Defining the education system is a just the beginning of a long journey, which will hopefully lead to having a well-functioning educational establishment. Defining the teachers' education framework is one part of the job, and not the biggest part. To get some sense of the size of the job, consider some basic issues that need to be addressed when defining the teachers' education. I had the good fortune to meet a few accomplished education reformers in Finland, who were willing to share some of their experience-based insights. This is a list given to me by Prof. Erkki Niskanen, and it shows the basics that need to be covered when defining teachers' education:
- The aims of the teacher education
- Administration
- The resources
- The teacher training institutes
- The qualifications for the teachers of the teacher training institutes
- The basic education of the students of the teacher training institutes
- The qualifications of the teachers for different educational institutes
- The detailed curriculum of the teacher training institutes
- The further education of the teachers
- The research on the teacher education
Imagine the amount of professional discussion each of these requires. Then imagine (just for a moment - it's too painful) the amount of political haggling possible over each of them. And these are only the headings of the sub-issues of just defining one part of the education system. Getting definite results from an advanced education system can take decades, or even generations.
We'd better start.
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