End-of-Term Test

Pedagogy

Education is very essential for all mankind. There are four kinds of philosophy of education:
Perennialism, Essentialism, Progressivism, and Reconstructionism. Each philosophy has its own strengths
and weaknesses; however, generally there are 3 main factors that these philosophies have in common:
the student(s), the teacher, and the educational process itself. In order to create a good quality of
education, the interactions of these 3 factors have to be balanced. Recalling the history of my education,
I try to see how these three factors interact in the educational process that I have undergone so far,
which leads me to my own educational philosophy.

I started my first formal education, the primary school, when I was 6 years old. I clearly
remember a teacher whose name was Ms. Santi. She was a kind teacher who showed empathy to her
students. At that time, I was very frustrated because my computer book was gone. A very naughty
student took it and threw it into a wastebasket. I was crying to my dad, and he took me to Ms. Santi.
She listened to what I said and made efforts to find the culprit. Finding this culprit, she asked him to
rewrite my computer notebook with a neat handwriting, or she said she would punish him more
severely. What she had done eased my frustration, and made me happily study at school. Another
teacher that I remember is Ms. Dessy; she was a teacher who could make a difficult lesson like Math to
be manageable for her students. I liked mathematics because of her; this liking continued to my junior
and senior high school.

In junior high school, the students got several opportunities to join field trips organized by the
school. This program taught us to relate what we learned in the classroom to the real world, and also to
appreciate Gods creation. I also remember a teacher in my junior high school. He was Mr. Sophian,
who taught Social Science subjects, including history, geography, and economy. What I liked about his
teaching is that he did not focus his teaching on the textbook; instead, he always asked his students to
relate it to the real life. He had a wide knowledge about what happened in the world, especially in
Indonesia, and he helped us a lot to understand the materials. I was amazed when I listened to him
explaining the lessons.
 In my senior high school, a different school from my previous schools, at first I was a little bit
shocked since this school emphasized a lot on the academic stuffs. There was no more field trip. This
often made me miss the happy time of joining field trips. Now, I had a lot of tougher subjects. During
my struggle with History, a subject in my senior high school, Ms. Marbun, the history teacher, made me
realize that a boring subject could be changed into an interesting one. She didnt explain the materials
by presenting them, but she did it by changing the lessons into such interesting stories that her students
liked to listen to. She was indeed a good story teller. It was hard to find a teacher who could change the
boring lessons into interesting ones.

These memorable teachers with their kind and caring attitudes have made me rethink of the
philosophy of education. In my opinion, good education should develop the students cognitive and
affective aspects. I believe that it is the job of all teachers to educate their students wholeheartedly to
make them better. Therefore, teachers should have a broad knowledge especially about the subjects
they teach. Teachers should also be able to make their lessons lively and interesting so that their
students are willing to study them. They can make the lessons interesting by using related ice breakers
or games. They can also use strategies that make it easier for the students to understand the materials
in the subject. Besides, they have to educate their students with their heart. The students affective
aspect needs to be developed too. How a teacher treats his/her students, responds to their needs,
interacts with them really help his/her students grow socio-emotionally. Students need to develop both
the cognitive aspects and the affective aspects, so that they can develop into whole human beings. Here
I am now, studying in the English Department of the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education. These
teachers of mine will always inspire me to be a caring teacher some day.

Rosalinda Mintre
1213012013