2.1 Establishing Educational Goals

Introduction video

For more information check out our other introductory videos here.

Current approach:

What objectives am I currently pursuing in my teaching?

Future approach

What objectives do I aim to pursue in my teaching in the future?

Introduction

‘Establishing educational goals’ is one of the three modules within the ‘Establishing fairness‘ perspective of Friendly and Fair Teaching (FFT).

Figure 27: Establishing fairness (overview)

This module is used to create a positive learning environment. In the FFT overview, you will see three abstract shapes at the bottom (dot, star, and triangle). These represent the learning objectives you define for each lesson.

Figure: Learning objectives (overview)

This module discusses four possible ways of shaping educational objectives through:

Friendly Classroom Management
Biesta
Ryan & Deci
Schafer

The module concludes with advice on how to combine these approaches.

1. Objectives of Friendly and Fair Teaching

Under ‘About Us‘, the objectives of the Friendly and Fair Teaching Foundation are described.

FFT assigns the following concrete meanings to the three abstract shapes (dot, star, triangle). You can use this structure as a framework for your lessons.

Image: Alternating teaching the entire class and working independently (overview)

Light blue dot: CHUNKING
You alternate between ‘Teacher-Centred Education‘ and ‘Student-Centred Education‘. This variation makes lessons engaging and challenging. You provide a structure in which you guide learning while also creating opportunities for students to direct themselves. You consciously alternate between whole-class teaching and working independently, gradually offering students more autonomy. Watch this video about the brain that shows why this alternation is important.

Dark blue star: KNOWLEDGE – INSPIRATION
During ‘Teacher-Centred Education‘, you transfer knowledge and inspire your pupils in an expressive way.

Figure: Genie out of the bottle (overview)

Yellow triangle: COACHING – OBSERVATION
During ‘Student-Centred Education’, you coach your pupils. You listen, offer helpful suggestions, and minimise distractions. You build trust and strengthen pupils’ autonomy, enabling them to develop as unique individuals.

Figure: Genie in the bottle (overview)

If you notice that a pupil has a particular talent, you can give individual recommendations to support their development. This might include helping peers, taking on responsibilities within the school, contributing to a school magazine, joining student councils, participating in performances, or giving presentations. Such invitations can significantly influence a pupils’s development and broaden and deepen learning objectives.

Figure: Detective in search of talent (overview)

2. Goal Domains (Gert Biesta)

How can you give every student the opportunity to develop in multiple areas? Gert Biesta identifies three domains of education. Friendly and Fair Teaching has slightly adapted the formulation of these domains.

2.1 Original formulation by Biesta (2013)

Qualification – This has to do with transmission and acquisition of knowledge, skills and attitudes that qualify children and young people to do “something,” both for a profession and for life in a complex modern society.
Socialization – This has to do with how education introduces and connects children to existing traditions and practices – both socio-cultural, political, religious and philosophical practice, as well as vocational and professional practices.
Subjectivation – This can include qualities such as independence, responsibility and also maturity.

2.2 Adapted formulation by FFT (2021)

Certain elements have been removed by FFT to make the domains more broadly applicable:

Qualification – This has to do with transfer and acquisition of knowledge, skills and attitudes that qualify one to do “something,” both for a profession and for life in a complex modern society.
Socialization – This has to do with introduction into and connection with existing traditions and practices – socio-cultural, political, religious and philosophical practice, as well as vocational and professional practices.
Subjectivation – This can include qualities such as independence, responsibility and also maturity.

3. Psychological basic needs (Ryan & Deci)

Ryan & Deci formulated the ‘Psychological basic needs’:

Autonomy
The drive to experience one’s actions as self-directed. Extrinsic rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation, whereas intrinsic reinforcement strengthens autonomy.
Competence
The desire to master outcomes and experiences. Unexpected positive feedback enhances intrinsic motivation and competence.
Relatedness (Connection)
The need to feel connected to others. Humans are social beings; in education, this particularly refers to the relationship between teacher and student.

4. Comparison: Biesta and Ryan & Deci

These theories complement each other and can be used as a practical framework:

Qualification → Competence
Socialisation → Relatedness
Subjectivation → Autonomy

What does this mean in practice?

Qualification/Competence ensures students gain essential knowledge and skills.
Socialisation/Relatedness supports collaboration and responsibility.
Subjectivation/Autonomy enables students to discover who they are.

Biesta compares translating these domains into practice to playing chess on three boards at once.

Focusing only on qualification leads to narrowly trained students.
Balancing all three domains prepares students for society and supports their development as unique individuals.

5. Maximes (Murray Schafer)

A maxim is a concise statement of general truth.

The first practical step in any educational reform is to take it.
In education, failures are more important than successes. There is nothing so dismal as a success story.
Teach on the verge of peril.
There are no more teachers. There is just a community of learners.
Do not design an educational philosophy for others. Design one for yourself. A few others may wish to share it with you.
For a five-year-old, art is life and life is art; for a six-year-old, life is life and art is art. This first school-year is a watershed in the child’s history: a trauma.
The old approach: teacher has information; student has empty head. Teacher’s objective: to push information into student’s empty head. Observation: at outset teacher is a fathead; at conclusion student is a fathead.
On the contrary a class should be an hour of a thousand discoveries. For this to happen, the teacher and the student should first discover one another.
Why is it that only people who never matriculate from their ouwn courses are teachers?
Always teach provisonally: only God knows for sure. Schafer (1975), Murray

6. Practical Guidance

Agree on a ‘Framework’ with your students: Friendly and Fair. Provide clear instructions for each activity using the Triangle. (See ‘Practice Period’)
By alternating between whole-class teaching (Teacher-Centred Education – informing) and independent work (Student-Centred Education – experiencing), you inspire your students and give them autonomy, enabling them to chart their own course. (See Objectives FFT above)
By paying attention to Subjectivation/Autonomy alongside Qualification/Competence (especially during independent work), you empower students and you will encounter disagreement. Take this into account and learn to handle it. By adapting to your students’ wishes, you help them with their personal development and gaining autonomy.
Achieving the right balance between the three domains is, in and outside of education, a lifelong quest. One-sided attention to Qualification and testing is at the expense of Socialization and Personal Development.” Biesta 2012
Murray Schafer’s first Maxime invites you to get started: The first practical step in any educational reform is to take it.
If you pursue educational goals in this way, you will notice that students develop in two ways:
– via formal learning (within school).
– via informal learning (outside of school).

7. Examples

Haim Ginott – quote at the top of this page

Haim Ginott illustrates the critical role of a teacher in providing a positive learning environment. Ginott’s reflective thinking underlines the importance of emotional intelligence, which is as important, if not more important, than a teacher’s IQ. The recipe for successful teaching can therefore be seen as EIQ + IQ + ???. We invite you, the teacher, lecturer or teacher in training, to formulate your own educational goals that contribute to successful teaching.” Mick O’Mahony

There is more to life than qualification and competence:

What surprises me most about Western man is that he sacrifices his health to earn a lot of money. Then he sacrifices the money again to restore his health. And then he is so worried about the future that he does not enjoy the present, with the result that he lives neither in the present nor in the future. He lives as if he will never die and dies while he never lived.” Dailai Lama

During independent work, you guide students’ behavior in two ways and hold them accountable:

You ask your pupils to adhere to the ‘Framework’ and the instructions of the Triangle. If necessary, you address a student regarding their behaviour or commitment.
You ask your pupils to handle the freedom you provide in a responsible manner.

You gain your pupils’ trust by adopting a friendly and clear attitude and by refraining from a dominant stance.

8. Summary

You determine your educational objectives yourself. Draw inspiration from FCM, Biesta, Ryan & Deci, and Schafer.

Education operates within shared rules (fairness).
Maintain high expectations.
Observe students and yourself.
Foster autonomy through positive relationships.
Continuously guide and adjust behaviour and commitment.

End goal: a motivated group of pupils who trust each other, collaborate effectively, and take pride in their work.

9. Credits

Gert Biesta

Gert Biesta names target domains that are central to education: Qualification, Socialization and Subjectivation. For teachers it is a challenge to offer these target domains in the right balance in the teaching practice.
Partly thanks to a remark by Gert Biesta, FFT now compares education with a coin with two sides that are inextricably linked: ‘Teacher-Centred Education’ + ‘Student-Centred Education’.

Michel Couzijn

Michel added the terms Knowledge and Observation to the FFT objectives.

Go to ‘Creating a Framework for Positive Behaviour’