Meaning of Educational Agency
Meaning of Educational Agency
Meaning of Educational Agency
Definition
According to Bhatia (1994), "Society has developed a number of specialized institutions to carry out the
functions of education. These institutions are known as Agencies of Education'. Among the agencies,some
may be the formal agencies of education whereas others informal agencies.
1. THE FAMILY
• The family is the oldest, basic and fundamental unit of human society. It is regarded as the primary agent
of education. The basic purpose of the family is to provide a loving safe environment for children.
-Home, therefore, plays a very important role in laying the foundation of the child's personality in terms of
physical, emotional, social, moral and cognitive aspects.
SCHOOL
School in the modern time is indispensible and has become an important formal agency of education. The
word 'School' has been derived from the Greek word 'Skhole' that means leisure. In Ancient times, India had
the Gurukula system of education where students were accepted as Shishayas and stayed with the guru in
ashrams/ gurukuls.
• The guru understand the psychology of the child and impart entire knowledge available including moral
education, language, religious books, Philosophy, Mathematics, metaphysics etc.
Cont.,
The School is an agency of education and also as a miniature of the society. Socialization and acculturation
are also important functions of the School. It works for socializing the young generation. Students not only
learn from the academic curriculum prepared by teachers and School administrators, they also learn social
rules and expectations from interactions with others.
Educational Functions of School
-Transmitting Traditional Culture
-Teaching Basic Skills and Vocational Education
-The School is expected to imbibe values in the children. In school curriculum, moral science is taught as a
subject. The stories of national heroes are also part of the curriculum.
• Life Skills Education: self-awareness, effective
communication, creative thinking, critical thinking,
problem solving ability, coping with stress, coping
with emotions etc
Cont.,
• Increased Functional Literacy: 3R (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic)
• Sex and Family Education: the school to provide sex and family education as part of curriculum
• Learning to live together: The School actually
allows children to mingle and interact
3.THE COMMUNITY
-The term community refers to a group of people living together in an area having common ways of working
and common ideals to achieve.
-Community is an informal and active agency of education which casts lasting influence on the educational
development of the individual.
1. Television can serve a powerful medium for imparting education through educational broadcasting.
2. The world wide web make interaction between the teacher and the taught sitting in remote places. Helps
in intellectual, social, emotional, and aesthetic development.
4. Helps children to enrich their imagination, ignitestheir creativity, encourage them to think
divergently.
COMMUNITY SCHOOL
-A community school is both a place and a set of partnerships between the school and other community
resources.
-Its integrated focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community development and
community engagement leads to improved student learning, stronger families and healthier communities
-Community schools offer a personalized curriculum that emphasizes real-world learning and community
problem-solving. Schools become centers of the community and are open to everyone - all day, every
day, evenings and weekends.
Cont.,
-Community schools bring together many partners to offer a range of supports and opportunities to children,
youth, families and communities.
-Partners work to achieve these results: Children are ready to enter school; students attend school
consistently; students are actively involved in learning and their
community; families are increasingly involved with their children's education; schools are engaged with
families and communities; students succeed academically; students are healthy - physically, socially, and
emotionally;
-students live and learn in a safe, supportive, and stable environment, and communities are desirable places
to live.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
A community college is an institution under India's higher education system that aims at providing job
oriented education to students from local communities.
• It is a system that provides education above secondary level and below degree level with different skill-
oriented as well as traditional courses. The duration of the courses typically range from six months to two
years.
Cont.,
The college offers admission to these courses at an affordable cost without compromising the quality of
education imparted. This gives opportunities to students/ learners to move directly to the employment sector
or higher education level.
-The concept of community college has basically originated from the USA where such institutions have
been in existence for about 100 years. And from there gradually, community colleges gained prominence
and were set up in different countries across the globe including India.