Plato on Education

Paper Summary:

The paper describes Plato's ideas about a perfect educational system and shows how the educational system today actually incorporates some, but not all, of these ideas. The paper discusses how the education Plato proposes would not keep children up to date in this world we live in. The paper is of the opinion, however, that if we educated more by the ideals which Plato described, that is, teaching students to look beyond the obvious, to the truth and to critically analyze whatever they read, see and hear, we would be providing a better education.

From the Paper:

"Plato believed that women were equal to men and that, though some women are smaller, some women are larger than some men and therefore should be allowed to learn the same skills that men do. Plato's Republic describes how male and female "guardians" receive the same education and be given the same duties in society. These guardians are the ones who will be in charge of the city-state which Plato envisioned for everyone, an ideal society, where philosophers are kings. In other words, thoughtful presidents who know how to think in terms of what is the good for all mankind and make their decisions based on that. He believed that politicians could be educated, as well, to think like philosophers. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bloom, A. (Translator). (1991). The Republic of Plato. London: Basic Books. (2 Sub edition).
• Scolnicov, S. (1988). Plato's Metaphysics of Education London: Routledge.

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