ABSTRACT
Education has two distinct but interconnected layers. There is an outer layer concerned with knowledge transfer, with the development of skills, and with the capacity for creativity and criticism; and most educators recognise this outer layer as a characterisation of ‘education’. However, education has also an inner layer concerned with the formation of the human being, with the development of character, providing the individual with a perspective and understanding of reality. This is not always recognised by educators, who are sometimes too concerned with a syllabus and in achieving targets set externally. If national educational systems are examined for the presence of such layers, some will be revealed as concentrating on the outer layer, while others prioritise the inner layer; but this does not mean that a connection between the two layers should not be sought and achieved.
