儒學의 傳統에서 스승의 規範的 地位와 現代的 意味

Abstract

In this article, I explore the way that the Confucian tradition normatively defines the status of teacher and establishes the criterion of being a teacher. Furthermore, some significance of what teachers were expected to do in Cho Sun and its implication for today’s education are discussed. Bù zhào zhī chén (不召之臣: Teacher is the liege subject whom his ruler does not call to come to him), and Jūn shī fù yī tī (君師父一體: One’s ruler, teacher, and parents are one) show the typical perspective of Confucianism about teaching profession. In Confucian educational theory, one who only gives the learning by his/her memory cannot be entitled to be a teacher. A teacher must be one who leads his/her students to build the characters, and one who teaches his/her students the knowledge of their major fields. The former is rénshī (人師), the latter Jīng shī (經師). Confucianism provides us with normative criteria of being a teacher. The teacher should be the one who loves learning and learns without satiety, and the one who teaches without being tired. In other words, the teacher should be the role model of Jiào xué xiāng zhăng(敎學相長: teachers grow by teaching their students and students develop by learning from their teachers)On the other hand, Confucian image of the teacher was not fully realized in Cho Sun. It was because, first, their socioeconomic status of public school(Sung KyunKwan成均館, HwangGyo鄕校) teacher in Cho Sun was very low. They were poorly paid. Second, being a teacher was regarded relatively less important because of the social conditions in which major population seek bureaucratic advancement. Therefore, many Confucian scholars did not want to become teachers. The concepts of Bù zhào zhī chén (不召之臣) and Jūn shī fù yī tī (君師父一體) have important implications concerning today’s teacher training as well as education in general. The first concept, the spirit of Bù zhào zhī chén (不召之臣), provides us with a strong ground for the principle of educational autonomy, that is, political non-partisanship of education. And the second concept, the spirit of Jūn shī fù yī tī (君師父一體), tells us that a teacher is not just another person that we meet while we live—they are as important as our parents, and our rulers (of course, if we live in a traditional feudal society). Moreover, it tells us that teachers have the key role to play for students’ moral growth and self-actualization in their life, working together with the other two elements. In other words, the moral enterprise in general can succeed only by the joint efforts of the three elements: family (parents), society (ruler), and school (teacher). The socioeconomic status of teachers and their self-consciousness in Cho Sun suggests that for best education and effective teacher training the system of teacher education and the policy of school education should be supported by government. It cannot be overemphasized that government should lead and consistently carry out the policy of teacher education by administrative and financial supports unless it will repeat mistakes that we experienced in the history.