Terminology

The word education is derived from the Latin educare meaning "to raise", "to bring up", "to train", "to rear", via "educatio/nis", bringing up, raising. In recent times the myth has arisen of its derivation from a different verb: educere, meaning "to lead out" or "to lead forth"; however the English word from this verb is "eduction": drawing out. This false etymology is used to bolster one of the theories behind the function of education—to develop innate abilities and expand horizons.
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Education was the natural response of early civilizations to the struggle of surviving and thriving as a culture. Adults trained the young of their society in the knowledge and skills they would need to master and eventually pass on. The evolution of culture, and human beings as a species depended on this practice of transmitting knowledge.
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The goal of education is the development of individuals' capacity to be happy, successful, and productive members of society. Current education issues include which teaching method(s) are most effective, how to determine what knowledge should be taught, which knowledge is most relevant, and how well the pupil will retain incoming knowledge. Educators such as George Counts and Paulo Freire identified education as an inherently political process with inherently political outcomes. The challenge of identifying whose ideas are transferred and what goals they serve has always stood in the face of formal and informal education.

- Education