Five Educational Philosophies andPhilosophers

READ PAGE 180

Jack, Myra, Mark, Ted, and Cara•Do you resonate with any of these 5 people? •Write down which one resonates best and least with your beliefs

•Complete the inventory for yourself. Each statement needs a score between 1-5•In box on page 183, complete the #s as they match to your responses•Tally up each score in each column – the highest possible score in a column is 25, lowest is 5•Go back to your choice in the faculty room. Which one did you resonate with most and least? Did your score match your choice in the faculty room conversation?•Which top 3-5 questions did you respond Strongly Agree? Are they mutually supportive of one philosophy?•Look at statements you least supported. What do they tell you?•Does your philosophical trend represent your general outlook on life?•*** Answer these questions as these will come back in the discussion of the week***

INVENTORY OF PHILOSOPHIES – PAGE 181-182

EssentialismPerennialismProgressivism

Social ReconstructionExistentialism

EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHIES

Column A (Jack), Read pg. 184-186 for a glimpse at essentialismA.Key Points: •Back-to-basics approach•Core graduation requirements•Few electives•Strong standards•Testing of both students and teachers•Classroom revolves around the teacherB. View Rancho Elementary School – How can you see that this school adopts an Essentialism approach to educating their students?

ESSENTIALISM

Column B (Myra) – Read Page 186-188A. Key Points•Means “everlasting”•Little flexibility in the curriculum•Schools are organized around books, ideas, and concepts•Textbooks are NOT used•Students learn from the Great Books• The Bible, War & Peace, Moby Dick, Oliver Twist, Animal Farm,

Gulliver’s Travels, etc.

B. Website St. John’s College / Wikipedia Site: How can you tell St. John’s uses a Perennialism philosophy?

PERENNIALISM

Column C (Mark), Read pgs. 190-192A. Key Points•Organized around students’ curiosity •Learning through real-world experiences•John Dewey: ‘people learn best through social interaction in the real-world’•Students learn the scientific methodB. Website•Dewey’s Lab School – Chicago•Winnetka Schools•Calhoun Schools•How can you tell these schools adopt the progressivism philosophy?

PROGRESSIVISM

Column D, Ted. Read pg. 192-195A. Key Concepts•Focus is on reforming society•Teacher’s role is to facilitate student analysis of social problems• Racism, pollution, poverty, homelessness, etc.•Democratic culture in the classroom•Students select the objectivesB. Websites•Paulo Freire Freedom School•Can you see how the school adopts the social reconstruction philosophy? How?

SOCIAL RECONSTRUCTION

Column E, Cara – Read pgs. 195-197A. Key Concepts: •Purpose of education is for students to find meaning in their lives•Students decide what they need to learn•Students evaluate their own performances•Extremely student-centered!B. Website:•The Sudbury Valley School•Watch the video on the website of the school. Can you tell how this school adopts an existentialism philosophy?

EXISTENTIALISM

Review – pg 196•Essentialism•Perennialism•Progressivism•Social Reconstruction•Existentialism

EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHIES

Which philosophy does this

school embrace?

EAGLE ROCK SCHOOL, CO

Individual Integrity•Intellectual Discipline•Physical Fitness•Spiritual Development•Aesthetic ExpressionCitizenship•Service to Others•Cross-cultural Understanding•Democratic Governance•Environmental Stewardship

If I would ask you to create your own school, I would like to know: •What will your school look like? •How will it operate?•Purpose? Physical environment? •Academic curriculum? •PE? •Extracurricular?•Can you draw a picture of the school?•What philosophy or mix of philosophies would you use?

CREATE YOUR OWN SCHOOL

Key IDEA:•Knowledge must be “constructed”Famous psychologists: •Piaget •VygotskyWhat it looks like in a classroom:• Teacher builds knowledge on students’ prior experience and

knowledge• Uses cues, questions, activities to expand their insight…called

SCAFFOLDING• Merges with authentic learning, critical thinking, individualized

instruction, PBL

PSYCHOLOGICAL INFLUENCES ON EDUCATION: CONSTRUCTIVISM

Key IDEA:•Human beings are shaped by their environment•We respond to physical stimuliBehaviorists: •B.F. SkinnerWhat it looks like?•Teachers use reinforcement (extrinsic rewards) to increase desired behaviors…called behavior modification

PSYCHOLOGICAL INFLUENCES ON EDUCATION: BEHAVIORISM

“I believe” “I value”

4 paragraphs + intro and closureSee assignment description

Draft due Sunday night 11:59 pm

CREATING AN EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY

THE GREAT PHILOSOPHER-

TEACHERS…PG. 202-203

SOCRATES

Teacher without a schoolWalked around Athens engaging

people in dialoguesGoal was to help others find the truths that lay within their own

mindsQuestioned, disproved, and tested

the thoughts of his pupilsQuestioning technique is called the Socratic Method: who, what,

when, where“I cannot teach anybody anything.

I can only make them think.”Put to death for corrupting the

youth

PLATO

Pupil of SocratesFounded The Academy in

Athens (1st university)Human soul has 3 parts

(intellect, spirit, and appetite) that determine

behaviorKnown for his writing…

eloquent dialogues about philosophy.

ARISTOTLE

Studied under PlatoAttended The Academy for

20 yearsTutored Alexander the

GreatStressed the importance

of the physical world“Educating the mind

without educating the heart is no education at

all.”

DOCTRINE OF THE GOLDEN MEAN

Aristotle promoted the doctrine of the GOLDEN

MEAN:

Virtue lies between 2 extremes

Example: courage is somewhere between

cowardice and foolhardiness

Everything in moderation!

• Why is a philosophy important to you?• How do teacher-centered differ from student-centered

philosophies of education?• What are the five major ed. philosophies?• How are philosophies reflected in school practice?• What were the contributions of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle

to philosophy?

Can you provide answers to these questions? Your next writing sample may be one of these questions! So be prepared.

CHAPTER 6 KEY QUESTIONS