TASK 2 (DISCUSS BOTH VIEWS): THE PURPOSE OF EDUCATION
Some people think that the main purpose of education is to make individuals useful to society. Others say education helps people to achieve personal ambitions.
Discuss both views and give your opinions.
Sample Answer
Opinions remain divided as to whether the ultimate goal of education is to produce productive members of society or to promote personal achievements. This essay will analyse both viewpoints and explain why I believe that a primary emphasis on individual development is conducive to the cultivation of stable and sustainable societies.
Proponents of education serving a social end argue that important societal values and beliefs can only be best instilled during educational stages. During this formative period, students tend to be unencumbered by external factors, such as life responsibilities and professional duties, making them less distracted and more focused on their curriculum. If high school students, for example, are even briefly taught about societal issues, such as systemic racism, environmentalism, and personal finances, they will be infinitely more likely to have meaningful contributions in their later years across various industries. In this way, an education with a primary goal of societal contributions can foster productive and law abiding citizens, who later contribute actively economically, socially, and culturally. This stands in stark contrast with activists who often protest just to prop up their self-esteem.
However, this approach can risk indoctrinating young children and engender resentment. If students feel like they are systemically restrained and subtly indoctrinated, they will likely rebel, often instinctively. On an individual level, making a social end the sole purpose of education can restrict a person’s upward social mobility, leading to personal dissatisfaction. On a societal level, such restrictions can engender an authoritarian regime, exacerbating oppression and undermining individual rights.
Others, myself included, advocate personal growth being the major focus of the educational system. Helping individuals to realise their potentials is arguably the optimal strategy for the betterment of society. Economically, an education that equips students with employability skills, critical thinking, leadership, and risk management is likely to result in productive members of the workforce, in the form of competent workers and also high-functioning, intellectually adept leaders. Socially, people who are guided to realise their own paths, devoid of educational indoctrination, tend to later become great contributors to society, such as philanthropists, environmentalists, or animal rights activists. From a cultural standpoint, students who are allowed to chase their ambitions and realise their dreams tend to later devote themselves culturally, as can be seen in cultural preservation efforts from successful entrepreneurs.
In conclusion, while there are valid arguments supporting tailoring education to serve social purposes, students are better served being given a freedom to thrive and develop. Individual development and personal accomplishments are then translated to the development of society in the economic, social, and cultural spheres.
Marking by Chat GPT Plus
TỪ VỰNG HAY
Some people think that the main purpose of education is to make individuals useful to society. Others say education helps people to achieve personal ambitions.
Discuss both views and give your opinions.
Opinions remain divided as to whether the ultimate goal of education is to produce productive members of society or to promote personal achievements. This essay will analyse both viewpoints and explain why I believe that a primary emphasis on individual development is conducive to the cultivation of stable and sustainable societies.
Proponents of education serving a social end argue that important societal values and beliefs can only be best instilled during educational stages. During this formative period, students tend to be unencumbered by external factors, such as life responsibilities and professional duties, making them less distracted and more focused on their curriculum. If high school students, for example, are even briefly taught about societal issues, such as systemic racism, environmentalism, and personal finances, they will be infinitely more likely to have meaningful contributions in their later years across various industries. In this way, an education with a primary goal of societal contributions can foster productive and law-abiding citizens, who later contribute actively economically, socially, and culturally. This stands in stark contrast with activists who often protest just to prop up their self-esteem.
However, this approach can risk indoctrinating young children and engender resentment. If students feel like they are systemically restrained and subtly indoctrinated, they will likely rebel, often instinctively. On an individual level, making a social end the sole purpose of education can restrict a person’s upward social mobility, leading to personal dissatisfaction. On a societal level, such restrictions can engender an authoritarian regime, exacerbating oppression and undermining individual rights.
Others, myself included, advocate personal growth being the major focus of the educational system. Helping individuals to realise their potentials is arguably the optimal strategy for the betterment of society. Economically, an education that equips students with employability skills, critical thinking, leadership, and risk management is likely to result in productive members of the workforce, in the form of competent workers and also high-functioning, intellectually adept leaders. Socially, people who are guided to realise their own paths, devoid of educational indoctrination, tend to later become great contributors to society, such as philanthropists, environmentalists, or animal rights activists. From a cultural standpoint, students who are allowed to chase their ambitions and realise their dreams tend to later devote themselves culturally, as can be seen in cultural preservation efforts from successful entrepreneurs.
In conclusion, while there are valid arguments supporting tailoring education to serve social purposes, students are better served being given a freedom to thrive and develop. Individual development and personal accomplishments are then translated to the development of society in the economic, social, and cultural spheres.
Vocabulary
- Opinions remain divided – Các ý kiến vẫn còn chia rẽ
- Ultimate goal of education – Mục tiêu tối thượng của giáo dục
- Produce productive members of society – Tạo ra những thành viên có ích cho xã hội
- Promote personal achievements – Thúc đẩy thành tựu cá nhân
- Primary emphasis on individual development – Tập trung chủ yếu vào phát triển cá nhân
- Conducive to the cultivation – Góp phần nuôi dưỡng
- Stable and sustainable societies – Xã hội ổn định và bền vững
- Serving a social end – Phục vụ mục đích xã hội
- Societal values and beliefs – Giá trị và niềm tin xã hội
- Formative period – Giai đoạn hình thành
- Societal issues – Các vấn đề xã hội
- Meaningful contributions – Đóng góp có ý nghĩa
- Foster productive and law-abiding citizens – Nuôi dưỡng công dân năng suất và tuân thủ pháp luật
- Indoctrinating young children – Nhồi nhét tư tưởng vào trẻ em
- Upward social mobility – Khả năng thăng tiến xã hội
- Authoritarian regime – Chế độ độc tài
- Exacerbating oppression – Làm trầm trọng thêm sự đàn áp
- Equip students with employability skills – Trang bị kỹ năng nghề nghiệp cho học sinh
- Realise their own paths – Nhận ra con đường riêng của mình
- Chase their ambitions – Theo đuổi hoài bão của họ
✔ DÀN Ý
Mở bài
- Tranh luận: Giáo dục nên tạo ra công dân có ích cho xã hội hay thúc đẩy thành tựu cá nhân?
- Bài viết sẽ phân tích cả hai quan điểm.
- Quan điểm cá nhân: Nên ưu tiên phát triển cá nhân để xây dựng xã hội bền vững.
Thân bài 1: Lợi ích khi giáo dục phục vụ mục đích xã hội
- Giai đoạn đi học là thời điểm lý tưởng để truyền đạt giá trị xã hội.
- Học sinh ít bị xao nhãng bởi trách nhiệm cuộc sống.
🔹 VD: Nếu được học về các vấn đề xã hội (phân biệt chủng tộc, môi trường…), học sinh có thể đóng góp nhiều hơn sau này. - Kết quả: Tạo ra công dân tích cực, tuân thủ pháp luật, đóng góp toàn diện cho xã hội.
Thân bài 2: Rủi ro của cách tiếp cận này
- Có thể dẫn đến nhồi nhét tư tưởng → học sinh phản kháng.
- Hạn chế sự phát triển cá nhân và khả năng thăng tiến xã hội.
- Về lâu dài có thể dẫn đến chế độ áp bức, xâm phạm quyền tự do cá nhân.
Thân bài 3: Lợi ích khi tập trung phát triển cá nhân
- Giúp cá nhân phát huy tiềm năng, từ đó đóng góp cho xã hội.
🔹 Kinh tế: Trang bị kỹ năng nghề nghiệp → tạo ra lao động chất lượng cao và nhà lãnh đạo giỏi.
🔹 Xã hội: Người tự do phát triển thường trở thành nhà hoạt động xã hội, từ thiện…
🔹 Văn hoá: Người theo đuổi đam mê thường đóng góp cho bảo tồn giá trị văn hoá.
Kết bài
- Dù giáo dục vì mục đích xã hội có lý, nhưng phát triển cá nhân vẫn là hướng đi lâu dài.
- Khi mỗi cá nhân phát triển tốt, xã hội sẽ tiến bộ toàn diện về kinh tế – xã hội – văn hoá.
