Solve problems is the basic skill which empowers people to continue developing, learning, achieving a better life. this is especially important for persons who have not yet reached their equal rights in society, e.g. for persons with disabilities: boys and girls, women and men
Fred Nafukho - 7 years ago
We have always underestimated the power of education to solve the grand challenges that face society. We have also under invested in education. We can use brain power to address the challenges we face today. This is only possible if education equips learners with critical skills and problem solving skills. In addition we need to focus on the Why? Why learning learning? Why education?
Arianne Wessal - 7 years ago
I think the primary purpose of education is actually a combination of many of the examples cited above. If we think about, we send our children in many cases to school not only for them to learn valuable knowledge and skills that will in turn empower them to solve problems and to get a job and survive independently in the world, but hopefully also to think critically but learn socio emotional skills as well. Learn how to share! How to get along with others! How to work as a team and in a group setting and as individuals and to recognize others needs and feelings besides their own, in other words to develop compassion, tolerance and empathy in order to build a better world and a better future for themselves and others, but maybe that is just me and realistically this is a comment from clearly from a more privileged background where we have the luxury of time and space to consider all of this. For others, like pastoralists, semi nomadic peoples, indigenous peoples, and others living in conflict and fragile situations the discussion of the primary purpose of education may be different and clearly to impart skills that are relevant for some to their culture and livelihoods and in the case of fragile states and conflict affected situations the non-cognitive benefits of school are equally important in my opinion, since they may help keep children safe and a more emotionally stable and balanced frame of mind psychologically, taking that away can be devastating and the consequences are extreme.
I would like to see a strong focus in the education system to solve today's development challenges, in particular climate change and environmental destruction. This requires problem solving skills and the underlying knowledge and understanding of our biological system. We need to educate tomorrow's problems solvers as custodians of our world rather than as economic drivers.
I look forward to seeing a strong integration of climate change literacy in the upcoming WDR.
Kindest,
Max
Daniel Barco - 7 years ago
I think imparting socio-emotional skills is very important in education. Actions is what we see in our economic, social and political activity. However, behind those actions, there are emotions. Emotions is what lead us to act in one direction or another. Thus, learning how to work with our emotions is important for the decisions we take and the actions we make. The main purpose of this socio-emotional learning should be to learn how to love oneself. This will lead people to think of themselves as deserving and to find purpose in life. In turn, this will inspire action towards learning (with purpose) and achievement.
Anonymous - 7 years ago
Priority should be given to Universal Secondary education and vocational training instead of Universal Primary Education. Primary education is much lower cost and therefore can be affordable for the poor, while Secondary education/Vocational training is unaffordable. There is an added incentive to the poor to pay a small amount to educate their children, in the knowledge that secondary education will be free. Examples from Bridge International schools in the slums of Nairobi prove this point. It is time that focus should be on U.S.E. and less on U.P.E. Targeted subsidies for the extreme poor can be implemented for primary schools.
Sangeeta Dey - 7 years ago
I ticked the first option as I think that the ultimate purpose of education should be to create good citizens who contribute to societal and human development. A good citizen encompasses all the other options. Particularly, a good citizen is one who has the requisite knowledge and skills and should be able to use these to solve problems in his/her daily life as well as for others. A good citizen and Samaritan will also reach out and develop networks that will help to foster humaneness in today's fast changing, mechanical and sometimes violent world. He/she will be concerned about preserving the humanity, preserving nature and sustaining a healthy environment. A good citizen is a concerned individual who care about doing for others and does not expect personal benefits for good deeds done. We desperately need more and more good citizens - education should play a critical role in forming good citizens from a very early age.
Innocent Mulindwa - 7 years ago
The primary purpose to me is compound embracing not only the knowledge and skills that I found most primary. but the knowledge and skills should empower people make informed decisions as well as make them participate in economic activities through jobs, and also make them good citizens.
Abebe Zerihun - 7 years ago
I do also agree with those who have voted that the ultimate purpose of Education to be forming good citizens, empowering people to solve problems as well as helping people find a good job in the future.
Wolf - 7 years ago
I was tom between the good citizen and problem solver, but the latter somehow fosters the former. What I think is one of the primary goals of education is to provide a perspective beyond individual gain. Yes, material security and a degree of financial affluence are important factors for human dignity, and people should learn the skills to have a decent life. But the real global issue - that in turn will reflect back on every inhabitant on Earth, is cooperation. This means building societies that are inclusive, open and have a place for the weak, disadvantaged and needy. However, cooperation also means understanding that a functioning society requires rules, and the individual and collective discipline to follow them.
The singular pursuit of individual gain, and the collective abandon of rules and discipline lead first to anarchy (as seen in many countries of the Middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, and then can turn into neo-feudal societies where a small elite rules over an ignorant and thus disempowered majority (North Korea being an extreme case, but other examples include Russia, the "new" South Africa, and now perhaps even the US.
Elena - 7 years ago
The primary purpose of education should be to "Empower people to realize their full potential".
Aminata N. - 7 years ago
I think the purpose of primary education is to open the minds of young people --- show them what is out there in the world (beyond their own vicinity), and start already deconstructing the natural bias that has started in them already .
i.e. in rural areas: rather than referring to agri/agrarian examples, it is important to show the realm of opportunities --- adopt a pbm solving attitude, emphasize engineering,
in girls schools, promote science
education is about deconstructing preconceived ideas about the world...Promote curiosity, avoid group-thinking, reward initiative. would love to be more involved in this.
Barbara Weber - 7 years ago
ideally, all of the above (#1-5 and minus #6).
McDonald Benjamin - 7 years ago
the questionnaire is too simplistic insofar as there is no one answer. Education should help people draw the best out of themselves to become the best they can be, but this has to happen in various dimensions, including (a) socially (i.e. imbuing core values that contribute to peaceful coexistence, but with all people and not just those of one group or country - and therefore not citizenship, which is subject to manipulation for control and militaristic purposes); (b) intellectually (not learning by rote but rather creativity and problem-solving); and (c) spiritually (e.g. check out the academic and social performance of Indian students who attend Dharshan academies where they learn meditation in addition to the regular curriculum).
CChelle - 7 years ago
The Education period should be the happiest time for our children and citizens of the future. So, empowering them with the knowledge to acquire more knowledge and to love it while enjoying the process is the ultimate goal.
Miriam Beatriz - 7 years ago
I think that the primary purpose of education for development should be Empowering people to solve problems and provide to students with 21st-century skills, like critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, and digital literacy. Governments should train teachers and convey in a program where these skills are added in the annual program and form rounded students where not only instruction is imparted but also all other subjects that complement in the emotional growth of the individual i.e. Music, sports, and other.
Ana Chikovani - 7 years ago
Education must be assisting to understand what are the skills that a person is happy to develop. Education must be the biggest contribution for a person to independently decide what she or he wants to do in their lives and their interests.
akazem@worldbank.org - 7 years ago
Driven by the theory for multiple intelligences, the primary purpose of education is to help individuals fulfill their own potentials.
Amira Kazem - 7 years ago
Driven by the theory for multiple intelligences, the primary purpose of education is to help individuals fulfill their own potentials.
Raul Barrios - 7 years ago
I do not quite agree with one specific selection above. I actually believe in several of the selections. But, above all, I believe that Education should teach people to learn by themselves and to be creative, and teach them the fundamental tools for it, including Socio emotional skills.
best,
Raul
Bojana - 7 years ago
Actually, I would like to add to the purpose I chose “Helping people find a good job in the future" and equip them to continuously growing both as professionals and as persons
Luis Omar Herrera Prada - 7 years ago
The only way to connect skills, problems and knowlegde in a common equilibrium is through education; as a tool to solve problems taking advantage of everyone's skills and knowledge. Education is the path to share your abilities to community.
Emma - 7 years ago
It's very surprising to see socioemotional skills ranked so low. If you don't build a child's socioemotional skills, you won't be able to impart knowledge and skills effectively.
Alberto - 7 years ago
Why is not "All of the above" also an option? Being an economist, and having 3 children in school I am scared when I read education paper written by economists in which all is measured in terms of tests scores and monetary returns to education. When the big democracies (and economies) of today developed, were these the considerations they had in mind in developing their education systems? Did the fact that they were not prevent them to evolve into healthy functioning economies and societies?
That is why I welcome this question and hope it is a sign returns to education will not be the only (and hopefully not even the more important) metric you will be judging education policies by. I hope there will be a lot of history an political science in the report. Again, it is an economist saying that.
This is especially important in the private vs public school debate. I hope the US model is not what the World Bank is going to advise countries to adopt. There's a value in functioning public, free education systems. That is where democracy starts and a functioning society is built.
VERONICA - 7 years ago
thanks
Helen - 7 years ago
Equally important to imparting knowledge and skills is imparting civic education and applying the tools of positive psychology in the classroom to create happy, resilient and well balanced citizens
yara - 7 years ago
Education is the most important element to know how to live, take care of your health, take care of your environment, find a job, and be a global citizen.
Noel - 7 years ago
Hi,
Just to mention that in my opinion response items may not be exclusive. I understood "imparting knowledge and skills" as a broad purpose including socioemotional skills and other skills like problem solving.
Solve problems is the basic skill which empowers people to continue developing, learning, achieving a better life. this is especially important for persons who have not yet reached their equal rights in society, e.g. for persons with disabilities: boys and girls, women and men
We have always underestimated the power of education to solve the grand challenges that face society. We have also under invested in education. We can use brain power to address the challenges we face today. This is only possible if education equips learners with critical skills and problem solving skills. In addition we need to focus on the Why? Why learning learning? Why education?
I think the primary purpose of education is actually a combination of many of the examples cited above. If we think about, we send our children in many cases to school not only for them to learn valuable knowledge and skills that will in turn empower them to solve problems and to get a job and survive independently in the world, but hopefully also to think critically but learn socio emotional skills as well. Learn how to share! How to get along with others! How to work as a team and in a group setting and as individuals and to recognize others needs and feelings besides their own, in other words to develop compassion, tolerance and empathy in order to build a better world and a better future for themselves and others, but maybe that is just me and realistically this is a comment from clearly from a more privileged background where we have the luxury of time and space to consider all of this. For others, like pastoralists, semi nomadic peoples, indigenous peoples, and others living in conflict and fragile situations the discussion of the primary purpose of education may be different and clearly to impart skills that are relevant for some to their culture and livelihoods and in the case of fragile states and conflict affected situations the non-cognitive benefits of school are equally important in my opinion, since they may help keep children safe and a more emotionally stable and balanced frame of mind psychologically, taking that away can be devastating and the consequences are extreme.
Hi,
I would like to see a strong focus in the education system to solve today's development challenges, in particular climate change and environmental destruction. This requires problem solving skills and the underlying knowledge and understanding of our biological system. We need to educate tomorrow's problems solvers as custodians of our world rather than as economic drivers.
I look forward to seeing a strong integration of climate change literacy in the upcoming WDR.
Kindest,
Max
I think imparting socio-emotional skills is very important in education. Actions is what we see in our economic, social and political activity. However, behind those actions, there are emotions. Emotions is what lead us to act in one direction or another. Thus, learning how to work with our emotions is important for the decisions we take and the actions we make. The main purpose of this socio-emotional learning should be to learn how to love oneself. This will lead people to think of themselves as deserving and to find purpose in life. In turn, this will inspire action towards learning (with purpose) and achievement.
Priority should be given to Universal Secondary education and vocational training instead of Universal Primary Education. Primary education is much lower cost and therefore can be affordable for the poor, while Secondary education/Vocational training is unaffordable. There is an added incentive to the poor to pay a small amount to educate their children, in the knowledge that secondary education will be free. Examples from Bridge International schools in the slums of Nairobi prove this point. It is time that focus should be on U.S.E. and less on U.P.E. Targeted subsidies for the extreme poor can be implemented for primary schools.
I ticked the first option as I think that the ultimate purpose of education should be to create good citizens who contribute to societal and human development. A good citizen encompasses all the other options. Particularly, a good citizen is one who has the requisite knowledge and skills and should be able to use these to solve problems in his/her daily life as well as for others. A good citizen and Samaritan will also reach out and develop networks that will help to foster humaneness in today's fast changing, mechanical and sometimes violent world. He/she will be concerned about preserving the humanity, preserving nature and sustaining a healthy environment. A good citizen is a concerned individual who care about doing for others and does not expect personal benefits for good deeds done. We desperately need more and more good citizens - education should play a critical role in forming good citizens from a very early age.
The primary purpose to me is compound embracing not only the knowledge and skills that I found most primary. but the knowledge and skills should empower people make informed decisions as well as make them participate in economic activities through jobs, and also make them good citizens.
I do also agree with those who have voted that the ultimate purpose of Education to be forming good citizens, empowering people to solve problems as well as helping people find a good job in the future.
I was tom between the good citizen and problem solver, but the latter somehow fosters the former. What I think is one of the primary goals of education is to provide a perspective beyond individual gain. Yes, material security and a degree of financial affluence are important factors for human dignity, and people should learn the skills to have a decent life. But the real global issue - that in turn will reflect back on every inhabitant on Earth, is cooperation. This means building societies that are inclusive, open and have a place for the weak, disadvantaged and needy. However, cooperation also means understanding that a functioning society requires rules, and the individual and collective discipline to follow them.
The singular pursuit of individual gain, and the collective abandon of rules and discipline lead first to anarchy (as seen in many countries of the Middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, and then can turn into neo-feudal societies where a small elite rules over an ignorant and thus disempowered majority (North Korea being an extreme case, but other examples include Russia, the "new" South Africa, and now perhaps even the US.
The primary purpose of education should be to "Empower people to realize their full potential".
I think the purpose of primary education is to open the minds of young people --- show them what is out there in the world (beyond their own vicinity), and start already deconstructing the natural bias that has started in them already .
i.e. in rural areas: rather than referring to agri/agrarian examples, it is important to show the realm of opportunities --- adopt a pbm solving attitude, emphasize engineering,
in girls schools, promote science
education is about deconstructing preconceived ideas about the world...Promote curiosity, avoid group-thinking, reward initiative. would love to be more involved in this.
ideally, all of the above (#1-5 and minus #6).
the questionnaire is too simplistic insofar as there is no one answer. Education should help people draw the best out of themselves to become the best they can be, but this has to happen in various dimensions, including (a) socially (i.e. imbuing core values that contribute to peaceful coexistence, but with all people and not just those of one group or country - and therefore not citizenship, which is subject to manipulation for control and militaristic purposes); (b) intellectually (not learning by rote but rather creativity and problem-solving); and (c) spiritually (e.g. check out the academic and social performance of Indian students who attend Dharshan academies where they learn meditation in addition to the regular curriculum).
The Education period should be the happiest time for our children and citizens of the future. So, empowering them with the knowledge to acquire more knowledge and to love it while enjoying the process is the ultimate goal.
I think that the primary purpose of education for development should be Empowering people to solve problems and provide to students with 21st-century skills, like critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, and digital literacy. Governments should train teachers and convey in a program where these skills are added in the annual program and form rounded students where not only instruction is imparted but also all other subjects that complement in the emotional growth of the individual i.e. Music, sports, and other.
Education must be assisting to understand what are the skills that a person is happy to develop. Education must be the biggest contribution for a person to independently decide what she or he wants to do in their lives and their interests.
Driven by the theory for multiple intelligences, the primary purpose of education is to help individuals fulfill their own potentials.
Driven by the theory for multiple intelligences, the primary purpose of education is to help individuals fulfill their own potentials.
I do not quite agree with one specific selection above. I actually believe in several of the selections. But, above all, I believe that Education should teach people to learn by themselves and to be creative, and teach them the fundamental tools for it, including Socio emotional skills.
best,
Raul
Actually, I would like to add to the purpose I chose “Helping people find a good job in the future" and equip them to continuously growing both as professionals and as persons
The only way to connect skills, problems and knowlegde in a common equilibrium is through education; as a tool to solve problems taking advantage of everyone's skills and knowledge. Education is the path to share your abilities to community.
It's very surprising to see socioemotional skills ranked so low. If you don't build a child's socioemotional skills, you won't be able to impart knowledge and skills effectively.
Why is not "All of the above" also an option? Being an economist, and having 3 children in school I am scared when I read education paper written by economists in which all is measured in terms of tests scores and monetary returns to education. When the big democracies (and economies) of today developed, were these the considerations they had in mind in developing their education systems? Did the fact that they were not prevent them to evolve into healthy functioning economies and societies?
That is why I welcome this question and hope it is a sign returns to education will not be the only (and hopefully not even the more important) metric you will be judging education policies by. I hope there will be a lot of history an political science in the report. Again, it is an economist saying that.
This is especially important in the private vs public school debate. I hope the US model is not what the World Bank is going to advise countries to adopt. There's a value in functioning public, free education systems. That is where democracy starts and a functioning society is built.
thanks
Equally important to imparting knowledge and skills is imparting civic education and applying the tools of positive psychology in the classroom to create happy, resilient and well balanced citizens
Education is the most important element to know how to live, take care of your health, take care of your environment, find a job, and be a global citizen.
Hi,
Just to mention that in my opinion response items may not be exclusive. I understood "imparting knowledge and skills" as a broad purpose including socioemotional skills and other skills like problem solving.
Best,
Noel