What is the importance of epistemology in education?
Epistemology is the explanation of how we think. It is required in order to be able to determine the true from the false, by determining a proper method of evaluation. It is needed in order to use and obtain knowledge of the world around us. Without epistemology, we could not think. More specifically, we would have no reason to believe our thinking was productive or correct, as opposed to random images flashing before our mind. With an incorrect epistemology, we would not be able to distinguish truth from error. The consequences are obvious. The degree to which our epistemology is correct is the degree to which we could understand reality, and the degree to which we could use that knowledge to promote our lives and goals. Flaws in epistemology will make it harder to accomplish anything.Source - Epistemology
What is the relevance of metaphysics to teaching?
Metaphysics is the theory of the real. The teacher in philosophy would be concerned with introducing the student to a confrontation with the real. If the teacher is a skeptic in metaphysics, he would teach negatively, that one must stand alone without any bulwark from reality. If he is an idealist (like Plato), he would introduce the student to certain core concepts such as the Good, the True, and the Beautiful, and guide the student in steering his course in the light of them. If reality is important to the teacher, he will teach the student accordingly. The skeptical philosopher will criticize the narration of such concepts logically and empirically. Bertrand Russell is a good example of this approach.
Why was Socrates so important in Greek philosophy?
He was basically the first philosopher. there were other philosophers before him, but Plato was taught by Socrates, and Aristotle from Plato. (Alexander the Great would study under Aristotle. Aristotle would also add a great deal to philosophy) So Socrates more or less led to the greatest minds after him as well as constributing to the field himself. Socrates is also seen as a tragic figure, because he educated the children of Athens to think for themselves and angered many of the town leaders. Eventually he was forced to commit suicide for "corrupting the youth of Athens" and drank hemlock while all his supporters surrounded him. He is to philosophy what Einstein is to the universe, many thought of what they did before them, but they were the first to quantify and understand, and teach the masses.