Product vs. Process

"If an educational program is to be planned and if efforts for continued improvement are to be made, it is necessary to have some conception of the goals being sought. These educational objectives become the criteria by which materials are selected, content is outlined, instructional procedures are developed and tests and examinations are prepared. All aspects of the educational program are really means to accomplish these basic educational purposes" (Tyler).

Using Tyler's rational, it is product that precedes process in educational programming. Without a clear indication or concept as to the purpose of a lesson, how do we plan, implement and make change? On the other hand, how can we possibly foresee the future and its' needs? Is it not more important to focus on the steps taken to achieve an objective and how these same steps can be carried over to various situations - no matter what the intended outcome?

All this being said, even with the best laid plans, outside forces/influences greatly impact our goals and alter our purposes. For example, with time constraints in the system the way they are, are we educating to meet deadlines or to insure student understanding? We sometimes tend to worry more about what content should be covered in the time available than we do about what students acquire. We are somewhat bound by the curriculum and the pressures it places on us. Ironically, it is interesting how some post-secondary institutions require students to have a specified number of 'hours' in before being accepted into their programs - not knowledge, but hours!

My field, career development, has changed greatly over the years. At one time, we received only career guidance and career education (support in choosing an occupation and finding information as well as the types of occupations available). Today, students experience career development - an accumulating process from kindergarten to graduation - culminating in the development and fine tuning of soft, transferable skills. This development continues through life - outside the education system. Is this to say that process is more important than product? Am I still focusing on creating a product that can adapt to any given 'outside' situation?

"The ultimate goal is to teach learners to self evaluate their own reasoning. If they cannot do that - to know that their own reasoning is good or bad about something, we will have failed them." - anonymous