Intro to Philosophies of Education
EDUC 120
Feb. 5
Values, Morals, Ethics, Oh My!
Anything goes?
A school were kids don’t have to learn how to read?
English not the first language taught?
Intelligent design only Biology classes?
Tracking based upon genetic predispositions?
Flat-earth curricula?
“…teaching is a value-laden enterprise, subject to pluralism of beliefs that is endemic to multicultural democracies such as the U.S.” ... “We are always outfitted with some particular lens… it should neither surprise or disturb us to recognize that values condition our understanding of ambiguous data” (Ferrero)
Methods and Philosophies
It's not a Cosmo Quiz!
“Ideas are more powerful than guns, we took away their guns, why should we let them have their ideas?” J. Stalin.
Being aware of your assumptions allows you to remember the power of “the speech that moves the stone.”
You are also likely to have inclinations and assumptions you share with one philosophy over the others
You are unlikely to “be” one kind of philosophy only and in the extreme
Any teacher can employ most any method within any philosophy
Methods: lecturing (direct instruction), group work, Socratic (q and a), discussion, journaling, projects, etc.
Content (what) and Method (how) and Philosophy (why)
Different schools of thought in answering these questions
Critical Pedagogy
Liberating for both the oppressed and oppressor
Knowledge=Power -> Knowledge/Power
Becoming conscious and aware of hidden power structures
P. Freire, bell hooks,
Social Reconstructivism
Existentialism
Learning-- intrinsic motivation
Choice and free will
Humanities: meaning-making
Individualism and freedom. Existence precedes essence
AS Neil, M. Greene
Perrenialism
Using one’s minds well (socratic)
Against “technical” or instrumental knowledge
Great books curriculum
“Conservative”-- profound and enduring
R. Hutchins (recall from Ravitch)
Essentialism
Core knowledge, intellectual capital
Nationalistic, paternalistic
Back to basics approach
“Conservative”--cultural literacy
W. Bagley, E.D. Hirsch (recall from Rav)
Progressivism
Cosmo Quiz!
What philosophy are you? Which one challenges your values, beliefs, and worldview the most?
Philosophy of Education?
How should we educate for the good life?
Discipline
What is schooling for?
What should be mandatory?
Moral development?
Social, political, economic
What knowledge is of the most worth?
What is intelligence?
Knowing vs doing
2nd Level Questions
Who decides what you are interested in? When?
No, different people are interested in different things
Why shouldn’t everyone receive the same curriculum and course of instruction?
No, it’s just that not everyone needs Algebra, maybe some other kind of math
Are the only things worth knowing things that you use then?
Because you don’t need it in the real world
“Algebra is not important to learn” Why?
Rorty Discussion
How does he connect education, socialization, and individuation to democractic ideals?
Why do you think Rorty is a self-proclaimed Deweyian?
Do you agree that ‘what should they learn in college?’ had better go unasked? (125)
What was Dewey “wrong about” according to Rorty? (121)
What is Rorty trying to reconcile here? (117)
Intro to Progressive Education
Progressivism's Other Legacy
Student responsibility in schools
Collaborative and Cooperative Learning
Experiential Education
Problem and Project Based Learning
Labs
Outdoor Education
Service Learning
Place-Based Education
Progressivism's Seedy Underbelly
The drill?
Vo-Tech
Bureaucracy
Tracking
Bells, industrial organization
Factory model of education
Main Tenets
Classroom as a mini-democratic experiment (student voice and ownership of learning)
Children are naturally inclined to learn
Holistic (mind, body, spirit)
Emphasis on change
Using the institution of school to improve society (justice, equality, diversity, etc.)
Definitions
At least three variations
->Child-Centered
->Social Efficiency
->Democratic
Examples of each in the movie
Narrow: an educational philosophy
Broad: a socio-political mov’t of early 1900’s focused on social reform through government policies
History
Why did it wane?
The Gary Plan
Hey-Day (1900-1930)
Openers
Opening query
What does it mean “you forget the speech that moved the stone”?
“Now you take all this for granted
You take the mortar, block, and glass
And you forget the speech that moved the stone...”
Overview
Discuss Rorty article
Intro to Philosophies of Education
Finish up intro to Progressivism
Key Concepts
Distinguish between teaching methods and educational philosophies
Understand key differences between major educational philosophies
Explore what it means to ask philosophical questions in education
Last Time
Fuller understanding of progressivism in theory and practice
Understanding Dewey’s philosophy of experience
Song of the Day
Next Time
Get ready for first exam!
Finish Dewey
