Educational Philosophies

Within the epistemological frame that focuses on the nature of knowledge and how we come to know, there are four major educational philosophies, each related to one or more of the general or world philosophies just discussed. These educational philosophical approaches are currently used in classrooms the world over. They are Perennialism, Essentialism, Progressivism, and Reconstructionism. These educational philosophies focus heavily on WHAT we should teach, the curriculum aspect.

Perennialism For Perennialists, the aim of education is to ensure that students acquire understandings about the great ideas of Western civilization. These ideas have the potential for solving problems in any era. The focus is to teach ideas that are everlasting, to seek enduring truths which are constant, not changing, as the natural and human worlds at their most essential level, do not change. Teaching these unchanging principles is critical. Humans are rational beings, and their minds need to be developed. Thus, cultivation of the intellect is the highest priority in a worthwhile education. The demanding curriculum focuses on attaining cultural literacy, stressing students' growth in enduring disciplines. The loftiest accomplishments of humankind are emphasized the great works of literature and art, the laws or principles of science. Advocates of this educational philosophy are Robert Maynard Hutchins who developed a Great Books program in 1963 and Mortimer Adler, who further developed this curriculum based on 100 great books of western civilization.

Essentialism Essentialists believe that there is a common core of knowledge that needs to be transmitted to students in a systematic, disciplined way. The emphasis in this conservative perspective is on intellectual and moral standards that schools should teach. The core of the curriculum is essential knowledge and skills and academic rigor. Although this educational philosophy is similar in some ways to Perennialism, Essentialists accept the idea that this core curriculum may change. Schooling should be practical, preparing students to become valuable members of society. It should focus on facts-the objective reality out there--and "the basics," training students to read, write, speak, and compute clearly and logically. Schools should not try to set or influence policies. Students should be taught hard work, respect for authority, and discipline. Teachers are to help students keep their non-productive instincts in check, such as aggression or mindlessness. This approach was in reaction to progressivist approaches prevalent in the 1920s and 30s. William Bagley, took progressivist approaches to task in the journal he formed in 1934. Other proponents of Essentialism are: James D. Koerner (1959), H. G. Rickover (1959), Paul Copperman (1978), and Theodore Sizer (1985).

Progressivism Progressivists believe that education should focus on the whole child, rather than on the content or the teacher. This educational philosophy stresses that students should test ideas by active experimentation. Learning is rooted in the questions of learners that arise through experiencing the world. It is active, not passive. The learner is a problem solver and thinker who makes meaning through his or her individual experience in the physical and cultural context. Effective teachers provide experiences so that students can learn by doing. Curriculum content is derived from student interests and questions. The scientific method is used by progressivist educators so that students can study matter and events systematically and first hand. The emphasis is on process-how one comes to know. The Progressive education philosophy was established in America from the mid 1920s through the mid 1950s. John Dewey was its foremost proponent. One of his tenets was that the school should improve the way of life of our citizens through experiencing freedom and democracy in schools. Shared decision making, planning of teachers with students, student-selected topics are all aspects. Books are tools, rather than authority.

Reconstructionism/Critical Theory Social reconstructionism is a philosophy that emphasizes the addressing of social questions and a quest to create a better society and worldwide democracy. Reconstructionist educators focus on a curriculum that highlights social reform as the aim of education. Theodore Brameld (1904-1987) was the founder of social reconstructionism, in reaction against the realities of World War II. He recognized the potential for either human annihilation through technology and human cruelty or the capacity to create a beneficent society using technology and human compassion. George Counts (1889-1974) recognized that education was the means of preparing people for creating this new social order.

Critical theorists, like social reconstructionists, believe that systems must be changed to overcome oppression and improve human conditions. Paulo Freire (1921-1997) was a Brazilian whose experiences living in poverty led him to champion education and literacy as the vehicle for social change. In his view, humans must learn to resist oppression and not become its victims, nor oppress others. To do so requires dialog and critical consciousness, the development of awareness to overcome domination and oppression. Rather than "teaching as banking," in which the educator deposits information into students' heads, Freire saw teaching and learning as a process of inquiry in which the child must invent and reinvent the world.

For social reconstructionists and critical theorists, curriculum focuses on student experience and taking social action on real problems, such as violence, hunger, international terrorism, inflation, and inequality. Strategies for dealing with controversial issues (particularly in social studies and literature),

inquiry, dialogue, and multiple perspectives are the focus. Community-based learning and bringing the world into the classroom are also strategies.

Buddhism On the Life of Buddha, Buddhist Thought & Practice Buddhism is a moral philosophy / religion based upon the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (566 - 486 B.C.). Siddhartha Gautama became known as the Buddha. 'Buddha' (from the ancient Indian languages of Pali and Sanskrit) means "one who has awakened". It is derived from the verbal root "budh", meaning "to awaken" or "to be enlightened", and "to comprehend". The Buddha offered metaphysical knowledge into the nature of reality as well as a moral way of life. The Middle Way is an important idea in Buddhist thought and practice. To seek moderation and avoid the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification. At the age of 35, meditating under a Bodhi tree, Siddhartha reached Enlightenment, awakening to the true nature of reality, which is Nirvana (Absolute Truth); The dustless and stainless Eye of Truth (Dhamma-cakkhu) has arisen. He has seen Truth, has attained Truth, has known Truth, has penetrated into Truth, has crossed over doubt, is without wavering. Thus with right wisdom he sees it as it is (yatha bhutam) ... The Absolute Truth is Nibbana, which is Reality. (Buddha, from the Dhatuvibhanga-sutta (No. 140) of the Majjhima-nikaya) The Buddha taught that the nature of reality was impermanent and interconnected. We suffer in life because of our desire to transient things. Liberation from suffering may come by training the mind and acting according to the laws of karma (cause and effect) i.e. with right action, good things will come to you. This teaching is known as the Four Noble Truths: Dukkha: Suffering is everywhere Samudaya: There is a cause of suffering, which is attachment or misplaced desire (tanha) rooted in ignorance. Nirodha: There is an end of suffering, which is Nirvana (the possibility of liberation exists for everyone). Maggo: There is a path that leads out of suffering, known as the Noble Eightfold Path (right view, right thought, right speech, right conduct, right vocation, right effort, right attention and right concentration). The following quotes (from Buddha and others) express some of the main ideas of Buddhism; I will teach you the Truth and the Path leading to the Truth. (Buddha)

It is proper for you to doubt .. do not go upon report .. do not go upon tradition..do not go upon hearsay..' (Buddha, Kalama Sutra) O Brahmana, it is just like a mountain river, flowing far and swift, taking everything along with it; there is no moment, no instant, no second when it stops flowing, but it goes on flowing and continuing. So Brahmana, is human life, like a mountain river. (Buddha) Wherefore, brethren, thus must ye train yourselves : Liberation of the will through love will develop, we will often practice it, we will make it vehicle and base, take our stand upon it, store it up, thoroughly set it going. (Buddha) From The Dhammapada; Not to do any evil, to cultivate the good, to purify ones mind, this is the Teaching of the Buddhas. To speak no ill will, to do no harm, to practice self-restraint according to the fundamental precepts, to be moderate in eating, to live in seclusion, to devote oneself to higher consciousness, this is the Teaching of the Buddhas. By endeavour, diligence, discipline and self-mastery, let the wise person make (of himself) an island that no flood can overwhelm. All (mental) states have mind as their forerunner, mind is their chief, and they are mind-made. If one speaks or acts with a defiled mind, then suffering follows .. Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world; it is appeased by love. This is an eternal Law. Hard to restrain, unstable is this mind; it flits wherever it lists. Good is it to control the mind. A controlled mind brings happiness. 'All conditioned things are impermanent, when one sees this in wisdom, then one becomes dispassionate towards the painful. This is the Path to Purity. Buddhism recognizes that humans have a measure of freedom of moral choice, and Buddhist practice has essentially to do with acquiring the freedom to choose as one ought to choose with truth: that is of acquiring a freedom from the passions and desires that impel us to distraction and poor decisions. (Walpola Rahula, What the Buddha Taught) Buddhism stands unique in the history of human thought in denying the existence of such a Soul, Self, or Atman. According to the teaching

of the Buddha, the idea of self is imaginary, false belief which has no corresponding reality, and it produces harmful thoughts of me and mine, selfish desire, craving, attachment, hatred, ill-will, conceit, pride, egoism, and other defilements, impurities and problems. It is the source of all the troubles in the world from personal conflicts to wars between nations. (Rahula) The theory of karma is the theory of cause and effect, of action and reaction; it is a natural law, which has nothing to do with the idea of justice or reward and punishment. Every volitional action produces its effects or results. If a good action produces good effects, it is not justice, or reward, meted out by anybody or any power sitting in judgement of your action, but this is in virtue of its own nature, its own law. (Rahula) For the first time in the history of the world, Buddhism proclaimed a salvation which each individual could gain from him or herself, in this world, during this life, without any least reference to God, or to gods either great or small. (Aldous Huxley) See our webpage Buddha Nirvana / Buddhism Religion for more pictures, information and quotes on Karma, Truth, the Dynamic Unity of Reality, Buddha's conception of Mind and Matter, The Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, Anatta (No Soul) and Conditioned Genesis (Paticca-samuppada).

Hinduism On the Metaphysics & Philosophy of Hinduism Beliefs & Hindu Gods All is One (Brahman) The first collection of Indian philosophy that was written down was the Vedas. The word 'Veda' comes from the Sanskrit vid, meaning knowledge - the Vedas are 'sacred knowledge'. Their exact date is controversial, it is possible that the knowledge dates back 10,000 years BC, and were first written around 3,000 BC. The metaphysical foundation of Hinduism, which is expressed in both the Vedas and the Upanishads is that Reality (Brahman) is One or Absolute, changeless, perfect and eternal. The ordinary human world of many separate and discrete (finite) things (which our mind represents by our senses) is an illusion. Through meditation and purity of mind, one can experience their true Self which is Brahman, God, the One infinite eternal thing which causes and connects the many things. True enlightenment is Selfrealisation, to experience the supreme reality as Self. The following mantra and quotes express the aspirations of Hinduism religion; OM Asato ma sadgamaya, tamaso ma jyotirgamaya, mrityor mamritam gamaya " OM Lead me from falsehood to truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality."

Though One, Brahman is the cause of the many. Brahman is the unborn (aja) in whom all existing things abide. The One manifests as the many, the formless putting on forms. (Rig Veda) Behold but One in all things; it is the second that leads you astray. (Kabir) The word Brahman means growth and is suggestive of life, motion, progress. (Radhakrishnan) Hindu cosmology is non-dualistic. Everything that is is Brahman. Brahman is the eternal Now, and in eternity there is no before or after, for everything is everywhere, always. To use the words of Pascal 'it is a circle the center of which is everywhere and the circumference nowhere.' (Sudhakar S.D, 1988) In Indian philosophy, the main terms used by Hindus and Buddhists have dynamic connotations. The word Brahman is derived from the Sanskrit root brih - to grow- and thus suggests a reality which is dynamic and alive. The Upanishads refer to Brahman as 'this unformed, immortal, moving', thus associating it with motion even though it transcends all forms.' The Rig Veda uses another term to express the dynamic character of the universe, the term Rita. This word comes from the root ri- to move. In its phenomenal aspect, the cosmic One is thus intrinsically dynamic, and the apprehension of its dynamic nature is basic to all schools of Eastern mysticism. They all emphasize that the universe has to be grasped dynamically, as it moves, vibrates and dances. ..The Eastern mystics see the universe as an inseparable web, whose interconnections are dynamic and not static. The cosmic web is alive; it moves and grows and changes continually. (Fritjof Capra, 1972.) In Hinduism, Shiva the Cosmic Dancer, is perhaps the most perfect personification of the dynamic universe. Through his dance, Shiva sustains the manifold phenomena in the world, unifying all things by immersing them in his rhythm and making them participate in the dance - a magnificent image of the dynamic unity of the Universe. (Capra, The Tao of Physics) For a more detailed explanation of the Metaphysics of Hinduism and the Wave Structure of Matter, see the webpage Hinduism / Hindu Gods

Taoism Way of the Tao, Lao Tzu

There is a thing, formless yet complete. Before heaven and earth it existed. Without sound, without substance, it stands alone and unchanging. It is all-pervading and unfailing. We do not know its name, but we call it Tao. .. Being one with nature, the sage is in accord with the Tao. (Lao Tzu) Taoism is one of the great religions / philosophies of Ancient China (along with Buddhism and Confucianism). In 440 B.C. Taoism was adopted as a state religion of China, with Lao Tzu (so called founder of Taoism) honoured as a deity. Lao Tzu was a contemporary of Confucius and wrote a book called the Tao te Ching, composed some time between the sixth and third centuries B.C. Some people believe Lao Tzu is a mythical character. State support of Taoism ended in 1911 with the end of the Ch'ing Dynasty and much Taoist heritage was destroyed. Tao (pronounced 'Dao') can be defined as 'path', or 'road'. The way of the Tao is the way of Nature and of ultimate reality. Tao is often described as a force that flows through all life. A happy and virtuous life is one that is in harmony with the Tao, with Nature. The philosophy of Taoism understands Tao as the One Thing which exists and connects the Many things. Tao, Nature, Reality are One. The following quotes (attributed to Lao Tzu) help us understand the nature of the Tao; If people do not revere the Law of Nature, It will inexorably and adversely affect them If they accept it with knowledge and reverence, It will accommodate them with balance and harmony. There is a thing, formless yet complete. Before heaven and earth it existed. Without sound, without substance, it stands alone and unchanging. It is all-pervading and unfailing. One may think of it as the mother of all beneath Heaven. We do not know its name, but we call it Tao. Deep and still, it seems to have existed forever. The Great Tao flows everywhere. It may go left or right. All things depend on it for life, and it does not turn away from them. It accomplishes its tasks, but does not claim credit for it. It clothes and feeds all things, but does not claim to be master over them. Always without desires, it may be called the Small. All things come to it and it does not master them; it may be called The Great.

The Tao that can be told of is not the eternal Tao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name. Hold on to the Tao of old in order to master the things of the present. Being one with Nature, he is in accord with the Tao. Being in accord with the Tao, he is everlasting. Whether it is big or small, many or few, repay hatred with virtue. Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires. Be still like a mountain and flow like a great river. (Lao Tzu) See our webpage Taoism / Philosophy of the Tao for more quotes, information, history and pictures.

Confucianism On the Life of Confucius & the Philosophy of Confucianism Confucianism is an ethical and philosophical system based upon the teachings of the Chinese sage, Confucius. Confucius was a famous thinker and social philosopher of China, whose teachings have deeply influenced East Asia for centuries. Living in the Spring and Autumn period (a time when feudal states fought against each other), he was convinced of his ability to restore the world's order, though failed. After much travelling around China to promote his ideas among rulers, he eventually became involved in teaching disciples. His philosophy emphasized personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, and justice and sincerity. Used since then as the imperial orthodoxy, Confucius' thoughts have been developed into a vast and complete philosophical system known in the west as Confucianism. The Analects is a short collection of his discussions with disciples, compiled posthumously. These contain an overview of his teachings. Confucius presents himself as a transmitter who invented nothing and his greatest emphasis may be on study, the Chinese character that opens the book. In this respect, he is seen by Chinese people as the Greatest Master. Far from trying to build a systematic theory of life and society, he wanted his disciples to think deeply for themselves and relentlessly study the outside world. For almost two thousand years, Analects had also been the fundamental course of study for any Chinese scholar, for a man was not considered morally upright or enlightened if he did not study Confucius' works.

Based upon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucius The following quotes from The Analects demonstrate the simplicity and wisdom of Confucianism; Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles. I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there. Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it. Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses. Men's natures are alike, it is their habits that carry them far apart. Respect yourself and others will respect you. Study the past if you would define the future. To see what is right, and not to do it, is want of courage or of principle. What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others. When anger rises, think of the consequences. When we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves. Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart. They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom. Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom associated with true virtue. Have no friends not equal to yourself. If a man takes no thought about what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand. See our webpage Confucius / Confucianism for more pictures, quotes and information.

Utilitarianism Main article: Utilitarianism In early 19th century Britain, Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill promoted the idea that actions are right as they maximize happiness, and happiness alone. Existentialism Main articles: Existentialism and Sren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche Existentialism as a philosophical movement is properly a 20th-century movement, but its major antecedents, Sren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche wrote long before the rise of existentialism. In the 1840s, academic philosophy in Europe, following Hegel, was almost completely divorced from the concerns of individual human life, in favour of pursuing abstract metaphysical systems. Kierkegaard sought to reintroduce to philosophy, in the spirit of Socrates: subjectivity, commitment, faith, and passion, all of which are a part of the human condition. Like Kierkegaard, Nietzsche saw the moral values of 19th-century Europe disintegrating into nihilism (Kierkegaard called it the levelling process). Nietzsche attempted to undermine traditional moral values by exposing its foundations. To that end, he distinguished between master and slave moralities, and claimed that man must turn from the meekness and humility of Europe's slave-morality. Both philosophers are precursors to existentialism, among other ideas, for their importance on the "great man" against the age. Kierkegaard wrote of 19th-century Europe, "Each age has its own characteristic depravity. Ours is perhaps not pleasure or indulgence or sensuality, but rather a dissolute pantheistic contempt for the individual man."[1]

Liberalism is the commitment to the greatest possible freedom of the individual and the preservation of human dignity in any given or changing social situation.

Liberalism therefore does not mean freedom and dignity for a class but personal freedom and human dignity for the greatest number. Freedom and equality are not contradictory but complementary.

The freedom of the individual is limited by the freedom of the other, the neighbour. Therefore, liberalism is not anarchism but a theory for a political system.

Liberals are aware that men and women are not in possession of ultimate truths. Liberals merely think they are in search of them. Liberals know that the road to insight is strewn with errors and todays truth contains tomorrows error. Like others, liberal dialectics assume that a thesis is contrasted by an antithesis, both join to become a synthesis, thereby fanning a new thesis, against which a new antithesis must and will develop. But unlike contemporary types of dialectical materialism, liberals think dialectics will never come to an end. They believe there are neither definitive political solutions nor final states of society. The human and social contradictions will not be overcome but at best acquire a new quality. To this extent, liberalism is a political theory of relativity.

Therefore, no taboos exist for liberalism. For Liberals, any state of affairs is open for discussion and any opinion worthy of dispute. Liberalism therefore automatically desanctifies any subject which people with vested interests try to keep out of the general debate with spurious arguments.

Since Liberalism does not recognize any ultimate human truths and definitive political solutions, intellectual freedom and the protection of minorities are at the core of its platform. Any political and social progress starts with a deviation from established wisdom. In the eyes of Liberals, anyone who bans deviating ideas and persecutes the critical denial of the established wisdom as heresy hampers social and political progress. No one knows which of todays minorities will be tom d that the human being is not omniscient and that not everything can be discovered and planned, it vehemently contradicts the notion that the end justifies the means. Experience tells Liberals that using objectionable means even for the most noble end gives these means a life of their own which will eventually wipe out, overgrow and make us forget the end. Thus, appropriateness of the means to any end is a basic demand by Liberals. It is at the center of Liberal ethics.

Life promises freedom. Where there is no life, no freedom can develop. Where freedom is absent but life is present, there is still a chance for freedom. To this extent, Liberalism is opposed to war. War forces each party to increase the use of violence so strongly that the freedom of those defending freedom also risks being strangled. The same applies to violence as such. Violence affects the just and the unjust, the guilty and the innocent, those involved in action and those standing on the sidelines. Violence produces counterviolence and forces the parties to increase their violence constantly so that the means of violence will eventually far exceed its purpose.

On the other hand, there is a right of self-defence. It exists for countries and group of countries in the same way as for social groups and individuals. The liberal rejection of violence and the liberal right to defend freedom in self-defence are a contradiction. What is clear for the Liberal is that violence must be restricted to the right of self-defence. But self defence also harbours a risk of going too far and even

legitimate defence is caught in the vicious spiral of violence. Liberals must live with this contradiction also. Liberalism therefore will always strive towards detente to reduce this contradiction in the relationship between states and in society.

Society requires constant change. Ossified structures of power and ownership work against freedom. Liberalism must therefore try to keep society open for change. It cannot deny or veil social conflicts but must always search for rules by which they should be fought out in a humane way. Liberalism can therefore never be static but must always be dynamic.

Any society revolves around power, interests, intrigues, ambition, influence and vanities; in any society, there is achievement and failure, error and weakness, elegance and ridiculousness. There has never been a human society without these human phenomena. Totalitarian structures of state and society differ from liberal and democratic ones not by banning these phenomena but by the simple fact that in the former, they must not be publicly discussed. Anyone who pretends that a society without weaknesses or conflict is a reality provides no information but veils the facts. Anyone who believes to have found a historical example of an ideal society without weakness or conflict has fallen victim to an idealistic error or distorts history. The perfect society as a goal was and remains a utopia. The ideal society as a pretended reality was and remains ideology. This is part of liberal convictions.

Of course, ideology and utopia have a social and historical function. There must be utopias if there are to be changes to society. And there will be ideologies as long as there are (relatively) stable societies. Liberalism will not succumb to the charm of any utopia or to the seduction of any ideology. It recognizes the relative meaning of both, without their veils, as it were. And it eyes the way utopias are turned into ideologies with suspicion if the supporters of the utopia establish themselves and confront their models of thinking with reality.

There is a tension between Liberalism and democracy, but they are complementary. Democracy is a form of government and could be simply described as the theory of legitimate rule by the majority. Democracy may be totalitarian if the rule of the majority ruthlessly violates the rights of the minorities and diminishes their chances of becoming the majority. Liberalism is an understanding of the degree of government. Since Liberals know that in any society, power is a factor and cannot be eliminated, they do not try to abolish it but see their job as limiting, dividing up and controlling power and preserving the chance of replacing those in power. Liberalism and democracy happily coexist in many countries.

The intellectual strength of Liberalism is its organisational weakness. Its theory of relativity forces Liberals to constantly challenge their own positions. The Liberal ethics demanding a proportionality between ends and means cause Liberals to have intellectual scruples in the struggle for power and the use of power. The Liberal interpretation of tolerance automatically leads to an understanding of the position of opposed ideologues or utopians although they dont need to have any hint of understanding for liberals. The liberal principle of detente also produces a constant weakness by comparison to political opponents who are not so fussy about using force if they are, e.g, conservatives believing they are legitimately defending law and order or left-wing utopians believing they are in sole possession of wisdom.

Liberals know that people are not equal, but because they do, they must be radically committed to equal opportunities so that everyone will find their place in society according to their talents, wishes, abilities and willingness to achieve - irrespective of social background, heritage and health. For a long time, the grand expression ixequal opportunityls remained empty words behind which extreme inequality was concealed.

However, the liberal perception of achievement and competition can only be justified if a level or at least near-level playing field exists in society. In the 19th and first half of the 20th century, liberals have failed to constantly strive for this. They tolerated the cementing of social conditions which turned the theoretical and legal notion of freedom into a weapon in the hands of a limited class to ward off the claims of broad sections of society.

As early as before the First World War, Friedrich Naumann fittingly condemned the lack of any social component in Liberalism.