Human life has become complicated due to the use of modern skills in various activities. This has provoked the need to equip learners with sufficient knowledge and skills in order to enable them to serve their nations. Teachers seek ways of improving teaching practices to enable students to develop the necessary skills. This will equip them with the necessary survival skills and valuable knowledge to solve problems that may arise in their societies. However, there are various issues of concern that determine a student’s ability to grasp various educational aspects. According to scholars, learning is a multifaceted process that begins when an individual is born and continues until his/her death.
Charles Prosser and Charles Allen’s “Wearing the Mask” theory plays a crucial role in explaining what place learning takes in different settings. In addition, an educational theorist, John Dewey suggested in his “Logic of Inquiry” a theory that learning occurs as an attempt to solve difficulties that cannot be solved through natural means, like instincts or habits. Moreover, he noted that necessity is a vital element that influences learning. However, this essay will discuss Prosser and Allen’s theory and how it shapes learning in contemporary learning institutions.
Prosser and Allen argue that human beings are born with skills and abilities which are different from what they attain through learning and experience. They argue that people have hidden perspectives regarding various aspects of life, and they are able to hide them behind educational masks, such as knowledge gained through learning. This is an evident observation that is common in all learning institutions. When children grow up they learn various life issues, and how to apply them in difficult situations. At the same time, they never forget their real characters as a result of acquiring new knowledge, and it results into the presence of diverse students’ lifestyles.
A similar approach is offered by Dewey, he describes how students grasp various educational concepts. Dewey, as well as Allan and Prosser, explains that students make use of concepts depending on the prevailing circumstances. For instance, they argue that students will grasp academic contents in order to pass their examinations and proceed to higher learning institutions. However, having passed their exams and graduating with high grades students forget what they were taught. Therefore, students and teachers waste their time learning, since they cannot use what they acquire to advance their knowledge after completing their studies.
The “mask theory” explains that students will grasp academic concepts while at school under a condition that the content will help them in future. However, if such content is not applied in their future careers and lives, students will grasp them until when they deem it necessary to drop them. This usually occurs after completing their studies and attaining high grades to proceed to the next class. This means that students wear masks in order to grasp certain concepts to convince their teachers that they have the qualifications to proceed to the next level.
However, after successfully proceeding to the next level, students drop these masks and retain their real faces. These faces are represented by their interests in some subjects, especially those that must be studied to pursue a career. Basic courses are most abused by students since they take them on condition that they are vital units in many learning institutions. Most students do not find it useful to take elementary courses as they will never help them in the future. As a result, teachers waste a lot of time teaching basic courses that do not help students.
Dewey uses experimentation as an approach necessary to impart knowledge and promote learning. Prosser and Allen’s theory echoes these views and explains how most teachers and students experiment various educational aspects in the process of learning. Even though, education is not a trial or error activity, there is the need to use experimental learning to promote learning in schools. It is impossible to teach students new concepts and expect them to grasp every detail at once. However, the use of experimental learning is a mask that facilitates learning without subjecting students to mental stress and fatigue.
Today, learning has shifted from a traditional theory (class) approach and has included the use of games, objects and symbols. These items are masks that enable students to acquire knowledge from a different angle. Prosser and Allen identified the use of objects like balls, dolls, sketches and moulds as a hidden way of advancing learning. They noted that learning may be extremely frustrating if teachers use the whole class session explaining concepts without using any appealing approaches. Therefore, the use of these objects makes learning fascinating and encourages students to participate in learning activities. In addition, teachers are able to assess whether students grasped various theories during learning or not.
There are many occasions when students use masks to satisfy their teachers’ interests and proceed to higher learning institutions. However, these masks enable students to acquire knowledge on various aspects even though they waste teachers’ time.