Opinion Editorial: Promoting Common Good Through Education

This opinion editorial explores the multifaceted challenges teachers encounter, including managing student needs, lack of parental support, and criticism, emphasizing the urgent need for addressing these issues within the educational sector. The author argues that teacher support and awareness are crucial for improving teacher retention and student success, ultimately enhancing the quality of education. The editorial highlights the concept of 'common good' as it relates to education, drawing upon Roman Catholicism and emphasizing the responsibility of both individuals and institutions in promoting community welfare. It discusses the significance of mentoring and support for teachers, the impact of Catholic social thought on social teaching, and the need for policies and strategies to support teachers and students. The author believes that with proper support, teachers can actively participate in the common good by educating more children, thereby improving literacy rates and fostering the development of well-rounded individuals who contribute to society.

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OPINION EDITORIAL
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Common problem that teachers face nowadays are handling and managing the student’s
needs, absence of parental support and also criticism from a lot of people. Therefore, I believe
that there is a need to address the problems and issues and bringing awareness in the educational
sector that can help to improve teacher’s retention and increase student’s success rate thereby
influencing the quality of education in schools. Teachers are often not supported and
acknowledged for their efforts in educating the students (Cunningham, 2015). Although, private
schools select their students based on assessments and application that evaluates the student’s
capacity that will fit the school criteria, public schools takes every students irrespective of their
social or economic background. Therefore, the teachers also face challenges in delivering
education to a wide range of diverse students with diverse needs, background and their learning
styles. The teachers must ensure to work with all the students that will promote common good of
both the teachers and the students.
According to the Roman Catholicism, common good is “the sum of total of social
conditions that allows people wither as a group or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more
fully and more easily”. Common good refers to what belongs to an individual by the virtue of
their common humanity. Common good can be stated as a combination of social conditions that
allow individuals to live their life and have the privilege to avail their common (Cooke, 2018).
Common good takes into account the factors and causes that benefit every individual as a whole.
Common good aims at meeting the needs of all people rather than targeting at a specific group or
a few number of people. It includes fulfilling the needs of all people in different dimensions of
humanity including physical, spiritual, intellectual, and affective and others. It brings a good for
all people that is being shared in common. Common good does not only refer to meet everyone’s
material needs but also meet relational and address other needs that are important and central to

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human existence (Cooke, 2018). Promoting common good is the responsibility of the both
individuals and the institutions in order to achieve a quality outcome. Common good directs
every individual to share his or her duty of promoting community’s welfare and benefit the
community.
In recent times, it is reported that, the teachers are not at all getting adequate support from
the students and also from the school authorities. Thus it is hampering the overall growth of the
society regarding the improvement of the students. Therefore, it is reported that, the teachers
who had just started their career as a teacher, faced such issues in a more severe manner as they
are not at all experienced like other teachers. According to the study of Wood & Su (2017), it is
reported that, in order to provide support to the teachers, a proper mentoring and a good
partnership with the teachers are required (Wood & Su, 2017). Therefore lack of proper
mentoring and support can hamper the performances of the teachers. I believe that, all the
teachers must have proper support and mentoring facilities so that they can perform well in their
specified roles. Proper support to the teachers will motivate them to do their job and more
number of students will get proper education in the society that will eventually improve the
overall literacy rate. An enhancement in the overall literacy rate of the society will also help
those students to grow as good human being and then they will also take part in the common
good process (Caraka, Nindiya, & Fuad, 2016). Therefore, I think if the teachers are given proper
support, they can participate in the common good practices of the society in terms of educating
more children.
The Catholic social thought has a significant impact on social teaching that embraces the
fact that teachers are respected and value since they contribute to promoting common good of the

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students. The Catholic Intellectual Tradition values teachers who endorse such teaching thereby
promoting common good (Wright, 2017).
Teachers face a lot of challenges in this area that not only hampers the common good of
the students, but also, affects the teachers in fulfilling their responsibility towards promoting
common good. However, there are no adequate evidences supporting that actions have been
taken in this area, globally. Additionally, teaching profession requires support in terms of
resources and other assistance provided in order to benefit students and promote common good.
Schools and institutions must incorporate polices and the strategies to support children and
teachers and promote common good.

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References:
Caraka, P. B., Nindiya, E. S., & Fuad, A. R. (2016). Improving Quality Of Education Through
Collaboration System In The Perspective Of Comprehensive Guidance And Counseling.
Cooke, M. (2018). Higher goods and common goods: Strong evaluation in social life. Philosophy
& Social Criticism, 44(7), 767-770.
Cunningham, D. S. (Ed.). (2015). At this time and in this place: Vocation and higher education.
Oxford University Press.
Wood, M., & Su, F. (2017). What makes an excellent lecturer? Academics’ perspectives on the
discourse of ‘teaching excellence’ in higher education. Teaching in higher
education, 22(4), 451-466.
Wright, K. S. (2017). The principles of Catholic social teaching: A guide for decision making
from daily clinical encounters to national policy-making. The Linacre Quarterly, 84(1),
10-22.