Who is more important: the teacher or the student?

Question

Of course, everyone can be both a teacher and a student.

Suppose we have one teacher and one student. The teacher does not make a major contribution to his field. However, the student does. Who is more important: the teacher or the student?

Of course-I'm not saying that the only importance of these two are their positions as teacher and student.

I'm saying the importance of each position relative to the other.

For instance, maybe the student wouldn't have solved problem X without some specific, inspiring words that this particular teacher said. So, without the teacher, maybe the student wouldn't have made the contribution.

On the other hand, the student is the one who solved the problem.

Answer 1

Ah, ponder the question...Your individualistic tendencies deceive you. For neither can be more important than the other. Without the student there is no teacher and without the teacher there is no student. They are defined by their relationship to one another. This is the great philosophy of Ubuntu. An "I" can only exist because there was first a "WE". Without the relationship first, there is no such thing as an individual.

Answer 2

Neither. The only aspect of value is whether the 'spark' of knowledge passes between them. For this to happen, both must be important, the teacher must have something to give, and the student must be open to learning.
If either is flawed, then no spark can passes, and the blame does not fall to one side or the other on a regular basis.
The loss however impacts both.

EDIT: Re: your elaboration, in that instance the student is more to be praised for the new knowledge then the teacher. It matters not that the teacher may have same something vital, any more then the influence of everyone else in the students life. The student MADE the discovery, and the teacher did not. As such, he is nothing more then a useful aid.

Answer 3

Without a doubt in my mind. The student. They are however the future. Not the past. The sudent is more likely 2 do something 2 possibly change the future. The teacher, however is probably past the point in their lives that they are going 2 do something 2 affect the world.

Answer 4

both are equally important...... the teacher was once a student. the student will become a teacher in some way.
Even if one is able to teach themselves he still uses resources made by some one who was intending to teach.
students are our future they will be the ones who will heal, help and find solutions. Teachers are the foundation from were our future rises. The teacher can plant the seed but its up to the students to nurture it and let it grow. With out the seed the plant cant grow,,,, Am i making sense?

Answer 5

It is a matter of timing.

In the present - the Teacher
The teacher knows more and thus is more important now. They can command an income based on their value where students are dependents on others.

In the future - the Student
Students have more potential future value and have an entire lifetime to benefit society, far longer than the teacher.

Answer 6

This is a biased question. In your particular question, the student makes the greater contribution.
In life, if we don't have good teachers, we have illiterate students passed from grade to grade. Therefore a good teacher is a priority. Luckily, in your case, the student was very good.

Answer 7

No one! How? One cannot be a teacher without anybody to teach to, and one cannot be a student without anybody to learn from!

Likewise, this line of thought can be applied to the question: who is more important, a man or a woman? A man cannot exist without the pregnancy of a woman, who cannot produce offspring without a man, etc.

Basically, the whole thing is a circle, that, taken apart, can never be a straight line of thought.

Answer 8

For the best output,
teacher is more important from the point of the student's view;
student is more important from the point of the teacher's view.

Even a teacher is the best, the teacher can not provoke any new thing out from a student, if the student is not having the capability to bring it out.
Even a student is the best, he need atleat one teacher to provoke his/her capability to really come out.

Answer 9

I am not looking to get a best answer but I will say this .... Major contribution is that in terms of quality or quantity? Teaching in itself, if done well, is a major contribution. There are so many people who are guarded about knowledge, but I find it amazing those who love to share what they know and not in terms of being congratulated or to feel glorious in some sort of superiority but honest love of learning.

Answer 10

There are many factors to determine someones importance. Just by classifying someone as a teacher or student wouldn't be enough to justify importance.