Agree- Disagree Essay - Teachers have more influence

Once children start school, teachers have more influence than parents on their intellectual and social development.  

To what extent do you agree or disagree? 

Some people believe that parents have a lesser role to play in the intellectual and social growth of a child once the child begins school.  I disagree with this and feel that though teachers have a crucial part in guiding and moulding children, parents’ role is no less important.  

 There is no doubt that at school, children develop their intellectual abilities under the guidance of teachers.  Knowledge acquisition is done in an organised manner at school when children are introduced to a variety of subjects such as science, history and mathematics.   There are frequent test papers and examinations, and children are required to do presentations and participate in debates, which builds their knowledge and confidence in these subjects. Besides, children acquire social skills at school when they engage in group activities like playing football or extracurricular activities such as drama.    

However, the parents’ role in the development of a child is no less important since children tend to spend considerable time at home after school. Thus, parents continue to a play a key role in the intellectual development of their children when they read to them bedtime stories or when they buy them books as gifts.   This informal education continues as the parents take them on trips to the zoo or to the museum.   Similarly, parents teach the children the basic rules of good behaviour when they train them to say ‘Thanks’ or ‘sorry’ or ‘please’ in different situations or to behave respectfully towards older people.    

 To sum up, it is wrong to say that teachers play a more important role in a school-going child’s development as parents also have an equally important part.