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Einstein on education



REPOSTING, IT WAS BUTCHERED. SORY FOR USING TOO LONG LINES.

I just finished reading the 1936 speech (in Albany, NY) of=20
A. Einstein =D3On Education=D3 Some sentences are worth quoting;=20
I hope you find them interesting. Einstein emphasizes that=20
he speaks =D2as a partial layman in the realm of pedagogy=D3=20
expressing =D2the personal opinion of a man, ...founded upon=20
nothing but his own personal experience, ...gathered as=20
a student and as a teacher.=D3
Ludwik Kowalski
P.S.
If Albert were a phys-L-er he would probably respond to=20
Hestens (see last message from Jane Jackson) with a short
note --> "David, I like this". Modeling methodology for
high school teachers, and not only for them, has a lot to
offer. It is a discovery approach. I am a modeler, in my
own way.=20

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=2E. =D2To me the worst thing seems to be for a school principally=
=20
to work with methods of fear, force, and artificial authority.=20
Such treatment destroys the sound sentiments, the sincerity,=20
and the self-confidence of the pupil. It produces the submissive=20
subject. It is no wander that such schools are the rule in=20
Germany and Russia. I know that the schools in this country=20
are free from this worst evil ..=D3

=2E.. =D2The most important motive for work in the school and in=20
life is the pleasure in work, pleasure in its result, and the=20
knowledge of the value of the result to the community. In the=20
awakening and strengthening of these psychological forces in the=20
young man, I see the most important task given by the school.=20
Such a psychological foundation alone leads to a joyous desire=20
for the highest possession of man, knowledge and artist-like work.

=2E.. the teacher should be given extensive liberty in the selection=
=20
of the material to be taught and the methods of teaching employed=
=20
by him. ... But I have said nothing yet about the choice of=20
subjects of instruction, nor about the methods of teaching. Should=
=20
language predominate or technical education in science? ... in my=
=20
opinion all this is of secondary importance. ...=20

On the other hand, I want to oppose the idea that the school has=20
to teach directly that special knowledge and those accomplishments=
=20
which one has to use later in life. The demands of life are much=20
too manifold to let such a specialized training in school appear=20
possible.=D3 ...

Albert Einstein
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