...There is no freedom without discipline “True freedom is impossible without a mind made free by discipline.” ― Mortimer J. Adler “There is no freedom without discipline.” - Many people disagree with this statement and tend to identify it as something bad. They identify with it as a restriction or absence of freedom. But in reality, this quote refers to the meaning that discipline defined by rules in society allows individuals to have freedom within their lives. Humans are free to do what they desire. Those who have freedom are also responsible. However, if individuals do not understand discipline nor follow it or establish any self-discipline, they may decide not to act accordingly to any rules present and break them. They will develop an intense and selfish desire for power, do whatever they can to cheat others off just for their own selfish needs, casting them aside, ruining the freedom of others, and even risking their safety. This is why freedom does not exist without discipline. Discipline is essential to living a free, protected, and safe life. According to dictionary, discipline is “training to act in accordance with rules”. An example of the absence of discipline can occur in the setting of a sports game, a ballet class, or all types of scenarios. Without discipline, a sports game will have no rules. Any of the players may choose to take advantage of the absence of rules, and can decide to cheat in order to win and ruin the fun for others...
Words: 1675 - Pages: 7
...BETWEEN DISCIPLINE AND OBEDIENCE FROM THE MONTESSORI PERSPECTIVE. EXPLAIN HOW DISCIPLINE AND OBEDIENCE ARE LINKED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WILL. The present document will focus on the relationship between discipline and obedience according with Montessori’s philosophy. I will explain to how discipline and obedience play a vital role in the development of a child and how both these are linked or connected to the development of the will. First, current definitions of the terms discipline and obedience will be discussed and will be compared with Montessori’s interpretation of these concepts. The influence of favourable environment in the development of the will and in discipline will be explained. Following there will be explained how the maturational develop of discipline is linked to the development of the will. Then there will be a consideration in how these aspects of development are the foundation of the development of obedience. I will then describe the there levels of obedience linking the first two relevantly to the spiritual and social embryonic stages of the absorbent mind. Finally I will conclude my argument by summarising the main ideas of this essay. The term DISCIPLINE is often define in the dictionary by “training to act in accordance with rules; drill; punishment inflicted by way of correction and training; behaviour in accord with rules of conduct;” This term is still very associated with punishment in your society. We say a child needs “discipline” when they...
Words: 1021 - Pages: 5
... just as she had said, the dog just lay there on the carpet, watching the repairman go about his work. The parrot, however, drove him nuts the whole time with his incessant yelling and name calling. Finally, the repairman couldn’t contain himself any longer and yelled, “Shut up, you stupid, ugly bird!” To which the parrot replied, “Get him, Spike!” That’s what happens to people who do not follow instructions. Following instructions is simply discipline in action. Discipline is inevitable. We either discipline ourselves, or life brings other people to do it for us. Don’t you hate those awful pink fences that line up the major streets in our Metropolis? Fences to keep people from jaywalking, fences to keep vehicles in their proper places, fences to keep buses from wandering and the question is why are those ugly fences there in the first place? Because motorists and pedestrians do not want to follow instructions and so somebody has to do something to force us to follow. Fences enclose. Fences restrict freedom. But the irony behind those fences is that they were put there because of a lot of people’s insistence to do what they want rather than obeying orders and following instructions. Now there is...
Words: 818 - Pages: 4
...In this essay I intend to write about the relationship between discipline and obedience from the Montessori perspective and how both these virtues are related in the development of the will. The word discipline traditionally means the enforcement of rules and orders through force and punishment. “It is the practice of training people to obey rules and punishing them if they do not” (Wehmeier, 2005). It gives one the impression that discipline has to be enforced upon a person. Though it is a common saying ,”spare the rod and spoil the child “, does this really work? . Must children be caned and made to be silent and afraid of their teacher who moves at his/her pace expecting every child to work at the same level?. Is being afraid a sign of true discipline?. Montessori approached discipline from a different perspective. She saw each child as an individual and emphasized that we should ‘follow the child’. According to her, true discipline comes from within a child and cannot be imposed from the outside. It develops naturally and reveals itself after maturing in the right environment. This discipline is not limited to the nursery or the presence of the teacher, but extends out into the society and is present even if the teacher is not around. ”The discipline we are looking for is active. We do not believe that one is disciplined only when he is artificially made as silent as a mute and as motionless as a paralytic. Such one is not disciplined but annihilated. We claim that an individual...
Words: 1842 - Pages: 8
...the terms discipline and obedience both from a general and Montessori perspective and describe how they are fostered through the favourable environment. I will also describe in detail the three levels of obedience and how discipline, the development of the will and obedience are interlinked. Discipline is a word that conjures up ideas of control and denial of freedom. Something that can be imposed externally on a person in order to gain their obedience. But Dr Montessori believed discipline to be an internal process, something which grows within the individual. She states that “..Inner discipline is something to come and not something already present. Our task is to show the way to discipline” (Montessori, The Absorbent Mind, 1988, p 240). In the Montessori environment therefore, discipline is not something which is inflicted on the child, nor is the child controlled through rewards and punishments. It is something which is self-taught. The focus is on fostering the child's inner self-control so they are able to behave in a way that is right for them and their community. Montessori discovered that it was through liberty, which was such an integral part of her classrooms, that the children were the means to reveal their inner or self-discipline. Respect for authority was deepened not diminished by this independence. One of the things that interested her most was that order and discipline seemed to be so closely intertwined that they resulted in freedom. “Discipline is therefore...
Words: 1211 - Pages: 5
...While children have a legitimate right to freedom and autonomy, this is necessarily limited by the authority of the teacher to discipline and punish. Children have a legitimate right to freedom and autonomy. However, these are not rights that children intuitively understand and know how to exercise. Nor do they develop naturally as the child matures. Instead they must be taught and learned. Children must be guided and educated into an understanding and appreciation of what it means to be both free and autonomous individuals within a given society. In order for this to occur, both autonomy and freedom must prevail within the classroom. Only in such an environment can children safely practise what it means to be free and autonomous individuals and learn how to responsibly exercise these rights. It is, perhaps, somewhat of a paradox that at the heart of both freedom and autonomy lie control and restraint. Children need to first learn these virtues in order to become free and autonomous individuals who are able to responsibly function within society and take full advantage of the opportunities available to them. In order for this to happen restraints may well be necessary. Teachers must have a degree of authority over children in order to educate them to exercise their freedom and autonomy responsibly. If the teacher’s authority is questioned or not respected, then the child’s successful transition into a responsible, autonomous adult may be compromised. To maintain a sense...
Words: 610 - Pages: 3
...Discipline is the process of training oneself in obedience, self control, skill, etc. The controlled, ordered behavior results from such training. Discipline is the basis of the whole universe. The solar system is governed by certain laws to maintain perfect harmony and beauty. Without this order, there would be utter chaos. Discipline is a basic requirement of a civilized society. Citizens of a disciplined nation work with a spirit of cooperation and unity. Aristotle has rightly said, "Discipline is obedience to rules formed by the society for the good of all. Discipline should be inculcated from a very young age. Talent and genius alone are not enough to achieve success. Discipline has an equally important role to play. Talents blossom in a disciplined person. Liberty is highly cherished and mush valued privilege in our society. But absolute liberty is not possible. Discipline involves a restraint on liberty, which is necessary for the interest of society. Discipline has been found necessary for both individual and social welfare. Discipline and restraint were deemed essential in prehistoric time also and as society has become more and more complex, the urgency and importance of discipline has been felt all the more. Discipline is not only desirable but indispensable. Wherever discipline and regulation of human conduct are absent, moral and material deterioration has set in. Absence of discipline means decay. To prevent decay, discipline has to be imposed in the common interest...
Words: 973 - Pages: 4
...Issues Related to Independence, Freedom, and Responsibility in Adolescents Adolescence is one of the most fascinating and perhaps most complex stages of life, its breathtaking pace of growth and change. Physically, children go from being small and compact one day to being all legs and arms the next. They mature sexually. They also develop the capacity to reason in more abstract ways, explore the concepts of right and wrong, develop hypotheses and think about the future. This is the time when people take on new responsibilities and experiment with independence. Because of the complexities and challenges faced by an individual during this stage, psychologists have termed it as a period of great “stress and storm”. When adolescents are supported and encouraged by caring adults, they thrive in unimaginable ways, becoming resourceful and contribution members of families and communities. We all know that children can’t wait to grow up, but why is this so? Psychologist Thomas Szasz explains that it is because they experience their lives as constrained by immaturity and perceive adulthood as a condition of greater freedom and opportunity. But what is there today in America, that very poor and very rich adolescents want to do but cannot do? Not much. They can do drugs, have sexual intercourse, make babies, and get money. For such adolescents, adulthood becomes an association of responsibility rather than liberty. That being said, sooner or later it happens, children grow up...
Words: 938 - Pages: 4
...SELF CONCEPT The self-concept is the accumulation of knowledge about the self, such as beliefs regarding personality traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, goals, and roles. Beginning in infancy, children acquire and organize information about themselves as a way to enable them to understand the relation between the self and their social world. This developmental process is a direct consequence of children's emerging cognitive skills and their social relationships with both family and peers. During early childhood, children's self-concepts are less differentiated and are centered on concrete characteristics, such as physical attributes, possessions, and skills. During middle childhood, the self-concept becomes more integrated and differentiated as the child engages in social comparison and more clearly perceives the self as consisting of internal, psychological characteristics. Throughout later childhood and adolescence, the self-concept becomes more abstract, complex, and hierarchically organized into cognitive mental representations or self-schemas, which direct the processing of self-relevant information. Understanding your self-concept It is the understanding and knowledge you have of your own existence. It is how you see yourself in relation to others and to your surroundings. To have a positive or healthy self-concept you must: Know yourself Love yourself Be True to yourself In order to meet the challenges of today's complicated...
Words: 1018 - Pages: 5
...Discipline and obdeince are words that is used in probably every society in all parts of the world. They have different meanings and there will be a far scale of what each of these means within all communities. The traditional meaning of discipline according to According to oxforddictionaries.com, the definition of discipline is “the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behaviour, using punishment to correct disobedience” (http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition /english/discipline, date accessed 5/4/16). The definition of obedience is given as “compliance with an order, request, or law or submission to another’s authority” (http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/obedience, date accessed 5/4/16).. Whereas when imagining a Montessori classroom people may think of children doing what they like when they like, this is a common idea amongst non Montessori teachers I have talked with. Maria Montessori said ‘A child who concentrates is immensely happy’ (Montessori, 1988 p249). Therefore when someone who is unfamiliar with how a Montessori nursery is structured they comment on how remarkable it is that a three or four year old child is concentrating on a talk for a longer period of time. Montessori observed children and through these observations found that the discipline and obideince to concentrate come from within the child, instead of something that is coming from the teacher. She discovered this is part of the Hormé the unconscious will power or life...
Words: 1232 - Pages: 5
... or do they create a safer and more positive learning environment. Since uniform policies are growing more popular in public middle schools and high schools, this has become a highly debated issue. Many people believe that uniforms can create a safer and more positive learning environment for students. According to Stephen Daniels (2001), who is the director of research for the North Carolina Family Policy Council, dress codes and uniforms reduce conflict associated with name brand and gang clothing, decreases the gap between the poorer and richer students, and encourage a sense of equality that helps with the overall order and discipline. Daniels gives statistics to show the effectiveness of school uniforms according to principals that have a uniform policy in their schools: 79 percent believe uniforms have positive effects on classroom discipline; 67 percent saw an improvement in student concentration; 62 percent noticed a positive effect on school safety; and 75 percent indicated a positive effect on peer pressure among students. The positive effects can decrease the current problem of bullying in our schools, which is a major issue in the US today. Uniforms take some of the judgments away from the labels some students acquire because of the...
Words: 1387 - Pages: 6
...There are various theories explaining the development of discipline and obedience in early childhood. Montessori perspective establishes a link between these two concepts and how their maturation is dependent on the maturation of the will of the child. This essay will attempt to explain the relationship between discipline and obedience in the developmental stages of a child. Attention will be paid to how the environment helps the child in his development through the stages according to Montessori. According to Oxford dictionary, ‘to discipline is to train to obey rules and code of conduct, using punishment to correct disobedience’. In the traditional sense of discipline much emphasis is placed on the use of external stimuli including rewards and punishment to ensure conformity with a certain required behavior. Discipline is thus exacted with a bait of reward or punishment. Usually discipline is achieved through among others threats, bribes, coercion and fear. In the perspective of Montessori however disciple is described to be active and comes from within the child as a result of his own internal motivation. A child’s discipline emerges as he works in a purposeful manner in a prepared environment (Montessori 2007a). According to Montessori (2007b, p51) ‘ the discipline we are looking for is active. We do not believe that one is disciplined only when he is artificially made as silent as a mute and as motionless as a paralytic. Such a one is not disciplined but annihilate’...
Words: 1889 - Pages: 8
...university is no exception. Urquhart and Pooley (2007: 78) believe that students making the transition from high school to university experience “social, academic and personal challenges.” The purpose of this essay is to argue why the freedom, demands and social climate of universities are difficult to prepare for. In high school students have little or no academic and social freedom. In addition students only balance their school work with extracurricular activities and they learn passively. Lastly the high school society does not allow the consumption of alcohol and students are in regular contact with the same people. Snyders, Vawda, Taljaard, Brophy and Plaatjes (2006: 186) state that “at a tertiary institution, you have the freedom to choose how you will live and balance.” Freedom is defined as” having the power or right to act, speak or think as one wants” (Soanes and Hawker,2006: 400). Freedom is not simulated in high school because students are constantly under the authority of their parents or guardians. For the first time in a student’s life they are able to live alone and make their own rules (Rugg, Gerrard, and Hooper, 2008: 74). As a result of going from a life where students are constantly being watched, to one where they have the freedom to do whatever they like (Snyders et al, 2005: 186) students spend the majority of the school night socialising at parties (Burns, 2006: vi; Balduf, 2009: 286). At college you have periods when you do not need to go to class. In total...
Words: 960 - Pages: 4
...Alcabasa, Aimeleen A. BSE MT 3-2 Finals Exam Answer each question and quote two proponents consistent with your idea and one proponent inconsistent with your belief. 1. Essential Questions I. Perennialism a. What can we know? They believe that one should teach the things that one deems to be of everlasting pertinence to all people everywhere. They believe that the most important topics develop a person. Since details of fact change constantly, these cannot be the most important. Therefore, one should teach principles, not facts. Since people are human, one should teach first about humans, not machines or techniques. Since people are people first, and workers second if at all, one should teach liberal topics first, not vocational topics. b. What is good life? Secular perennialists espouse the idea that education should focus on the historical development of a continually developing common western base of human knowledge and art, the timeless value of classic thought on central human issues by landmark thinkers, and revolutionary ideas critical to historical western paradigm shifts or changes in world view. A program of studies which is highly general, nonspecialized, and nonvocational is advocated. c. What is the nature of the learner? The word perennial in secular perennialism suggests something that lasts an indefinitely long time, recurs again and again, or is self-renewing. As promoted primarily by Robert Hutchins and Mortimer Adlr, a universal...
Words: 1722 - Pages: 7
...students, parents and teacher as to whether students should wear school uniform. Most students argue that school uniforms take away their rights, stifle their freedom of expression, and promote conformity. Parents favor a uniform policy because it could make school clothes easier and cheaper to buy and many administrators think uniforms will ensure kids behave better. Studies have been shown that demonstrating improved scholastic performance in conjunction with the wearing of school uniforms. Thesis: students should not wear school uniforms. It may seem a trivial matter to some, but then again, should any loss of our basic personal freedoms be considered trivial? * Uniforms stifle students freedom of expression * School uniforms takes away their individual rights * School uniform promote conformity * School uniforms are a financial burden to poor families * An unfair additional expenses to students who pay taxes Topic sentences: students should have to wear school uniforms: * School uniforms doesn’t stifle student freedom expression * School uniforms help students resist peer pressure to buying trendy clothes * It helps identify intruders in school and promote safety * School uniforms encourage discipline and make student smarter * School uniforms encourage discipline and make student smarter. Studies have been shown that demonstrating improved scholastic performance in conjunction with the wearing of school uniforms...
Words: 483 - Pages: 2
