegal to

talk about Christ in the classroom anymore?

The Biblical authority is the most important element in the Christian philosophy

of Education. There are many people and educators who have been rejecting the authority

of the Bible, there objections were proven wrong and it is still same today. The

modernists are attacking the Bible and trying to convince people that old truths are not

truths but their modern lies are truths. How is it possible that the theory or approach

which was acceptable at one point of time is not a valid anymore? As Witmer mention the

names of Harvard and Yale, they were founded on base of the Biblical authority and

Christian philosophy of Education. They have benefited the nation of American

throughout the last century. Why can this philosophy not be used today? As a matter of

fact, throwing the Bible out of the education system, and eliminating Biblical authority

from society is an approach which has been used for political reasons.

Clark (1988) writes, ““The liberal churchmen of 1918 wanted to hang the Kaiser
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for alleged atrocities in Belgium; but later they were thorough going pacifist, urging

college students to take an oath not to defend our country even if attacked. For a time in

the thirties the Christian Century was favorably inclined toward Hitler, presumably

because Hitler aided the ecumenical movement”[125].

Government separates religion and the separation of religion dramatically turned

into discouraging religious practice in school. Specifically Christianity. However, in the

light of history someone can discover a deep connection between religion institutions and

educational institutions. Warshaw (1979) states, “this interaction between government

and religion is responsible for a divisive polarity which some people have called

separationism versus accommodationism. The debate over whether the government

should preserve, reduce, or expand its accommodation to religion has a long and

continuing history” [pp.7]. There are few states in America that provide free exercise of

religion and freedom under establishment clauses. The United States’ constitution holds

different statements than most state constitutions in regards of religious freedom and

practice. “the Constitution of the United States, in contrast to most state constitutions, did

not appeal to God-a deliberate omission. Until the First Amendment, the document

referred to religion in only three instances.” [pp.9]Article VI, Section 3, said, “No

religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under

the United States”[pp.9]. The history is evident of religion being the most effective

institution to change the philosophy of the human mind. Education always revolves

around religious ties. Today, the main religions; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, found

their philosophy of education in the teaching of their holy books depending on scholars

who were skilled to interpret the scripture. The Early Church set the boundaries and left a
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wide-open horizon to discover more about the purpose of human kind. This open horizon

has given an opportunity to many scholars to come up with their theories regarding the

philosophy of education. Dr. Lawrence states, that this time period saw a continuing

growth of the commercial middle class. The people wanted a stronger centralized state.

Eventually the states would break with religious schools and structure their own with a

stress on literacy in order to read the Bible. Currently public schools stress literacy but,

unfortunately, not to read the Bible. Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Erasmus introduced

new education system but yet idealism, theistic realism, and neo-scholasticism are the

products of the same struggle and adventure to find the meaning of life. Among all the

church fathers who tried to incorporate the educational institution with the Church in

order to generate a solid defense against the heretics, one name which stands out is St.

Thomas Aquinas. St. Thomas saw all sides of a question and it is a well-known fact that it

is almost impossible to find an argument brought forward by modern heresy or unbelief

which was not proposed and answered by St. Thomas. In the "Summa Theological" alone

ten thousand objections are proposed and answered. Thus St. Thomas pressed reason into

the service of faith. The church and school under Roman influence was not pure, which

left unanswered questions for those critiques and scholars who were looking for some

recognition. They were not under the influence of the Holy Spirit, but under Roman and

Greek philosophical ways of thinking. Reasoning and logic were the main focus of their

conversation. Believing that what God has revealed and spoken is not true, real, and

valuable because it is not seen with the eye, can have eternal consequences. While it

seems only logical to view a thing before thinking on it, and reasoning before judging a

thing to be righteous. Dr. Holland is head of the department of Education Specialist at

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Liberty University, he writes in his introduction for history of education class that the

sight of the eyes and feelings of the heart can be tricked and deceived. Thoughts are

formed on the basis of what one sees, when it is established that sight is unreliable. And

what is righteous to the man ends in death when he is the one who defines it. It is so

complicated to define “education” its all about the perspective of someone who is

defining it, but again the culture and surrounding circumstances can cause deception

while the process of observation is not completed yet.

Gagne (1985) talks about cognitive psychology that “at a general level, it

conceives of learning as an active process and suggests that teaching involves facilitating

active mental processing by students.” Although cognitive psychology is one of the most

rapidly growing branches of psychology this claim sharply contradicts the behaviorist

view of students as passive receptacles of information. Recent research on learning

reveals how the mind processes can cause cognitive change. According to Gagne, “These

ideas have implication for how teaching can most effectively influence the development

of competence.” This book describes that many theoretical frameworks are being used

recently. The list which is provided by the writer includes Schemas, prepositional

networks, logics, and cognitive maps, and a few other terms to describe mental

representations are Schema restructuring, inheritance of generalizations, composition,

and spread of activation. Gagne adopted John R. Anderson theory as framework for

cognitive psychology. He describes two reasons why Anderson’s theory is useful for

educators. First, his theory distinguishes between declarative and procedural knowledge.

And second, it deals with the learning processes. He emphasizes skills and subject matter

domains; emphasis on experiments that have classroom analogs; emphasis on one

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knowledge representation system, emphasis on learning. In chapter five, Gagne talks

about pattern recognition versus action sequence procedures under the topic of cognitive

psychology. Action sequence procedures are sequences of actions coupled with pattern

recognition procedures. Although pattern recognition procedures and sequences of action

are related with each other in terms of performances in process of learning, both are

distinct from each other. Learning process includes generalization and discriminations:

generalization increases the range of situations to which a procedure applies and

discrimination restricts this range. The learning process of a student also gets influenced

by surroundings, teachers, classmates, immediate family and extended family. Ethics and

values are something, which bring to the debate that of nature vs. nurture. However, the

learning process most of the time falls into the nurture category. In the case of why today,

the students in high schools are unaware of those values and ethics, which were the core

motive of schools. Kagan & Lang (1978) talks about the duties of schools that “Schools

attempt to teach each pupil the values, motives, and character traits our society believes

each citizen should possess” [p.35]. Clark (1988) writes, “More than ever the Christian

people of America need to be impressed with the necessity for Christian education”

[xvii]. Muslims are trying to dominate the world with their double edge sword, one side

is dipped with blood and the other side speaks about peace, humanity, and love. The

division of both ideologies meet on the same point, they portrait themselves having

conflict with each other to show the world. Nevertheless, the both groups are determined

to accomplish same task. Islam is spreading in the West so fast and the biggest reason for

conversions is the attractions of religious ethics and values. Dr. Holland writes on

Religious Rights for Religious Children in 21st Century Education, in this article he
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supports America for its legal concerns about the Separation of Church and State. He

writes that “Americans continually express their concerns for the concept of separation of

church and state by their acceptance of and support for a free exercise of a personal and

national religious position.” However, he sees the consequences in unawareness of

American history and how religion has played a big role in the formation and

development of American society. He writes, “If we cannot agree to focus on the true

history of America’s religious past, it will be to the detriment of America’s heritage and

America’s history. History is not the only subject being revised and slanted in our public

schools. The same thing is occurring in Literature. Anthologies are rightly weighted with

the “correct proportions” of female and minority writers. This is appropriate only if equal

accesses to religious writers are made a part of that same curriculum.” Throwing the

historical evidence away is not the solution of all problems. The history of a nation works

as a torch to show the path, to determine the right direction. There are many who claim

that America was not founded on the basis of Christianity, nor do they acknowledge the

efforts made by fathers of the nation to build a free nation under one God.

All immoral and violent behaviors are cased by low ethical standards. Further

more, the violence in the schools; the behavioral issues of the youth are subject to their

learning process. What they have seen others doing, they would like to do. Schools are

the place where they can find either good things or bad. The mental capacity of

understanding does not allow them to investigate and find the reality. Naturally they

adapt whatever their schools gives them. Religion has been separated from State but it

does not mean that religion does not influence the education. No one can teach without

having his or her worldview, and Biblical worldview is better than any other view.
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However, it is obvious the circumstances surrounding the students project what they are

going to be. Today, America is suffering of the lack of potential youth with high

knowledge, character and leadership. Most of the great leaders of the American history

come from a challenging background but God used them to bring prosperity in this

country. God was with America, He is and He will be forever. Regardless of those forces

which are trying to bring American down, God is sovereign, He is unable to change.

Booker T. Washington writes in his autobiography Up From Slavery, that the early

years of his life, which he spent in the little cabin were not very different from those of

other slaves. He was born as slave in 1856 on the Burroughs tobacco farm. He writes,

“From the time that I can remember anything, almost everyday of my life has been

occupied in some kind of labor.” This was the reason why he became the man that we

know him to have been today. Ethics and values cannot be taught in any high school or

college, but through the process of Spiritual sanctification God can put those moral ethics

which might be needed to exalt this nation. High morals of a society represent its

integrity and future stability. History records and present ones predicts that the future

holds what is going to come in existences. Education and Religions had influenced

American society, and the process of affecting lives through education with religious

perspective will continue. College professors can set new principles if they are willing to

bring change in field of education. If they are intended to promote ethics, they need to

trust in God that He controls future and their job is not educate their students with merely

heard knowledge but those ethics which are bases on Biblical principles.

Today, the American society needs a quick backup from teachers to assist

American youth. It is inevitable to experience violence, drugs and sexual immorality in

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absence of Christian ethics and values. Regardless, what people say about the fathers of

America but the reality is this that God led those people to develop a free country under

God and God cannot see the sin. If God is not standing against America, it does not mean

that He is fine with American policies and the American worldview of religion. It is

because He is merciful and wants American nation to get back to Him with clean hand

and pure hearts. Education is the best way to promote religion and religion is best way to

educate people, therefore, the connection between both education and religion offers a

opportunity to teachers and Christian to help each other in order to bring change in

American society.

As a member of a Muslim society this student has learned life experience and

knowledge of being thankful for life. Life teaches lesson even in quite times. Depending

on some one’s belief, life insures certain objectives to be America is going too far away

from religious teaching in the name of democracy and equal rights to the point that the

concepts of Christianity and God have become merely hypothetical concepts rather than

practice. The rejection of Biblical authority in the field of education has caused moral

decay in American society. The separation of State and church does not mean the

separation of religion and education. The state cannot keep its existence without

education, and education cannot pretend to be unaffected by religious worldviews. The

essence of education is to discover the truth and of ultimate purpose of this life. Religion

gives hope for life, when coupled education and religion have an even more powerful

impact on society. When lacking in either institution, societies have proven dysfunctional

in all aspects of life. American teachers are in dire need of assistance and reinforcements

in their struggle to save America’s youth. In a society devoid of Christian ethics, the
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prevalence violence, drugs and sexual immorality is inevitable. God led the founding

fathers of America to develop a free nation under the watchful and righteous eye of God.

If God has not yet punished America for its immoral climate, it is because He is merciful

and wants America to return to Him with clean hands and pure hearts- not because it is

innocent.

Pollster George Barna believes that “our society was headed for spiritual revival

or moral anarchy and that the generation that would determine which direction we would

take was sitting in classrooms at the time.” Muslim culture and influence in all over the

world is spreading like a virus. They preach and practice what they believe. Their

education starts with the strict teaching of Islam and end with in the limit the of Quranic

teaching. Science and technology are means to glorify Allah not to challenge the

authority of Quranic teaching.

According to Dr. Ravie Zacharias Christians of today face a difficult question:

“how do you reach a generation that hears with its eyes and thinks with its feelings?”

Schultz writes, “In the Bible, God gives the home and the church the fundamental

principle of how our children should be educated.” The answer to this and many other

questions is not hidden in the teachings of God. He implies that home and church are

vital. Since creation God has been passing knowledge from one generation to the next.

This student is working in the Middle East as a missionary, and my focus is on

education. As Christian leader, first, I believe that through education we can change the

mentality of Muslim people. In Islam both religion and state work together. There is not

concept of religion without land and government in Islam. The purpose of the separation

of the church from the state is to make it sure that none of these institutes may interfere in
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each other’s matters. The immediate impetus for the religious clauses of the First

amendment was to avoid creation of a national religion and church-state conflicts that

had occurred in the colonies. However, the phrase “church-state separations” has

confused our legal system and even those points which should not be considered any

problem between state and religion are the primary issues. Once general agreement is

reached that the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses prohibit control of religion by

government or the control of government by religion, there is no prevailing consensus on

how the clauses should be applied. As the Supreme Court has noted, each clause could, if

pressed as absolutes, clash with the other.

Dr. Holland a professor at liberty writes that our Nation is so focused on political

correctness, not wanting to offend anyone, and not wanting to be seen as “religious”, that

schools have been unable to say ‘no’ to the invading concept of separation of church and

state. This is more out of a social reform outlook than an educational reform concern.

History is being rewritten by those who claim America is not a nation of religious

convictions and that the concept of “under God” is supported by a small minority of

students believing their founding father’s ideology. Even though this assertion is still

highly disputed by historical document, educators are allowing a corrupted position of

our religious history to be taught in the classrooms. They do so because they are afraid to

reject the concept of separation of church and state which would label public schools as

religious agents and unduly entangled them with religion.

Education is the best way to promote religion, and religion is the best way to

educate people. Therefore, the connection between education and religion offers an

opportunity to help each other to bring positive change to every world citizen. The
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knowledge does not come from only books but the practical experiences of those who

allow themselves to explore the opportunity to apply their merely head knowledge into

practice. Life itself is a life learning process which enhances the one’s docile attitude

toward knowledge and practice in order to make him or her immune to ignorant

behaviors. The source of such knowledge must be invincible and absolute.

Bringing others out of ignorance to knowledge through education does not mean

they are erudite citizens of the world unless they are directed by supernatural intrusion

(God) to give up on their antagonistic behavior and patron of life.

Drucker (2006) addresses everyone who, as a knowledge worker, is responsible

for actions and decisions which are meant to contribute to the performance capacity of his

or her organization. According to him, whether a chief executive or beginner, he or she

needs to be effective. The title of this chapter “Effectiveness can be learned” itself

summarizes the purpose of this chapter. However, he calls executives, knowledge

workers, managers, or individual professionals who are expected by virtue of their

position or their knowledge to make decisions in the normal course of their work that

have a significant impact on the performance and results of the whole.

The key words in the process of learning effectiveness are “knowledge worker,”

“quality,” “decision making,” “results,” and “responsibility for his or her contribution.”

The knowledge workers can not be supervised or helped but they must direct themselves

and they must direct themselves toward performance and a contribution toward

effectiveness. They think but the thinking part is not as significant as the doing part

toward effectiveness. Their motivation depends on their being effective, and on being

able to achieve. As the writer mentions, “Intelligence, imagination, and knowledge are
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essential resources, but only effectiveness converts them into results,” it is essential for an

executive to be an effective worker. There are lots of managers in organizations who are

not executives. They are simply superiors of other people, and often of fairly large

numbers of other people; yet they do not contribute any effectiveness toward the

organization’s performance. They work as overseers and manage the work of others.

It is inevitable that the people under a manager can be executives, regardless of

their limited resources and authorities, they do not depend on whether they manage

people or not. They are focused on their ability to change, and contribute towards the

progress of an organization through their effective work and decisions. A manager over

them whether they take responsibility for his or her contribution or not, still should “be

measured and appraised very largely in terms of efficiency and quality.” In the process of

learning effectiveness it is very crucial to understand what it means by “knowledge

work.” Knowledge work is not defined by quantity or costs, but by its results. An

individual market researcher with knowledge and vision can be equally productive

without staff compared to a manager who has many people working in market research.

Such a manager may be so busy managing as to not have time for market research and for

fundamental decisions.

Executives can be defined as a captive of the

organizations. They are forced to keep on operating “unless

they take positive action to change the reality in which

they live and work.” An executive is a changing agent, and

if an executive is hesitant to change then most likely he

or she will be driven by the circumstances. In other words

 Philosophy of Education 1

the reality around him or her, and the flow of events will

determine what he or she is concerned with and what they

do. By doing so, “he will fritter himself away ‘operating’

he may be an excellent man, but he is certain to waste his

knowledge and ability and to throw away what little

effectiveness he might have achieved.” Therefore, an

executive is required by his or her position to be focused

on contributions and results toward effective work for the

organization he or she is responsible for; even though the

criteria are not found in the flow of events. Nevertheless,

executives are expected to acquire the ability to get the

right things done.

Pollster George Barna believes that “our society was headed for spiritual revival

or moral anarchy and that the generation that would determine which direction we would

take was sitting in classrooms at the time.” Muslim culture and influence in all over the

world is spreading like a virus. They preach and practice what they believe. Their

education starts with the strict teaching of Islam and end with in the limit the of Quranic

teaching. Science and technology are means to glorify Allah not to challenge the

authority of Quranic teaching.

According to Dr. Ravie Zacharias Christians of today face a difficult question:

“how do you reach a generation that hears with its eyes and thinks with its feelings?”

Schultz writes, “In the Bible, God gives the home and the church the fundamental

principle of how our children should be educated.” The answer to this and many other
 Philosophy of Education 1

questions is not hidden in the teachings of God. He implies that home and church are

vital. Since creation God has been passing knowledge from one generation to the next.

Today the education institutions are not trying to achieve the mission statement of

their school but they are trying to get more student. The focus and philosophy of

education is not to educate the students but to increase the numbers of students. Moore

(2004) writes that the reason why institutions are forced to take a more market-oriented

approach is heightened competition for top students, increasing bottom-line pressures due

to tuition discounting and comparative “shopping” by prospective students, and alumni

concerned about reputation and rankings. Moore (2004) also presents the idea of

“integrated marketing” in which institutions coordinate all of their outreach activities to

try to enhance their particular image to a “brand” in the educational marketplace. He

suggests that the brand is a promise of an experience to target audiences, while

understanding and communicating are simply parts of the branding process.

There is not any debate on the need of public relations and communication

between education institutions and the public. Moore (2004) writes that effectively

managed organization public relationships affect key public member attitudes, evaluation,

and behaviors. Further, to retain and attract potential students, different effective retention

strategies have been introduced by most of the colleges’ and universities’ administrations.

Moore (2004) writes that a set of new marketing responsibilities have been added to the

academic leaders’ traditional roles in order to attract the right faculty, win important

contracts, and recruit the desired students.

Today, the field of education is a big marketplace where people invest their

money in order to get back great profit. The students are the consumers. The field of
 Philosophy of Education 1

education requires the same structure of promotion as any other field of business. To

compete in the market or to attract more consumers, it is very important to develop solid

public relations. In other words, publicity is the key element to attract consumers.

Different colleges and universities have been very successful in the area of pubic

relations. The surveys of articles on public relations show the different approaches which

have been taken by the public relations officers of colleges and universities to elevate the

number of students.

Effective marketing programs are possible through such planning. They require

making choices and must be done within the context of history, mission, and institutional

will. The vision must be achievable; the goal must be defined as an achievable possibility

(Moore 2004). This cannot be achieved without public relations communication between

organizations and the public. It takes organizational and personal commitment, trust,

involvement, openness, professional relationships, and community relationships.

 Philosophy of Education 1

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 Philosophy of Education 1

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Philosophy of Education 1