For schoolchildren, their teachers have more influence on their intelligence and social development than their parents. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

It is true that

school

children are at an impressionable age, and two strong influences on their

intelligence

and social

development

are teachers and parents. While I accept that teachers may have more influence on the

intelligence

of their pupils, I would argue that parents probably exert a greater influence on the social

development

of their children. In terms of encouraging the intellectual

development

and stimulating the

intelligence

of

school

children, I believe that teachers play the major role. While not all teachers are capable of inspiring their students, they are trained to impart their knowledge of their subject areas in challenging and imaginative ways.

For example

, some students owe their lifelong love of a subject to dedicated teachers who taught

this

discipline in secondary

school

. Of course, at home parents may

also

reinforce

this

passion by encouraging study habits during the formative years of their children.

Such

support is vital for academic achievement. From the perspective of social

development

, I think that parents are mainly responsible for guiding their children.

Firstly

, they spend far more time with their children than any individual teacher is able to do. They can

therefore

monitor the activities of children outside

school

hours, at weekends and during holidays.

Secondly

, parents are able to provide role models in a whole range of situations. These might include showing respect towards elders, choice of friends, or proper behaviour in public when eating out in restaurants. In conclusion,

although

teachers probably have a greater effect in stimulating the

intelligence

of

school

children, parental influences on the

development

of children are stronger in social situations.