Chapter 1
:Teaching and Education
Teaching
To go further, we must agree on the signification of terms defined by some great authors and universally accepted.
Teach, is to transmit its knowledge. Or, in accordance with the explication of Durkheim : Instruct means to communicate, transmit a scholastic knowledge. But how many professors wonder after the class : « Me, I teach, but do they learn ? » : This vital question is often forgotten by the teachers blocked up in their routines and also their own narcissism : Philippe Meirieu evokes that in many of his works when he approaches the question of professional identity of this particular population.
Durkheim, him, distinguishes education and instruction. Instruct means to communicate, transmit a scholastic knowledge. But, education does not consist only in « proclaim », « state», « say », « verbalize » his own knowledge.
[1] Evidently, he first exacts from the teaching of good master the material that he teaches but that does not assure that his knowledge will be assimilated and will develop in students. It is not without reason that Loren Eiseley[2] said : « I know that, to the days of timidity, my hand hesitates on the handle of the door before entering the classroom ». In his turn, Philippe Meirieu affirms the difficulty that has encountered more and more teachers in the scholastic world : « The "good students" yet manifest them -- a respect to good quality, but they do not think less, of all evidence, that "essential is elsewhere", in the work of vulgarization and specialized magazines … ». « Others "less good", have made known already for some time with their masters, sometimes noisily, sometimes with the discretion of those who do not feel in their place vanish in exerting themselves not to derange, that lessons and scholastic exercises do not concern them but little and that they prefer "to go visit elsewhere", to cinema, campaign, or in the cellar of a pal who dismantles his motorcycle »[3].Experience shows us that to teach « is not only to give the lessons, transmit knowledge that appears in the program »
[4]. But « for the students to learn, does he suffice to reunite some conditions tied to the school calendar, quantity of hours of courses in a discipline and remuneration scales of masters ? Not that these questions are minor, they are essential… but who dares to claim that, in hospitals, changes of repast hours, diminution of the number of patients per room, and elongation of the duration at sojourn – all measures that perhaps desirable – suffice to heal the sick people and dispense with all treatment ? »[5].This long reflection aspires to resituate the place of the teacher and its function in education and to convince them of the complexity of apprenticeship. Those who care for the response to the question "me, I teach, but do they learn ?" must not forget the importance of continual formation in spite of the "business of private life". The people evolve rapidly. « Young people come to us with personal questions, convictions, perplexities, cares, hopes, fears, and frustrations. We must meet them "there where they are", not there where we think they should be, not there where we were when we had their age, not there where our students find themself in the years 60, 70, and 80. We must meet them there where they are today »
[6]. « Could we then teach without bringing their knowledge up to date ? »[7] And through elsewhere without perceiving the social transformations that of which young people are inscribed : Wherein for instance has the communism transformed their mentalities ?Education
1- According to certain European authors
a- Why educate ?
Educate a child says "normal" to become a man is already a very delicate task. Educate a child to make him useful to society is otherwise difficult, more difficult yet when education concerns the children "in difficulty".
In giving birth to a child, all parents hope that he will succeed in the studies, that he will rise in the social class, that he will occupy a place, his place in society, that he will find his happiness for him and for his family, that he will be useful to society. However, the chance will not give delight to everybody. Evidently, many have carried out well their life, but the number of errant children, young people who abandon school on the way to class, the problems of social scourge, more and more younger delinquents, do not cease to augment from year to year : great anxiety for parents and society, a permanent insecurity. And still they are not born delinquents, nor to live in debauchery.
The man comes into the world "in uncultured state" (Kant). From the start of his existence, the child lives with his entourage. Actions and words of the people closest and above all, of those who keep him of amusement internally. They augment from day to day and constitute his personality. In other words, it is in living to the fold of society, in acquiring social values, experiences of the predecessors that a child becomes man. It is also in transgressing the social norms that he advances : If in my course observations I will insist for a great while on the norms not acquired, because the transgressions precisely become the norm and that any society relying on a social contract can only accept that the individual rules surpass over the collective good. And this is the manner to be educated to social values which will forge the gradual development of the child. From time to time, we are informed of the situation of savage children, as the one studied by Dr. Itard, who are lost in the forest and nourished by the animals from their birth. In all cases, these people lead a life quite similar to the one of animal that nourishes them. They adopt with difficulty the new human life in spite of all the efforts of men who have sheltered them in sight to re-educate them.
At the moment of his birth, the animal is already what it is : a perfect creature in its category, while the man is an animal « extremely imperfect » (Bernard CHARLOT), which « must be educated » (Kant). To become "what it should be", « it must be educated by those who supply to its initial weakness, and it must be educated... » (Bernard CHARLOT). In other words, entered into the world, the child is like an animal no more no less. But he grows in becoming more and more human, in living in the midst of human beings and in acquiring education of man. In the same manner that a precious stone can not shine with all its brilliancy without the expert hand of a jeweler, likewise a child has the need of a good education to develop and become a clever man.
Thus although the child is "good to the state of nature" or "to uncultured state", all the educational systems, oriental as well as occidental, agree to concede that a child must be educated to become what it must be : a man.
b- And first most important, what does "educate" signify?
In all profession, the optimistic efficacy varies according to the precise knowledge of its operation, its principles... Educate, take care of, govern, are the three most difficult professions (Émile Durkheim). Education is renewed from day to day into function of the development of society, country, and time especially in this epoch of globalization. It could become a key factor of development condition to greatly form good citizens, technicians, intellectuals, scientists... assuring the process of economic and social developments. Education in all ages has taken form and developed at the same time with the evolution and development of society.
Thus, to be able to develop all their pedagogical potentialities and resolve educational problems, one of the conditions of success for all those who exercise the profession of educator is to take conscience of what education is in possessing the knowledge, pedagogical and professional competences, and serious aptitudes to the acquisition of laws and methods of education, it’s to say that it must well master the elements of science education.
Educate signifies « form by education », definition given by the dictionary MICRO ROBERT, which is the action to form, instruct a child, a person. Education also means « cognizance of the usages of society, good manners » (Larousse-Encyclopedia). The expression "lack of education" is thus often used to qualify the demeanors of people without politeness, without good manners. The ancient society did not know these distinctions which have been gradually established during the course of evolution. Education among the parents is unique. Previously, to the mean of education, a child progressively acceded to the sentiments, manners of being, culture pertaining to family, local, national : That is the one which has assured social continuity between generations....
The theories of the philosophers of the XVII century, Locke, Helvetius, and born ideas of the Revolution dragged along a revision of conceptions that the society made to education. This is J.J. Rousseau who, in Emile, imagined a new system of education according to the nature. From Émile, Goethe said : « This is the gospel of education ».
The author of the Essays had already understood the problems that posed the formation of good citizen and respect for his liberty : « I impute all violence in education to a tender soul that one erects to honor and respect of liberty » (book II, chap. VIII). The question raised by Rousseau in Émile remains the entirety : is that one the connection of the individual and society.
As we know, the word "educate" comes from the Latin "educare". According to José Davin, this word signifies "conduct out of". Also according to this author,
« To the time when Rome was rustic, and the latin a langue of shepherd, the word "educare" signified all simply : march ahead of its flock in order to guide it outwardly. [...] It is the matter in order for us to conduct "out of" this state of infancy, characterized by the absence of subject capable of the parole [...] towards this state of subject capable to take the parole, enter in relation with others, resist, work, and communicate. »[8]As for Philippe Meirieu, he affirms : « Educating someone is integrate it into a society ; it’s therefore teaching him to comply to rules that this society imposes on him to succeed. The true liberty is that of man who lives in the City in complying to the common law »
[9]. However, this definition of the great poet Antonio Machado urges us to reflect : « Education, is taught to rethink what one thinks and to unlearn what one knows »[10].c- Objectives of education
Educating a child therefore resembles to the act of piloting a boat. In order to arrive at anticipated goal, we must always continue vigilantly not to deviate from the departure, under the pain of falling into catastrophic situations.
In the reality of everyday life, whether we are European or Asian, whether we live in any situation of society, It is our duty to directly or indirectly give to children the opportunity to become useful men. Accomplishing this task concerns several domains : the family atmosphere to social environment, activities for children to the behaviors of people who surround them... All that remains profoundly engraved in the subconscious of the child and contribute to constitute his personality. Thus, educating a child must assure his individual and social developments at the same time.
According to Pestalozzi, the child « grows, is trained, educated » simultaneously. The man can not make grow an inch because « growth is a matter of God » [...] « according to the eternal laws ». The man « is formed by chance, by uncertainty » and by « dependence of changing circumstances » of the environment where he lives. But « he is educated by the tact and the will of man », in a mord, by the society. The formation, education, growth must be placed in concurrence of that « man may really be formed and educated ». In the contrary case, he will be badly educated.
But the essential of education is to assure the survival of the individual in society. Because « in order for him to have education, he must be in the presence of an adult generation and a generation of young people, and an action exercised by the firsts on the seconds. »
[11] . He further affirms that « education is eminently social matter », « a fundamental social phenomenon »[12] in the same way as his main points. To reach them, even the same means must have the same character. Because « the main points pursued or the means employed, are for the social necessities that it responds ». We are not able to educate children as we want, but according to the « customs which we are tenuous to conform » so that, becoming adults, they can live in harmony with their contemporaries, in conditions of normal life of such manner that whether we derogate too seriously these customs, « they revenge on our children ». One may thus understand that for the socialist education, the equilibrium of a child always passes by the acceptance of his place in the system and not the quest of his personal happiness. This difference of approach marks very profoundly political systems claiming of Marxism Leninism.According to Bernard CHARLOT, once entered into the world, the child is « submissive to an obligation to learn ». Learn in order to build includes a threefold process : become a man, become a unique model of a man, become a member of a community which he shares the values and where he occupies a place, his place. The famous formula of Durkheim affirms : « Education is the action exerted by the adult generations on those who are not yet matured for social life. It aims to raise up and develop in the child a certain number of physical, intellectual, and moral states that claim to him and the political society in his general effect and the social environment to which he is particularly destined »
[13]. The world started before him. Generations have lived before him. Men, with whom he lives, were born before him. He must learn how to live with them. It is therefore « enter in a mass of connections and processes that constitute a system of sense which is said who I am, which is the world, who are the others ». « This system is elaborated in the very same movement by which I build myself and I am built by others ; this long movement, complex, never completely finished what one calls education ».[14]Philippe Meirieu pointed out the issue of importance that will arrive further : It is the active collaboration of the educated : « Educate someone, is to teach him to think of himself and to carry out only the actions that he will freely decided »
[15]. Without this contribution of his part, it is a fatal defeat.***
In the response of 130 over 150 people who responded to my questionnaire on the issue of the concept of teaching and education, we notice that in the Vietnamese contemporary, they do not distinguish furthermore teaching from education.
Is teaching different from education ? This confusion is not proper to Vietnam but its current political system contributes to reinforce this cleavage.- different : 63
- same : 67
Likewise, I have the opportunity to speak with an Australian woman of Vietnamese origin in discussing about this topic of teaching and education. She is a psychologist and has nevertheless affirmed that « in Australia, when we talk about education, we understand that it is teaching ».
Interview with the French of Vietnamese origin
Mr. Tran quang Dang and his wife Tuong Vy and Mr. Nguyen van Công came to see me this morning, October 5, 2006. Mr. Dang and Mr. Công are former students of the Taberd school (a school of the Brothers before 1975) in the years 50. Mr. Dang is a member of the Association FALAISE, founded two years ago in France, having for the purpose to manifest their gratitude towards their teachers in looking for ways to take care of the studies of young people who seek to understand the vocation of the Brothers.
A brief reporting realized after 90 minutes of exchanging on several subjects concerning the life of the Brothers, their identity... in the same way as their needs to raise the cultural level of young Brothers give a different concept.
NVT : The difference between teaching and education ?
[16]Mrs. Tuong Vy (with the accord of 2 others) : At first, I affirm you that I am not Catholic and my husband is not either (Mr. Dang). I have known him for very long time and I noticed that the students of the Brothers (example : my husband and Mr. Công) are not like the others because they were well educated at the Brothers. I know many students of other French schools in Saigon such that Chasseloup, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Marie Curie... In the domain of culture, students of Taberd are not radically inferiors, I do not mean to say that they are superiors in those. However, the Taberd students have gained in formation that those have not had : the education. That is the reason why, further late in life, we see more clearly that those of Taberd have a mentality and a demeanor altogether different. All this to tell you that, to me, teaching and education are not similar.
Nevertheless, after the result of 33/140 responses obtained from the answer to the following question, the vocation of the Brothers is truly blocked up in Vietnam.
1-
Can one realize the function of an educator without the teaching in school ?- possible : 73
- impossible : 33
- certainly yes : 24
Understand education in the light of the first 3 responses to the following question is not at all an encouragement allowing to find an issue for the Brothers.
2-
Educate, this is for :- obtain the mentions : 04
- succeed in examinations : 02
- transmit knowledge : 45
- have develop personality and become sociable : 90
According to the imagination of the investigator, the response to the following question is bound to be « possible ». However one finds here a great number who acquiesces YES « to teach is to educate ». In reality, there are people who only know how to transmit the knowledge without paying attention to education, what we will see in the next chapter.
3-
To teach is to educate ?- Yes : 96
- No : 14
- possible : 22
However, the majority of responses to the following question opens a way for the Brothers in research of a place, their place, in this society.
4-
possible environments for education ?- teaching in school : 01
- professional formation : 01
- social activities : 01
- medical prevention : 0
- all these environments : 110
2- According to the concept of the Vietnamese authorities
a) Concept of education in general
[17]Education is a specialized activity of society in view to form and develop the personality of a man according to the demands of society in a determined period of history. The terminology of education is often understood in two senses : broad and strict.
Broad sense : education involves the teaching and apprenticeship in accompanying of other pedagogical actions in schools and outside of classes, in the same way as within the family and in society. It is a complete process for the formation of the personality through actions and relations between educator and educated in order to make oneself master the experiences of the society of man.
Strict strict : education is understood as a process to have an effect on the younger generation in the domain of morale, thought, and action… in order to form the conviction, ideal, belief, motivation, sentiment, demeanor, habits, and actions conformed to society.
Thus, in education, the action is the matter of one personality on another, the interaction of the educator to educate. Thanks to education, the educator realizes the social relations learned and his personality is formed and developed.
b) Objectives of education in a socialist school in Vietnam
After the victory of the revolution in the month of August 1945, the new educational system was founded at the same time than the regime of democratic republic. It is that of an independent country, « an educational system that will form children who become useful citizens of Vietnam, a system that completely develop their potential ».
[18]Being victorious with the Resistance against the French, Vietnam turned to the foundation of socialism in the north and made war for the reunification of the whole country. The purpose of education was improved day by day and clearly affirmed : « The educational task is bound to expand on a large scale in order to form the younger generation of workers who will be masters of the country, conscious of socialism, cultivated, scientific, with a good health for the efficacious service of the people of higher administration staff and to raise the cultural level of manual workers ».
[19] In a word, it has to aim to form socialist men. It is difficult today to wonder along with clairvoyance what would have been the carrying values of such a conception of social through report upon market economy. We see today in the new German landers men and women show oneself nostalgic of the past, because they consider that capitalism has brought the well-being material but have lost the links of solidarity, to not cite only one single example.In pursuing this purpose, the revolutionary educational system in Vietnam has effectively served the resistance against the Americans and the reunification of the country. Then, there came the stage of peace of the socialism foundation. The economic and social developments has surged new needs for the educational work. This is why, the purpose of education has been modified and manifested in the Proposition of the renovation in 1979, deployed and realized from 1981-1985.
From 1986 until today, through development, several educational activities conform to the renewal of the Party (manifested in the Propositions of National Congress VI, VII, VIII), especially after the Proposition of the VII central congress, developed and progressed according to the renewal and adaptation
of education of the entire world.During the 2nd congress of the Central Executive Committee, the Party has signaled success and weak sides of education, specified the functions and objectives of educational development till the year 2000.
The functions and objectives of the foundation of education today « aim the purpose to form men and generations that adhere to the ideal of independent country, possess a very tenacious will to construct and preserve the country : industrialize , modernize, protect, and develop the cultural values of people ; have the possibilities to enhance the élite of humanity ; promote the potential of people and Vietnamese men ; take consciousness of commune life and restore the more bright certainty of each individual ; master scientific knowledge and modern technology ; think creatively, know how to handle, possess impeccable industrial manners, an organizing and disciplined character, good health ; being heirs of the foundation of socialism "communist" and "assiduous" at the same time according to the recommendations of Uncle HO »
[20].In summary, according to this long presentation of the 2nd Congress cited above, the purpose of education aims therefore primarily the formation of the personality of a socialist man. Through education, it unfolds continually and perfects oneself. These are new constitutions of every one who is formed and developed in the process of life – relation – apprenticeship – manual labor – leisure… Thanks to the social activities, since infancy, the man seized the lived experiences from his predecessors. I have not discussed here the positive side of education but rather I sought to understand whether this education helps young people to live as responsible citizens.
[1] Michel Saint Onge, Me, I teach, but do they learn, AGORA Collection, Canada, 1996, p. XIII. [2] Loren Eiseley is an essayist, philosopher, literary naturalist, born in 1907 in Lincoln, died July 9, 1977. [3] Philippe Meirieu, Learn…yes, but how?, Paris, ESF Publisher, 1995, p. 15. [4] Michel Saint Onge, Me, I teach, but do they learn, AGORA Collection, Canada, 1996, p. XIV [5] Philippe Meirieu, Learn…yes, but how, ESF Publisher, 1995, p. 18 [6] Brother John Johnston, Lasallian Congress, Le Pirée, Greece, April 29 –May 1st, 1997. [7] Patrick Tapernoux, Transversality, the ISP, January-march 2004, p.21 [8] José DAVIN/Jean-Marie PETITCLERC, The Educational Paris, Paris, Centurion, 1991. p.7. [9] Philippe MEIRIEU, Teach…yes, but how ?, Paris, ESF Publisher, 1995, p. 31. [10] Nicolas CAPELLE, I want to go to your school !, Lasallian pedagogy in the XXI century, Salvatore, 2006, p. 33 [11] Emile Durkheim, Education and sociology, PUF 2005, p.47. [12] Raymond BOUDON, Dictionary of Sociology, Larousse , 2003, p. 77. [13] E. DURKHEIM, Education and sociology, PUF, Paris, 190, p.51. [14] Bernard CHARLOT, Du rapport au savoir, Paris, Anthropos, 1997, p. 60. [15] Philippe MEIRIEU, Learn…yes, but how ?, Paris, ESF Publisher, 1995, p. 32 [16] Annexes, line 628 [17] Nguyen van Le-Nguyen Sinh Duy, Generality of Education, Ministry of Education and Formation, 2001. [18] Ho Chi Minh, The questions concerning education, NXBGX, 1977. [19] Extract of the proceedings of the 3rd Party Congress, 1960 [20] Communist Party, Proceedings of the 2nd National Congress, NXBCTQG, 1997