I take my inspiration for Imam al-Ghazzali, a philosopher who lived from 1058 to 1111.
In order to explain my philosophy of education, I would especially welcome visitors to review sections 4, 5 and 6 on this page. The sections are titled as follows:
4. Aims and principles of education
5. The concept of methods and knowledge of teaching
6. Scholars, teachers and pupils
A few quotes that really resonate with me are as follows:
On the connection between parenting and teaching, "Man (or human) is born as a tabula rasa, and children acquire personality, characteristics and behaviour through living in society and interacting with the environment. The family teaches the children its language, customs and religious traditions, whose influence they cannot escape. Therefore, the main responsibility for children's education falls on the parents, who take credit for their probity and bear the burden of their errors; they are partners in everything the children do, and this responsibility is subsequently shared by the teachers [15]. Al-Ghazali stresses the importance of childhood in character formation. A good upbringing will give children a good character and help them to live a righteous life; whereas, a bad upbringing will spoil their character and it will be difficult to bring them back to the straight and narrow path. It is therefore necessary to understand the special characteristics of this period in order to deal with the child in an effective and sound manner [16]."
On the importance of practice in education, "Education is not limited to training the mind and filling it with information, but involves all aspects—intellectual, religious, moral and physical—of the personality of the learner. It is not enough to impart theoretical learning; that learning must be put into practice. True learning is that which affects behavior and whereby the learner makes practical use of his knowledge [19]."
On the importance of differentiation, "The teachers should take into account the differences in character and ability between pupils, and deal with each one of them appropriately. The teachers should not push the pupils beyond their capacity, nor attempt to bring them to a level of knowledge that they cannot absorb, since that is counter-productive. By the same token, they should not keep a bright pupil back at the level of his/her schoolmates, for then the teacher would be in the position of someone who would feed an infant on flesh which they cannot eat, digest or benefit from, or someone who would give a strong man human milk, which he has long outgrown. To feed someone with the right food is to give life; to burden someone with what is not right can only cause ruin [23]."
On education and teaching being a benefit to both the teacher and the student, "In Al-Ghazali's eyes, education is not merely a process whereby the teacher imparts knowledge that the pupil may or may not absorb, after which teacher and pupil each go their separate ways. Rather, it is an ‘interaction' affecting and benefiting teacher and pupil equally, the former gaining merit for giving instruction and the latter cultivating himself through the acquisition of knowledge."
On the interconnectedness of knowledge, "Al-Ghazali comes close to the idea of ‘proficiency learning' when he recommends that the teacher should not move on from one subject matter to another without first ensuring that the pupil has mastered the first subject matter, and to the concept of the 'complementarity of sciences' when he advises that the teacher should pay attention to the interconnectedness of knowledge and the relations between its various branches. Finally, he counsels a gradual and patient approach in teaching[42]."
I don't agree with all the contents, for instance, the recommendation on administering a "light beating." I also find especially problematic al-Ghazzali's stance on education of the female, as mentioned near the end of section 6. Thus, I want this to be taken as a disclaimer that I do not endorse everything published in the article or all the ideologies espoused by the al-Ghazzali.
I also welcome visitors to review the following documentary that tries to speak about Imam al-Ghazzali's life and development of his philosophies: https://vimeo.com/47298581/.
In order to explain my philosophy of education, I would especially welcome visitors to review sections 4, 5 and 6 on this page. The sections are titled as follows:
4. Aims and principles of education
5. The concept of methods and knowledge of teaching
6. Scholars, teachers and pupils
A few quotes that really resonate with me are as follows:
On the connection between parenting and teaching, "Man (or human) is born as a tabula rasa, and children acquire personality, characteristics and behaviour through living in society and interacting with the environment. The family teaches the children its language, customs and religious traditions, whose influence they cannot escape. Therefore, the main responsibility for children's education falls on the parents, who take credit for their probity and bear the burden of their errors; they are partners in everything the children do, and this responsibility is subsequently shared by the teachers [15]. Al-Ghazali stresses the importance of childhood in character formation. A good upbringing will give children a good character and help them to live a righteous life; whereas, a bad upbringing will spoil their character and it will be difficult to bring them back to the straight and narrow path. It is therefore necessary to understand the special characteristics of this period in order to deal with the child in an effective and sound manner [16]."
On the importance of practice in education, "Education is not limited to training the mind and filling it with information, but involves all aspects—intellectual, religious, moral and physical—of the personality of the learner. It is not enough to impart theoretical learning; that learning must be put into practice. True learning is that which affects behavior and whereby the learner makes practical use of his knowledge [19]."
On the importance of differentiation, "The teachers should take into account the differences in character and ability between pupils, and deal with each one of them appropriately. The teachers should not push the pupils beyond their capacity, nor attempt to bring them to a level of knowledge that they cannot absorb, since that is counter-productive. By the same token, they should not keep a bright pupil back at the level of his/her schoolmates, for then the teacher would be in the position of someone who would feed an infant on flesh which they cannot eat, digest or benefit from, or someone who would give a strong man human milk, which he has long outgrown. To feed someone with the right food is to give life; to burden someone with what is not right can only cause ruin [23]."
On education and teaching being a benefit to both the teacher and the student, "In Al-Ghazali's eyes, education is not merely a process whereby the teacher imparts knowledge that the pupil may or may not absorb, after which teacher and pupil each go their separate ways. Rather, it is an ‘interaction' affecting and benefiting teacher and pupil equally, the former gaining merit for giving instruction and the latter cultivating himself through the acquisition of knowledge."
On the interconnectedness of knowledge, "Al-Ghazali comes close to the idea of ‘proficiency learning' when he recommends that the teacher should not move on from one subject matter to another without first ensuring that the pupil has mastered the first subject matter, and to the concept of the 'complementarity of sciences' when he advises that the teacher should pay attention to the interconnectedness of knowledge and the relations between its various branches. Finally, he counsels a gradual and patient approach in teaching[42]."
I don't agree with all the contents, for instance, the recommendation on administering a "light beating." I also find especially problematic al-Ghazzali's stance on education of the female, as mentioned near the end of section 6. Thus, I want this to be taken as a disclaimer that I do not endorse everything published in the article or all the ideologies espoused by the al-Ghazzali.
I also welcome visitors to review the following documentary that tries to speak about Imam al-Ghazzali's life and development of his philosophies: https://vimeo.com/47298581/.