What is your Philosophy of Education?

1. What is your Philosophy of Education? By: Shavon Rodwell Brown

2. Survey results

3. progressivism • Today progressivism means pedagogical progressivism. It means basing instruction on the needs, interests and developmental stage of the child; it means teaching students the skills they need in order to learn any subject, instead of focusing on transmitting a particular subject. (Labaree 2005).

4. Progressive thinkers • John Dewey (1859-1952) • Dewey was an important early developer of the philosophy of pragmatism and one of the founders of functional psychology • William James (1842-1910) • established the first psychology laboratory in America. • Charles Sanders Pierce (1839-1914) • contributions to logic, mathematics, philosophy, scientific methodology, and semiotics, and for his founding of pragmatism.

5. Educational views • Improve all education public and private. • If democracy was to be successful its leaders, the public needed a good education. • Diverse and conflicting views on educational policies. • Dominant language of American education • Students are taught based on needs, interests, and developmental stages rather than focusing on a particular subject.

6. Curriculum and instruction • Emphasis on learning by doing-hands on projects. • Experiential learning • Integrated curriculum focused on thematic units • Problem solving and critical thinking • Group work and development of social skills • Understanding and action as the goals of learning as opposed to rote knowledge

7. Roles of teacher/student • Teachers encourage students to learn by discovery • Child-centered learning environment • Teachers serve as facilitators of learning • Experimental learning by the student

8. Personal examples • In my current course assignments are rubric based and utilize original thinking. • Emphasize the role of social responsibility in students by discussing current world events. • Students are given options when completing assignments.

9. essentialism • In education, essentialism is used in two senses. • It conveys the idea that certain ideas are essential to culture and that these ideas should be taught to everyone in traditional ways. • Essentialism expresses a philosophical belief in the real essence of things, and that it is the task of science and philosophy to discover these real essences and express them in definitions. (Smith 2011).

10. Essentialist-William Bagley • Bagley argued against the conservative position that teachers were not in need of special training for their work. • He described the right of students to a well-educated and culturally knowledgeable teacher. • He discussed the importance of teaching the ideals of community to each group of students. • The importance of accuracy, thoroughness and effort on part of the student in the classroom.

11. Essentialist-E.D. hirsch • He concluded that schools should not be neutral about what is taught but should teach a highly specific curriculum that would allow children to understand things writers tend to take for granted • Published several books including Cultural Literacy • Criticized public education as failing to develop knowledgeable and literate students.

12. Essentialist-world views • children should learn the traditional basic subjects thoroughly and rigorously • Instill students with the “essentials” of academic knowledge, enacting a back to basics approach • This approach is meant to train the mind, promote reasoning and ensure a common culture.

13. Roles of teacher/students • Teacher is the center of the classroom; taking on the leadership position and setting the tone of the classroom. • They should be rigid and disciplinary. • Students take on a more passive role and are forced to meet and learn standards and information. • Critics argue that individual creativity is often squelched.

14. Curriculum and instruction • Nationwide, content specific, and teacher centered curriculum. • Based on traditional disciplines such as math, science, history, foreign language and literature. • Expect students to possess basic knowledge and skills and be capable of applying lessons learned in school in the real world.

15. Personal examples • Utilize lectures in my courses. • Lead the discussions in the classroom. • Develop curriculum for students and set the standards for the end of the course.

16. Personal examples • Utilize creative thinking for student assignments. • Portfolios, projects, interactive technology in my courses • These are against the essentialist view of the teacher led classroom.

17. conclusion • The highest scores on the interactive survey indicated two philosophies that have opposing views. • Essentialists believe in the teacher centered classroom and progressives believe in the student centered classroom. • Many educators have several philosophies of teaching. I believe there is no one way to teach; students learn in different ways and the educator must provide the correct guidance for their students to succeed.

18. references • Labaree, D. F. (2005). Progressivism, schools and schools of education: An American romance. PaedagogicaHistorica, 41(1/2), 275-288 • Ozmon, Howard A. (2012) Philosophical Foundations of Education. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson. • Smith, D. V. (2011). Neo-liberal individualism and a new essentialism: a comparison of two Australian curriculum documents. Journal Of Educational Administration & History, 43(1), 25-41.