John Dewey’s education philosophies
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John Dewey advocated for the following key aims as the purpose of education.
The first aim of education, according to Dewey, is “Social efficiency.” Dewey considers a school as a social institution that should reflect the issues of the outer world (Mintz, p. 6). Education is characterized by an individual participating in social activities and also establishing relationships with other people. Dewey points out that living in a healthy way in a society can be promoted by education. He argues that in as much as social efficiency is vital, it would be better if we secure by “utilization” rather than “subordination” (Mintz, p. 6). He argues that education should enable a person to develop their capacities and interests while maintaining an enlightened relationship with others. Another purpose of education, according to Dewey, is combining theory and practice (Cherian, 2010). He says that social efficiency will help and individually develop a good culture, and this will help a person serve society best. Another purpose of education is experience, which is enhanced by all-new experiences that students encounter are also forms of education (Cherian, 2010). The last aim of education is natural development (Mintz, p. 1). Dewey argued that the evolution of children’s interests should be the guiding force for all educators. Another purpose of education is experience because all new experiences that students encounter are also forms of education.
Principles of Dewey’s philosophy and their influence on education
- The subject matter should connect with students
According to Dewey, the purpose of teaching is stimulated by the methodology of teaching. Efficient ways should be adopted to plan the subject matter since learning and teaching are pedagogical. Dewey argues that “The subject matter of the learner is not … identical with the formulated, the crystallized, and systematized subject matter of the adult” (Dewey, 1916, p. 190). According to Dewey, the subject matter alone is not a proof that there are learning and development, he suggests that there should be an effective plan and teachers should ensure that the subject matter connects with the learners, without forgetting the cognitive development, interests, desires, and the needs of the learners (Sikandar, 2015, pg. 193). Dewey was concerned about the tendency of progressive education to force a student to follow a formal education ignoring the student’s abilities and natural experiences.
- Progressive education
Dewey closely links a child’s life and his experiences, which he also terms as one aim of education. He argues that education should be able to equip a child with social competence. Dewey points correlate interaction and continuity of experiences. A child is able to tap experiences from society through interaction. Environments are therefore created from those continuous interactions (Sikandar, 2015, pg. 194). These environments provide a chance of interactions between personal needs and situations, which is essential in creating life-long experiences. Therefore, Dewey stresses that teachers are responsible for giving these experiences value to ensure that the child’s experiences are orderly. Such “a learning process allows students the freedom of thought, judgment, and power to execute decisions” (Dewey, 1916, p.194).
- The teacher as a guide
The teacher is responsible for planning and constructing a fit environment so that students have positive, educative experiences. Students and teachers should jointly employ efficient techniques of learning and teaching. The key aim is to promote a student’s self-reliance. Dewey hence termed a school as a community with students being the active members (Sikandar, 2015, pg. 196).
- The child as the main actor
Here Dewey recognizes a child as the main actor of the whole learning process because he discovers by doing. Here means that a child should be taken as a “free individual with his aptitude and interests” (Sikandar, 2015, pg.194). As a child participates in the social experiences, he is a major actor thanks to his active involvement in the learning process.
How John Dewey Reformed Western Education
Traditionally, a teacher would only deliver to students sitting in a row with their work being absorbing this information and also undertake a written test. However, after Dewey’s ideas, students are free to engage in a group discussion that may tackle different topics with significant collaboration and conversation between students and also teachers (Jeynes, 2012). In addition to written tests, Dewey inspired presentations and projects as other ways of evaluating a student. Dewey was the first to establish a laboratory School in 1896 at the University of Chicago with the hope of involving the community (Glass, 2004, pg. 23). This was accepted, and modern learning revolves around lab schools. There over 400 new lab schools in New York alone in the past decade alone (Glass, 2004, pg. 24). A child is also regarded as an active subject in schools (Cherian, 2010, para 5).
How Dewey’s principles align with the principles of an IB education
The principles of Dewey’s philosophy are well aligned with the principles of the IB program. Dewey argues that education should be able to equip a child with social competence. Similarly, the IB education encourages their students to be “thinkers” and “knowledgeable” which is in line with Dewey’s recommendation that students should be a major active member in a school (IBO, 2013). The IB mission aims at “creating a better world through education,” which is similar to Dewey’s recommendation that education should be able to equip a child with social competence (IBO, 2013). According to Dewey, a child is able to tap experiences from society through interaction. Environments are therefore created from those continuous interactions. These environments provide a chance of interactions between personal needs and situations, which is essential in creating life-long experiences. Also, IB education strives to incorporate research into their learning and agrees that “research plays a critical role in the development” of a student (IBO, 2013). This is similar to Dewey’s argument that interests, desires, and the needs of the learners should be considered and acknowledged when teaching them. The IB programs not only encourage personal development but also personal development similarly to what Dewey refers to as a student with interest and aptitude.
References
Cherian, B., (2010). Contribution of John Dewey to Education. Retrieved from https://www.indiastudychannel.com/resources/125414-Contribution-John-Dewey-Education.aspx
Cole, P., (2016). 5 Brilliant Insights About Education From John Dewey. Emerging Ed Tech. Retrieved from https://www.emergingedtech.com/2016/09/5-brilliant-insights-about-teaching-from-john-dewey/
Dewey, J. (1916). Democracy and education. Teddington: Echo Library
Glass, L. H. (2016). A Case Study of an International Baccalaureate School within an Urban School District-University Partnership (Doctoral dissertation, Cleveland State University). https://etd.ohiolink.edu/!etd.send_file?accession=csu1464870792&disposition=inline
IBO. (2013). The IB learner profile. Retrieved from https://www.ibo.org/contentassets/fd82f70643ef4086b7d3f292cc214962/learner-profile-en.pdf
IBO. (n.d). About the IB. Retrieved from https://www.ibo.org/about-the-ib/
Jeynes, W. (2012). The widespread growth of the common school and higher education. In American Educational History. (145-156) Retrieved from https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/13715_Chapter6.pdf
Journal of Educational Studies. [pdf] Retrieved From https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED564712.pdf
Mintz, A. I. (n.d.). What is the purpose of education? Dewey's challenge to his contemporaries. [pdf] Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/23693775/What_is_the_Purpose_of_Education_Deweys_challenge_to_his_contemporaries
Sikandar, A. (2016). John Dewey and his philosophy of education. Journal of Education and Educational Development, 2(2), 191-201. file:///J:/TUM%20CATHOLIC/John_Dewey_and_His_Philosophy_of_Education.pdf
Talebi, Kandan. (2015, September) John Dewey- Philosopher and educational reformer. European