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Chapter Two

Philosophy and Education

The Three Branches of


Philosophy
Metaphysics:

What is real?

Epistemology:

How do we know?

Axiology:

What is valuable?

Metaphysics: What is Real?


What knowledge do students need to

know?
What subjects shall we teach our
students?
The question of metaphysics involves the
curriculum of the school.

Changes in our metaphysical


perspective
In traditional societies, religion was the

basis of learning.
Today learning has become more secular.

Epistemology: How do we know?


How do we learn?
How shall we teach the subjects that we

see as most important?

Changes in our Epistemological


Perspective
In traditional societies, information was

obtained from divine revelation or personal


intuition.
Today learning involves hard work, reason
and scientific experimentation.

Axiology: What Values are Most


Important?
What values are the most important?
How do we teach those values?

Changes in Axiology:
Values
In traditional societies, values were seen

as absolute and unchanging.


Today we embrace a more relativistic set
of values that reflect different cultures and
worldviews.

Axiology: How do we Teach


those values?
Traditional approaches to teaching

required students to memorize lists of


values and then recite them to the teacher.
Today teachers focus on the
understanding of those values.

The Four Modern Western


Philosophies
Idealism
Realism
Pragmatism
Existentialism

Idealism
First articulated by Plato in ancient

Greece.
Centered on an unchanging set of ideas
that form the core of our society.

Idealists Believed
Classics and the study of the ancient

languages (Greek and Latin) should form


the basis of the curriculum (metaphysics).
Students learn best through memorization
and recitation (epistemology).
Values are absolute and unchanging and
best taught through memorization of
specific sets of rules or oaths (axiology).

Realism
Realism

developed in the 1600s and

1700s.
This theory examined the seeming
paradoxical relationship between religion
and science.

Realists Believed
Science and mathematics were the most

important subjects (metaphysics).


An understanding of the natural laws of
our world was the appropriate method of
instruction (epistemology).
Values are absolute and unchanging and
best taught through memorization
(axiology).

Pragmatism
Developed in the 1800s.
This theory separated religion from the

worldly activities of humankind.

Pragmatists Believed
Students should understand the major

problems facing society (metaphysics).


The curriculum should move from the
abstract to the concrete, from the
theoretical to the practical learning by
doing (epistemology).
Values are relative and rules are
sometimes inadequate in guiding complex
decision-making (axiology).

Existentialism
Attention is on the individual and the world

of individual relationships.
This theory represented a change in the
philosophical focus from religion to the
individual. (We are responsible for our
own actions.)

Existentialists Believed

The best way to learn is through personal insight


gained through journaling and autobiography
(metaphysics).
The curriculum should address the questions of
human existence, relationships, and an
understanding of success and failure
(epistemology).
Values are not only relative but students also
have a role in choosing them and should explore
individual choices and options (axiology).

Educational Philosophies
Educators have developed a number of

educational philosophies.
Some parallel one of the four modern
philosophies.
Some borrow ideas from these and other
alternative philosophies.

Two Philosophical Schools of


Thought
Authoritarian
Democratic (non-authoritarian)

The Authoritarian School of


Education

Rooted in Idealism and Realism


Derived from writings of John Locke Blank
Slate
Stressed the products rather than the process of
learning
Favored a subject-centered curriculum
Embraced convergent thinking (inside the box)
Perennialism, Essentialism, Behaviorism and
Positivism

Authoritarian School:
Perennialism
Rooted in ideas of idealism

and realism.
Has been the cornerstone of education for
centuries.
Characterized by the Great Books
curriculum.
Favors a standardized curriculum.
Prefers the top down teacher centered,
or subject-centered method.

Authoritarian School:
Essentialism
Essentialists focus on the development of

essential skills for the future especially


the workplace.
Emphasizes a core curriculum -- referred
to as basic skills.
Favors a top down learning environment.
Embrace the NCLB and EOGs as central
to the learning experience.

Authoritarian School:
Behaviorism

Rooted in psychology, especially William James,


Edward Thorndike, John Watson, and B.F.
Skinner.
Popular as a method of discipline and computeraided instruction.
Students are essentially blank slates and can be
manipulated through a rewards system to
learn.
Emphasizes learning the facts as well as
convergent thinking.

Authoritarian School: Positivism


Derived from

the writings of Auguste


Comte who argued that reality existed only
as observable fact.
We can know only through direct
observation.
Prefers a curriculum based primarily on
science and math with rigorous
assessment of specific knowledge.
Favors convergent thinking.

The Democratic School of


Education

Rooted in Pragmatism and Existentialism


Derived from writings of Jean Jacque Rousseau
Stressed the Process rather than the Products of
Learning
Favored an experience-centered or studentcentered curriculum
Embraced Divergent thinking (outside the box)
Progressivism, Humanism, Constructivism,
Post-Modernism, Reconstructionism

Democratic School:
Progressivism

Emerged from the writings of pragmatists Charles


Pierce, William James, and John Dewey.
Embraced realistic solutions to social problems.
Helped students understand their interconnections with
members of the community in which they lived.
Favored an open classroom environment and
cooperative learning.
Preferred the problem-solving approach that focuses on
student interests.
Focused on the learner-centered or student-centered
curriculum.

Democratic School:
Reconstructionism
Emerged during the Great Depression and

was influenced by the writings of George


S. Counts.
Challenged teachers to become
transformative intellectuals.
Provide students with a Critical
Pedagogy (Henry Giroux) to become
agents of social change.

Democratic School: Humanism


Embodies the ideas of Jean Jacque

Rousseau.
Seeks to nurture the individual spirit
without imposing external ideas on the
student.
Promotes divergent thinking.
Favors the student-centered approach to
learning.

Democratic School:
Constructivism
Focuses on individual development

through a nurturing approach to teaching.


Provides students with hands-on activities.
Favors the understanding of large,
complex ideas rather than the mastery of
facts.
At odds with the current emphasis on
mastery learning and accountability as
envisioned by the NCLB.

Democratic School:
Postmodernism

Developed during the upheavals of society in the


1960s and 1970s.
The goal is to understand power relationships
within society.
Believes that those in power use the institutions
of government, culture and school to maintain
their positions within society.
Contends that society has marginalized women,
workers, people of color as well as cultural
minorities.

Postmodernism (Continued)
The curriculum

should include works of


marginalized people in literature, history
and other subjects.
Students will then appreciate the
contributions of other members of our
diverse society.
Favors a student-oriented approach and
journal writing.

Axiology and Education


Moral Education
Character Education

Moral Education
Assumes that students are undeveloped
Focuses on the Development of moral

reasoning
Consistent with the Democratic School
Embraces Progressivism,
Reconstructionism, Humanism and
Postmodernism

Character Education
Students are blank slates
Favors the transmission of unambiguous

moral values
Consistent with the Authoritarian School
Embraces Perennialism, Essentialism,
Behaviorism and Positivism

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