Education is not the catalyst of the [learning] process - it is only the extension.

Education* only exists as it is because of learners.

(* In this article 'education' is used to mean the institutions that (aspire to) provide a learning environment in which knowledge of any kind is acquired in a controlled fashion.)

No learners, no schools, colleges and universities. Seems simple, right?

Well, for some reason most teachers (and students) seem to believe the opposite is true. They live by the "Schools exist, therefore I learn" creed.

Exploring -> Learning -> Education

The most natural and logical way of learning seems to be this; you experience something, explore this, and in your exploration learning takes place.

Education is not the catalyst of the process - it is only the extension.

Humans have this innate curiosity that enables them to learn in the first place. I think we can all agree that everyone learns certain things before a person starts attending school. (Their native language up to a certain point, recognising concepts such as colours and emotions, how to open and close doors etc. etc.) There is no reason whatsoever to assume that people would suddenly need an institution to continue learning after a certain period of time.

Education only exists because people try to monopolise learning.

What am I trying to say here? Well... I'm studying to be a teacher. So I must have some kind of faith in this whole education thing, after all, right?

I think I do. Education is not some big evil overlord, although it might seem to act like one most of the time. Universities are places of knowledge, teachers can be useful. The only thing that we have to remind ourselves of (and we need to do this over and over again) is that the teachers are there for the students. And not the other way around.

Education should serve the learners. Serve them in empowering them to explore, give access to materials to accommodate them in the process of exploration, and thus creating a true learning environment.

Teachers have a part to play in this, they can do immensely useful work in transferring the tools needed to make the learning process more efficient. They can be guides and role models in the learning process. As long as they respect the students and acknowledge that learning happens through exploring done by the learners themselves.

Education is a tool to facilitate learning.

And that is what education should do - facilitate, not cripple.