Something I wished to elaborate more in class to day was the (in my opinion) relevance of the allegory to Teacher/Student relationship.
We talked at length about Socrates' perhaps over exaggerating the importance of math, and on the dramatic level, all but refuting his dialogical opposition to poetry. With that being said, surely the role of the philosopher and the cave-dweller can shed some light on the learning process and the relationship between the student and the teacher. For example, the presence of a teacher with not only appropriate knowledge (of outside the cave) but also the ability to relate to the student (knowledge of the shadows).
Moreover, as we have already discussed, the process of learning involves not the passive reception of knowledge by the student, but his or her transformation--this idea points to the teacher as more of a guide and facilitator, rather than the administer of facts; in this way, the philosopher guiding the dweller out of the cave fits this mold as well.
I think some of the most memorable teachers I've had actually spent a considerable amount of their lives in the cave. A sort of misguided past gives one a tremendous sense of empathy and may lead to a more relationship-oriented leadership approach. On the other hand, those that broke free at a young age have a better idea of process, and tend towards a more task-oriented approach, also invaluable.
ReplyDeleteI find your mention of "appropriate knowledge" interesting. It's worth questioning how we distinguish teacher and student; as in, just how much more does a teacher need to know than a student to be considered a proper teacher?
ReplyDeleteThat is an interesting insight Brett, I feel as though the teacher must know a certain amount more in order to be effective. But I do not know if one necessarily needs to be a so called expert in an area in order to teach it effectively. Teaching is a skill in itself, and if the objective is to get the student to learn then maybe it is not absolutely vital for the teacher to know all that much more throughout the learning process itself.
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