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PHILOSOPHIES OF EDUCATION.   Term Paper ID:23134 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Historical overview of educational theories of Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Bacon, Locke, Dewey, others.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Historical overview of educational theories of Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Bacon, Locke, Dewey, others. Paper Introduction: Along with the development of educational institutions, there have appeared from time to time educational philosophers and theorists who have had an influence upon the course of education, through their criticisms of existing practices and their suggestions of new types of organization which should be set up. Different philosophies predispose educational theorists to structure or restructure education in specific directions, and the ebb and flow of educational philosophy continues. A discussion of the underpinnings of modern educational thinking in relation to philosophies such as idealism, realism, Thomism, and pragmatism will be discussed, beginning with Aristotle's (384-322 B.C.) and Plato's (429-347 B.C.) views on the educated citizen, and ending with John Dewey's (1859-1952) progressive reforms of the late 19th and early to mid-20th centuries. Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Thomism may provide aninteresting insight into the history of education, but its principles aredefinitely at odds with the separation of church and state, and thisexample from Aquinas shows. Although more practical in thought than Plato,Aristotle, too, was an idealist. Bacon's educational influence isgeneral rather than specific. 467). Whateducation will Buddhist people receive? As Eisner(1994) notes, "[Gardner (1983) agreed with Vygotsgy (1962) that]intelligence is an active process rather than a static entity, as an eventwhich is displayed differentially by individuals depending on thecircumstances and the form of representation employed" (p. 3 1) It is an interesting side note that Aquinas condemned Jews to a lifeof servitude on two counts: (1.) They killed Christ, and (2.) Theyprofited by usury, which is a sin. A discussion of theunderpinnings of modern educational thinking in relation to philosophiessuch as idealism, realism, Thomism, and pragmatism will be discussed,beginning with Aristotle's (384-322 B.C.) and Plato's (429-347 B.C.) viewson the educated citizen, and ending with John Dewey's (1859-1952)progressive reforms of the late 19th and early to mid-2 th centuries. This method is reflected in thelecture method of instruction which is common today in all higherinstitutions of learning in Europe and America. New York: Macmillan College PublishingCompany. In St. Relative to epistemology (that whichinvestigates the nature, sources, limitations, and validity of knowledge),idealism is defined as "the position that all we know are our ideas"(Barry, 198 , p. John Dewey (1859-1952) was first of all a teacher of philosophy. Education in Europewas to be dominated by idealism for over a thousand years. This introduced a period of 12 years during which political thinking was embedded with religion and preoccupied with the problem of the relations between church and state. Johann Friedrich Herbart (1776-1841) was an important educationaltheorist because he anticipated John Dewey's progressive ideas abouteducation. He pointedout that there are two sciences on which education must be based--psychology and ethics. J. Such a view is as old as the ancient Greeks.Democritus (46 -36 B.C.) believed that reality could be explained in termsof matter. Adler (1977), a major proponent of Aristotle's writings,and a premier educational theorist, uses Aristotelian logic to say, "Idesire knowledge, and knowledge is a natural desire--therefore, knowledgeshould be, in and of itself, good. He offered the concept of sense-realism.His methods of scientific investigation attracted the attention of othersmore than his actual discoveries. The fact that an individual might think clearly about socialmatters and yet still remain unjust provides a flaw in Plato's system.Even so, Plato emphasized very explicitly the relation between logic(gained by studying four essential subjects) and action (being a goodcitizen of sound moral fiber), and devoted his writings and teachings tothe development of this theory. Ferm, V. (p. As Button (1983) explains, "Herbartians rejected thetraditional idea of mental 'faculties' [muscles?], as reflected inexercises involving memorization and recitation. The school should become a cooperative learning community, accordingto Dewey. Such a materialistic doctrine nicely countered the religioussuperstition of the day, and foreshadowed the scientism of the present age. E. 69). A history of philosophical systems. By extension, I ought to desire what isgood for me" (p. New York:Philosophical Library. (1977). For thosereasons given above, Herbart's views may be termed "materialistic," as newand different answers were being developed about how the human mind relatedto matter. What education will Jewish people receive, then? When Dewey advocated that schools be learning laboratories, he wastrusting that inquiring minds would want to know, and want to knowjudiciously. 282) Aristotle, like Plato, was much concerned with education as apolitical issue and with the problem of stability and the avoidance ofrevolution. Thirdly, there is natural law, universally applicable rules of conduct, evident to reason at all times and places. Philosophy: A text with readings. His writings, like his oral methods of teaching, have had alasting influence. Lerner, R. Thomism has remained outside the main currents of philosophicalthinking in the U.S., partly because it is religious rather than secular innature, and partly because "Catholic scholars have had to turn to Europe inorder to get into contact with their intellectual traditions" (Ferm, 195 ,p. He was able to formulate the principles of logic which were latertaken over to the great schools of Alexandria and were later utilized byEuclid in his geometry. They are: empiricism and existentialism." Deweystresses the empirical aspect of reality--one's experiences contribute to,and derive from, one's own reality. As Eisner (1994) elaborates, "The cornerstone ofrational humanism is the primacy of reason and in the human's ability tomake rational and defensible judgments about the goodness of things" (p.65). The term"Herbartianism" was given to his belief that there was little value inmental discipline per se (for example, the classics are to be studied forcontent--not form). Eisner, E. As Eisner (1994)explains, "One of the school's major tasks, according to Dewey, [was to]create what he calls "educational situations through which a child becomesincreasingly able to deal with ever more complex and demanding problems.What grows through this process of increasing competence is the child'sintelligence" (p. (p. All of the educational reformers described above,whether they be idealistic or materialistic, would argue that there arecertain essential things that all students should know. The Oxford history of western philosophy.Oxford: Oxford University Press. A childshould be presented with enough information so that he or she would besufficiently intrigued to investigate further. Western civilizations. References Adler, M. Hiscontributions in the fields of logic and ethics have been of majorimportance in determining the trend of current thinking. One other comment on Thomism is in order. Its collapse was the occasion for Augustine's City of God, the first major attempt to deal with political topics from a Christian point of view. Plato divided higher education into four main branches--arithmetic,geometry, astronomy, and music--to be developed in the individual in fullmeasure. He adopted the method ofteaching which later came to be universal in European universities, namely,the so-called commentary. (195 ). Secondly, there is divine law, what God has revealed to man by way of the scriptures. Norton and Company. In the classical era of the Greekphilosophers such as Aristotle and Plato, knowledge of the world wasbasically in its infancy. His discussions on the nature of the mindwere the bases of the psychology and much of the theology of this time. AsWeimer (1962) wrote, "Aristotle's Ethics proves that he realized moreclearly than Plato that knowledge and insight lead to moral action onlywhen aptitude and attitude provide the necessary foundations" (p. Even so, his book entitled Thoughts on Education is a protestagainst too close devotion to books and bookish knowledge. By the end of the 188 s, a number of new educational theories,Herbart's among them, had begun to emerge in the United States. 9). Finally, there is human law, which consists of specific rules either deduced from natural law, or applied, in accordance with natural law, to particular circumstances. This praising of what is natural is an idealisticorientation, and perhaps a well spring of inspiration for educators;however, so-called "Acts of God" such as disease, war, and famine are goodantidotes to such idealism when one considers that they, too, are"natural." The idealism of Saint Thomas shows that idealism, when churchand state are inextricably bound, can pose problems for the church, thestate, or both. Locke's concept of theegalitarian nature of all minds had tremendous educational and politicalramifications, and it is to this viewpoint that today's educators bow.Public education for the masses depends upon such a viewpoint. The first supplies an analytical account on thenature of the human mind which is to be educated; the second works out thesocial goals toward which educational systems must direct their efforts.Herbart laid great stress on the importance of arousing the pupils'interests and then extending those interests in many directions, untilthere should result what he calls "many-sidedness" of interest. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. Herbart was a German philosopher and teacher who was the firsteducational reformer to enunciate the idea that education must be organizedon the basis of carefully ascertained scientific principles. Plato was an idealist--an ardent advocate of the aesthetic and themoral in education. Individual entities (forms or ideas) come and go, but the "Forms" are immortal and indestructible. 3 1).What if a tyrant should choose to govern, or set up a system of church-state schools which seek to indoctrinate all in the one true belief--thatof Christianity? 367) Again, such thinking fit in well with the Christian thought that wasto develop later. It is well explained by Anthony Kenny(1994): "First, there is God's eternal law, the general system of order that God has imposed on the universe at large. (198 ). Weimer, H. An educated person could know all there was toknow by listening to the masters. He thought that Jews should wearspecial garments to mark their servitude. He read Aristotle's books to his students andfollowed the reading by general comments. W. 2 2). The key to survival in today's world of knowledge lies in knowingprecisely what one needs to know (stating the problem or question clearlyand concisely), and in knowing where to look for the answer. Mortimer J. Aristotle was a much more practical and scientific teacher thanPlato. (1988). New York:Philosophical Library.----------------------- 1 It is important at this point to examine the thread running throughthis continuing account of significant educational personalities and thecontexts within which they developed. Barry (198 ) offers a more comprehensivedescription of idealism: Although idealists differ, let us define idealism as the belief that reality is essentially idea, thought, or mind, rather than matter. The list could go on in the samefashion. Even so, a well-educatedindividual could still receive a good classical eduction and join thecelebrated elite of "gentlemen." Dewey's modern generation of learners (aswell as Herbart's) could not possibly hope to learn anything approachingall there is to know. The educational imagination: On the designand evaluation of school programs. (1994). The thrust ofLocke's thinking for educators is that environment is more important thanany inherent traits or beliefs. Dewey had a pragmatic perspective on education's goals; in otherwords, "[he] argued that all philosophy arises out of people's continualstruggles to deal with social and moral problems ... Another historical realist was John Locke. As Anthony Kenny(1994) notes, "Since the state is natural, in Aquinas' sense of being apart of God's purposes for man, it is independent of the church, and thechurch should not interfere with the exercise of temporal power" (p. Whether idealists believe that there is a single, absolute mind or many minds, they invariably emphasize the mental or spiritual, not the material, presenting it as the creative force or active agent behind all things ... The blank slate can be filled with usefulknowledge, and all people could presumably be on equal footing providedthat they were given comparable experiences. Locke was one of a groupof essayists who wrote on education, although his chief interest waspolitics. Realism, or the doctrine that the objects of our senses existindependently of their being experienced, is a philosophical orientationcommon to the educational theorist/philosophers Francis Bacon (1561-1626)and John Locke (1632-17 4). Instead, they placedgreater emphasis on the subject matter being taught" (p. Thomism as an educational philosophy is not compatible with theseparation of church and state (despite Saint Thomas' assertion that thechurch should not interfere with the temporal authority of the state), andfor this reason is largely irrelevant to current educational debate. This theory distinguishedbetween the different classes of society, and defended the generalposition, borrowed from Socrates (469-399 B.C.), that knowledge and clearthinking are the only possible bases of good conduct (essential to thestate). His adherenceto first-hand knowledge over that of others' parallels Bacon's belief thatone should personally verify matters. Another "ism" relevant to Dewey is humanism, sometimesreferred to as "rational humanism," although most would argue that theterms are synonymous. 68). He is an existentialist to the extentthat he believes that one creates one's own meaning to life through one'spersonal experiences. 2. Francis Bacon was an English philosopher, statesman, and man ofletters. It is not a stretch to see that teachers of the later medievalperiod would be drawn to a philosophy such as Plato's which emphasizes themoral, or good conduct, aspect of behavior as a result of formalinstruction. W. (1962). Button, H. A science textbook in today'sclassrooms which leads students to draw inferences or make judgements aboutprobable outcomes or the truth would owe something to Bacon. Different philosophies predispose educational theoriststo structure or restructure education in specific directions, and the ebband flow of educational philosophy continues. Two other "isms" areapplicable here. The accumulated knowledge of humankind is now sooverwhelming that simply to categorize and store it requires computers withmassive memories. Reforming eduction: The opening of theAmerican mind. (p. His philosophicalsystem is characterized by its devotion to the accomplishment of practicalends. For him, education, and moral education, in particular, wasnot the imparting of theoretical expertise, but a training in good habits.An appeal to such a higher moral order, or "ideal," was attractive toeducators in medieval Europe, and the church and state became inextricablybound, one aspect complementing the other. A "complete course" of these subjects, so to speak, would developa unity and symmetry of thought essential to the well-being of both citizenand state. Idealism, that branch of philosophy related tometaphysics (the nature of reality), is defined as the position thatreality is ultimately non-matter. Vol. Barry, V. Kenny, A. 374). Scientists speak today of the principle of conservation of energy (matteris neither created nor destroyed), and the atom, although split by modernscience, is still the basic building block of existence. As a knowledge base about the worlddeveloped, through the recorded histories and scientific journals oftheorists like Locke and Bacon, the accumulated cultural and scientificknowledge of the world was becoming overwhelming. As AnthonyKenny (1994) explains, Although unprecedentedly skilled in law and administration, Roman civilization was derivative in political thought. He showed, inexcruciating detail, the process of induction (the process of reasoning toprobable explanations or judgements). What isreal is the spiritual world, the world without matter. Belmont:Wadsworth Publishing Company. Leaving theparticulars of those things up to each theorist, it remains clear thattoday's students must know how to access the information they need whenthey need it. Any importantphilosophy or doctrine has worth only to the degree that it assists peoplein resolving their problems" (Barry, 198 , p. (1983). Materialism is the metaphysicalposition that reality is ultimately composed of matter (rather than anyspiritual essence). It is a common cliche that gifted students will learnin spite of the teacher--that it takes a master teacher to motivate thereluctant learner. No authority has contributed more to the fixedteachings of the Roman Catholic Church and its schools than Aquinas.Almost every town of any size in America today has a school named afterSaint Thomas Aquinas. Dewey might argue for student-centered research paperprojects in the library, while a more idealistic, traditionalist mightargue for a "back to basics" approach of drills on "essential" skills, butit is a certainty that tomorrow's educational theorists must address thefact that the amount of information in the world is increasing at a fargreater capacity than our ability to process it. Thus, in his theory of logic, he points out that it is the solutionof problems which in all cases stimulates human intellectual effort. Concise history of eduction. Inthe field of ethics, he has shown himself to be interested in practicalsocial reforms of all types. He advocated the development of science through observation anddirect contact with objects as distinguished from the acceptance ofstatements made by writers of books. 651). Deweyhimself believed that it was the constant interplay of content conflict andresolution which enabled learning to take place. Eisner (1994) quotes Gardner (1983) to show that intelligence is nota fixed entity, but rather a quality, or collection of qualities, which arealways in flux--in a perpetual state of becoming, so to speak. Aquinas was a prolific author on theological and philosophicaltopics. Along with the development of educational institutions, there haveappeared from time to time educational philosophers and theorists who havehad an influence upon the course of education, through their criticisms ofexisting practices and their suggestions of new types of organization whichshould be set up. 51 ). Students' minds should be allowed to inquire freely into whatinterests them. History of education and culture in America.Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. 11th ed.New York: W. Augustine's (354-43 ) The City of God, he warnsus to beware of the world of the flesh, because it is temporary. In short, Bacon believed that educationshould be based on direct observation. Saint Thomas' philosophy, known as Thomism, is essentially political,since it deals with natural law. Plato wrote on philosophy, on social subjects, and on government,developing a general theory of the state. Children should beencouraged to follow their own interests, not formally walk through aseries of paces prescribed by a teacher. (1994). Libraries andonline services must be accessed by information seekers, and teachers areleft to occupy roles which are described by some as subsidiary to the realprocess of learning. 242). A critic of formalism (in ethics, the viewthat moral acts follow from fixed moral principles and do not changebecause of circumstances), Dewey advocated progressive school reforms whichwould stress the relevance of educational content for children. Another orientation, that of materialism, goeshand-in-hand with that of realism. Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) was undoubtedly the greatest andmost influential philosopher of the middle ages. Locke was a true modern realist inevery sense of the word, and would not be in service to any "classicaltradition." In his Essay Concerning Human Understanding (169 ), "Lockerejected the hitherto dominant assumption that ideas are innate,maintaining instead that all knowledge originates from sense perception.According to Locke (169 ), the human mind at birth is a "blank tablet" uponwhich nothing is transcribed" (Lerner, 1988, p. W. The smallest pieces of matter he called atoms; he describedthem as solid, indivisible, indestructible, eternal, and uncreated. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.