With the famous simile of the cave, we actually have an inspiring vision for the educator. Plato posits a cave where since childhood men have had their heads fastened so they can only look at a wall onto which shadows are cast by the light from a fire behind them. The men believe that the flickering shadows are reality. If they are then taken out of the cave, their eyes will at first be blinded and they will probably cling on to the belief that the shadows were more real than what they now see. The role of the educator, then, is to help people to turn around and recognise reality. What's more, it is "not to implant sight but to ensure that someone who has it is not turned in the wrong direction". Education should not try to fill empty vessels, rather it should help learners to arrive at knowledge of truth by themselves.
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