ABSTRACT
John Locke’s belief in the power of education is clearly expressed. What he says about the potency of education is balanced by his recognition of the importance of the individual’s innate qualities. The fact that Locke was advising on the education of a certain social group at a certain time in history does not, however, take away from the value of his scale of priorities in education. Although Locke was against rote-learning, and realized that discovery and experience are far more valuable than information and precept, it is clear that he would never have carried the discovery method to excess. When communication between people breaks down, it is more often than not because the same words mean one thing to one person and something else to the other. This kind of misunderstanding between teacher and pupil – on whichever side it may be – is one of the commonest causes of failure in teaching.
