M.Ed. / A person constitutes his world and determines to a large extent his happiness by means of choices. The individual find himself in a society with a network of relationships wherein several values and views of life are representative. In this complex structure of views and relationships a person can easily feel unfettered in the midst of choices in respect of which he does not feel ready to take a view. It is against this background that a study was made as to the education of responsible choices as a means of coping. The goal of the study was to investigate the making of choices as a means of coping against the background of a fundamental-agogic perspective. It shall also be endeavoured to highlight the educational implications of the findings and to express same in functional terms. To determine what the underlying basis of a person's daily choices is, it is necessary to determine a person essential characteristics from a universally valid perspective. This essential characteristics are then brought in connection with the ground motives which regulate a person's daily existence. In futherance of the universally valid perspective the motives relating to personal aspects and to other people within the ideological context and how such motives are manifested within the specific context are investigated. In futherance of the fenomenologistic view on choices, it will be shown what the educational requirements are when the exercise of choices takes place. It will also be shown concisely how a lack of choice-awareness may be a contributing factor in socioeducational problem areas for instance misbehaviour and suicide amongst the youth. The most important findings from the above mentioned study are the following: It is the task of the educator to make the educant aware that he has, as a human being, a choice potential and to encourage him to make use of such potential. An awareness of choices as a life-skill should underlie the rational making of choices. A persons options are determined by his specific time-space situation and the parameters of his responsibility. Because of the uniqueness of every person's circumstances rigid directives of choices cannot be fundamentally or universally valid. There are however certain singular core matters which are generally present in the education of choices namely: The possibility of education toward choices exists because the exercise of choices is a conscious mental process. Through choices the educant obtains a share in his growth process and will his helplessness be gradually reduced. A person should exercise choices from within the safe basis of a value structure to experience order and security. When the educator makes the educant aware of his choice-potential, he should also unfold the sense of life to him, because choices one makes in relation to meaning of his existence also determines to a great extent the goals of the other choices which he will make. The educant should obtain the opportunity for making choices in a climate of responsible discipline. By utilizing choices as a life skill, a person can answer to his basic motives and anthropological needs. Because of choices a person can establish himself as somebody and can enter into relationships with the others of his existence being the divine, his fellowman and objects.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uj/uj:12220 |
| Date | 04 September 2014 |
| Creators | Van Heerden, Elna Louise |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | University of Johannesburg |
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