Are you trained or educated?
Each semester we bring to campus Masters and Doctoral applicants who are trying to get into the University of Wyoming’s graduate programs in Educational Leadership. During our assessment/interview day my colleague Dr. Heather Duncan noted how often the word “training” came up during the conversations.
This prompted a discussion about whether adults should be “trained” or “educated.” The more cynical folks think that the prevalence of the word “training” actually shows a devaluing of our work. You see….animals are “trained” but humans should be “educated.”
Could the prevalence of scripted programs and the emergence of the term “fidelity” actually be causing a devaluing of our work? Instead of practicing education (as discussed in this post) are we now simply “training” educators?
Or…is this just a simple blurring of terms and semantics?
Are you “trained” or “educated?”
I like the word trained. To me it means that you are educated and you can apply your skill. Maybe it is from my military background, but training has worked for the Army for over 200 years. Educated means you have the knowledge to do the task but not necessarily the skills to actually apply it. While trained, implies you have the knowledge and the skills to implement that knowledge to get the desired outcome. Maybe it is just a play on words or a blurring of the meanings.
Barry,
That is an interesting analogy. I hadn’t actually thought of it in that context. To many people being “trained” is viewed as somehow a rote or robotic activity.
I remember Madeline Hunter many years ago saying there are many things our students should learn to “automaticity” so that in a crunch our minds are not consumed with the details of accomplishing the task.
That speaks to me of training at a level that frees our minds for critical thinking. We all know about a student so bogged down in multiplication facts that they can’t deal with the bigger problem at hand.
Same might be said for some critical teaching behaviors.
I agree with Barry on this one, and probably for the same reasons… military service. After 20 years in the Air Force, I feel the Air Force does a far superior job preparing than I have found in higher education.
The AF follows sound education principles such as scaffolding learning along with constructivism. It is certainly not the robotic result that is typically anticipated. Training not only prepares you for the here and now, but also helps you adjust to unpredicted changes.
I had no answer to this question and I thought that looking in the dictionary might help. I will share what I found. The dictionary definition of train reads “to develop or form the habits, thoughts, or behavior of (a child or other person) by discipline and instruction” and “to make proficient by instruction and practice, as in some art, profession, or work”. The definition of educate reads “to develop the faculties and powers of (a person) by teaching, instruction, or schooling” and “to qualify by instruction or training for a particular calling, practice, etc.” Looking at these two definitions I conclude that teachers are both trained and educated. Maybe?
Based on the definitions provided above by my colleagues, I am a combination of being trained and educated. Education comes from the theoretical, and training from the practical – OJT – on-the-job-training.
I *can* say that my liberal arts education, and not my teacher certification education, has enabled me to be a better teacher. My liberal arts education has been far more useful, even 20 years later. Perhaps it was because I developed the habits of mind that *I wanted to develop, and not what was prescribed, as in a teacher certification program. The same is true of my M.Ed. program. It was as self-designed program, and so I got a lot out of it, and my teaching has benefitted.
Marcy,
Very interesting perspective about how your liberal arts education prepared you well. There is a movement now to provide alternative certification to folks with many backgrounds not just the traditional teacher preparation.
I train the children I tutor in how to multiply two digit numbers (if they haven’t been trained already): it is a repeatable task, with standard rules, which, when followed, give the desired outcome.
I educate the children I tutor by teaching them how to apply the skills they have to answer the sorts of questions they’re likely to see.
You can be trained to change the oil in a car. You can be educated in the workings of its engine.
Both are important. Extremely well educated people may be able to come with the trained sequence, but may very well be slow, or make “simple” mistakes they wouldn’t otherwise. Extremely well trained people may be able to fit a new type of problem into an old mold, but may very well be doing something besides the type of thinking actually needed to solve the problem.
I am trained in the use of some software; it is my education and experience that means that the results have some value.
In one of our doctoral classes one of our students did a presentation on decision-making models in the military. She was a commander in the National Guard unit. I have to admit I was impressed. The combination of training to automaticity and educating for higher level thinking was a key part of the pedagogy of the military.
I agree with many of the comments here that we are both trained and educated. I think first we become trained with the skill and once it becomes automatic it becomes a part of our education. Then again, it may just be semantics.
I agree with Barry — I think there’s a huge difference. Would you rather your kids took a class in school that offered sex education … or sex training? (I’m also an Air Force retiree.)
when we cannot think what we are doing, when we have incapacity of thinking beyond what we see then at that time we are trained. For eg: when we got our secondary education, we were trained. We were trained how we should react when something comes up. Trained people have incapabilities to think. They will do what they have been told to and have been seeing in the past.
In the case of education, you have an ability to use ur brain freely. U have an ability to think. Hence, Most of the person are trained not educated.
So, it’s better to ask question with ourself if we have been using our brain without any boundaries. Are we allowed to think like that or have we been thinking like that and expressed our views. If we are then most probably we are educated. Otherwise, it is an other way round.
I would go for training – as we get professional training – we are being introduced new concepts all the time – the teacher is already highly educated to get the job – a little training keeps them on the ball!
After reading the comments and without being repetitive, I have to agree that we are both trained and educated. The terms go hand in hand. Perhaps we can come up with a single word that sums up the two words. “Trainucated” lol!
I think that while the two terms overlap to some extent, they cannot be used interchangeably: by education we refer to the whole process of gaining knowledge about life (usually the kind of general learning we get at school though not limited to it). By training we refer to the gaining of those skills that prepare us for a specific job or mission.While our education makes us aware of the rules that govern the use of grammar, literary genres, etc.. they do not necessarily mean we can be successful teachers. It is training by professionals that fills and bridges the gap between knowing a subject and being able to teach it. So, I opt for training as well.