Paris, N. A.

EDUC 7700/7703
MAJOR EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHIES
"In modern times there are opposing views about the practice of education. There is no general agreement
about what the young should learn either in relation to virtue or in relation to the best life; nor is it clear
whether their education ought to be directed more towards the intellect than towards the character of the
soul.... And it is not certain whether training should be directed at things useful in life, or at those
conducive to virtue, or at non-essentials.... And there is no agreement as to what in fact does tend towards
virtue. Men do not all prie most highly the same virtue, so naturally they differ also about the proper
training for it."
Aristotle wrote that passage more than !,"## years ago, and today educators are still debating the issues he
raised. $ifferent approaches to resolving these and other fundamental issues have given rise to different
schools of thought in the philosophy of education. %e will e&amine five such schools of thought'
Essentialism, Progressivism, Perennialism, Existentialism, and e!aviorism. (ach has many
supporters in American education today. Ta)en together, these five schools of thought do not e&haust the
list of possible educational philosophies you may adopt, but they certainly present strong framewor)s from
which you can create your own educational philosophy.
Essentialism
""ri##ing an$ en$%ring interests &re'%entl( gro) o%t o& initial learning e&&orts t!at are not
a##ealing or attra*tive." %illiam *agley
(ssentialism refers to the "traditional" or "*ac) to the *asics" approach to education. It is so named
because it strives to instill students with the "essentials" of academic )nowledge and character
development. The term essentialism as an educational philosophy was originally popularied in the +,"#s
by the American educator %illiam *agley -+./01+,023. The philosophy itself, however, had been the
dominant approach to education in America from the beginnings of American history. (arly in the twentieth
century, essentialism was criticied as being too rigid to prepare students ade4uately for adult life. *ut with
the launching of 5putni) in +,6/, interest in essentialism revived. Among modern supporters of this
position are members of the 7resident8s 9ommission on (&cellence in (ducation. Their +,." report, A
Nation at Ris+, mirrors essentialist concerns today.
Underlying Philosophical Basis
-American3 essentialism is grounded in a conservative philosophy that accepts the social, political, and
economic structure of American society. It contends that schools should not try to radically reshape society.
:ather, essentialists argue, American schools should transmit the traditional moral values and intellectual
)nowledge that students need to become model citiens. (ssentialists believe that teachers should instill
such traditional American virtues as respect for authority, perseverance, fidelity to duty, consideration for
others, and practicality.
:eflecting its conservative philosophy, essentialism ten-tends to accept the philosophical views associated
with the traditional, conservative elements of American society. ;or e&ample, American culture
traditionally has l3placed tremendous emphasis on the central importance of tile physical world and of
understanding the world through scientific e&perimentation. As a result, to convey important )nowledge
about our world, essentialist educators emphasie instruction in natural science rather than non-scientific
disciplines such as philosophy or comparative religion.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
The Essentialist Classroom
(ssentialists urge that the most essential or basic academic s)ills and )nowledge be taught to all students.
Traditional disciplines such as math, natural science, history, foreign language, and literature form the
foundation of the essentialist curriculum. (ssentialists frown upon vocational, lift-ad@ustment, or other
courses with "watered down" academic content.
(lementary students receive instruction in s)ills such as writing, reading, measurement, and computers.
(ven while learning art and music, sub@ects most often associated with the
development of creativity, the students are re4uired to master a body of information and basic techni4ues,
gradually moving from less to more comple& s)ills and detailed )nowledge. Anly by mastering the re4uired
material for their grade level are students promote-l to the ne&t higher grade.
(ssentialist programs are academically rigorous, for both slow and fast learners. The report A Nation at
Ris+ reflects the essentialist emphasis on rigor. It calls for more core re4uirements, a longer school day, a
longer academic year, and more challenging te&tboo)s. Moreover, essentialists maintain that classrooms
should be oriented around the teacher, who ideally serves as an intellectual and moral role model for the
students. The teachers or administrators decide what is most important for the students to learn and place
little emphasis on student interests, particularly when they divert time and attention from the academic
curriculum. (ssentialist teachers focus heavily on achievement test scores as a means of evaluating
progress.
In an essentialist classroom, students are taught to be "culturally literate," that is, to possess a wor)ing
)nowledge about the people, events, ideas, and institutions that have shaped American society. :eflecting
the essentialist emphasis on technological literacy, A Nation at Ris+ recommends that all high school
students complete at least one semester of computer science. (ssentialists hope that when students leave
school, they will possess not only basic s)ills and an e&tensive body of )nowledge, but also disciplined,
practical minds, capable of applying schoolhouse lessons in the real world.
Progressivism
"%e may, I thin), discover certain common principles amid the variety of progressive schools now e&isting.
To imposition from above is opposed e&pression and cultivation of individuality; to e&ternal discipline is
opposed free activity; to learning from te&ts and teachers, learning through e&perience; to ac4uisition of8
isolated s)ills and techni4ues by drill is opposed ac4uisition of them as means of attaining ends which
ma)e direct vital appeal; to preparation for a more or less remote future is opposed ma)ing the most of the
opportunities of present life; to statistics and materials is opposed ac4uaintance with a changing world."
Jo!n De)e(
7rogressivism8s respect for individuality, its high regard for science, and its receptivity to change
harmonied well with the American environment in which it was created. The person most responsible for
the success of progressivism was =ohn $ewey -+.6,-+,6!3. $ewey entered the field of education as a
liberal social reformer with a bac)ground in philosophy and psychology. In +.,2, while a professor at the
Bniversity of 9hicago, $ewey founded the famous <aboratory 5chool as a testing ground for his
educational ideas. $ewey8s writings and his wor) with the <aboratory 5chool set the stage for the
progressive education movement, which, beginning in the +,!#s, has produced ma@or lasting innovations in
American education.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
The progressivist movement stimulated schools to broaden their curricula, ma)ing education more relevant
to the needs and interests of students. Its influence waned during the +,6#s, particularly after the +,6/
launching of 5putni) by the 5oviets prompted schools to emphasie traditional instruction in math, science,
foreign languages, and other defense-related sub@ects. In the late +,2#s and +,/#s, under the guise of
citienship education and educational relevance, many of $ewey8s ideas en@oyed a renewed popularity that
decreased again during the education reform movement of the +,.#s.
The Roots of Progressivism: John Dewey's Philosophy
$ewey regarded the physical universe as real and fundamental. ?e also claimed that the one constant truth
about the universe is the e&istence of change. ;or $ewey, change was not an uncontrollable force; rather, it
could be directed by human intelligence. ?e e&plained that as we alter our relationship with our
environment, we ourselves are made different by the e&perience.
$ewey not only believed in the e&istence of change but welcomed it. ?e regarded the principles of
democracy and freedom espoused in America as representing tremendous progress over the political ideas
of earlier times. Cevertheless, $ewey found much that was wrong with American society, and he had little
affection for the traditional American approach to education. ?e hoped that his school reforms would alter
the social fabric of America, ma)ing it a more democratic nation of free thin)ing, intelligent citiens.
$ewey taught that people are social animals who learn well through active interplay with others and that
our learning increases when we are engaged in activities that have meaning for us. *oo) learning, to
$ewey, was no substitute for actually doing things. ;undamental to $ewey8s epistemology is the notion that
)nowledge is ac4uired and e&panded as we apply our previous e&periences to solving new, meaningful
problems. (ducation, to $ewey, is a reconstruction of e&perience, an opportunity to apply previous
e&periences in new ways. :elying heavily on the scientific method, $ewey proposed a five step method for
solving problems'
+. *ecome aware of the problem;
!. $define it;
". 7ropose various hypotheses to solve it;
0. (&amine the conse4uences of each hypothesis in the light of previous
6. (&perience; and
2. Test the most li)ely solution.
Progressivism in the choolho!se
*elieving that people learn best from what they consider most relevant to their lives, progressivists center
the curriculum around the e&periences, interests, and abilities of students. Teachers plan lessons that arouse
curiosity and push the students to a higher level of )nowledge. In addition to reading te&tboo)s, the
students must learn by doing Aften students leave the classroom for fieldtrips during which they interact
with nature or society. Teachers also stimulate the students8 interests through thought-provo)ing games. ;or
e&ample, modified forms of the board game Monopoly have been used to illustrate the principles of
capitalism and socialism. In a progressivist school, students are encouraged to interact with one another and
to develop social virtues such as cooperation and tolerance for different points of view. Also, teachers feel
no compulsion to focus their students8 attentions on one discrete discipline at a time, and students may be
responsible for learning lessons that combine several different sub@ects.
7rogressivists emphasie in their curriculum the study of the natural and social sciences. Teachers e&pose
students to many new scientific, technological, and social developments, reflecting the progressivist notion
that progress and change are fundamental. 5tudents are also e&posed to a more democratic curriculum that
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
recognies accomplishments of women and minorities as well as white males. In addition, students solve
problems in the classroom similar to those they will encounter outside of the schoolhouse; they learn to be
fle&ible problem solvers.
7rogressivists believe that education should be a perpetually enriching process of ongoing growth, not
merely a preparation for adult lives. They also deny the essentialist belief that the study of traditional
sub@ect matter is appropriate for all students, regardless of interest and personal e&perience. *y including
instruction in industrial arts and home economics, progressivists strive to ma)e schooling both interesting
and useful. Ideally, the home, wor)place, and schoolhouse blend together to generate a continuous,
fulfilling learning e&perience in life. It is the progressivist dream that the dreary, seemingly irrelevant
classroom e&ercises that so many adults recall from childhood will someday become a thing of the past.
Perennialism
"The 7aideia 7rogram see)s to establish a course of study that is general, not specialied; liberal, not
vocational; humanistic, not technical. Anly in this way can it fulfill the meaning of the words "paideia" and
"humanities," which signify the general learning that should be in the possession of every human being.D
The great boo)s of ancient and medieval as well as modern times are a repository of )nowledge and
wisdom, a tradition of culture which must initiate each generation. Mortimer Adler
"Te&tboo)s have probably done as much to degrade the American intelligence as any single force."
:obert ?utchins
7erennial means "everlasting," li)e a perennial flower that comes up year after year. (spousing the notion
that some ideas have lasted over centuries and are as relevant today as when they were first conceived,
perennialism urges that these ideas should be the focus of education. According to perennialists, when
students are immersed in the study of those profound and enduring ideas, they will appreciate learning for
its own sa)e and become true intellectuals.
The roots of perennialism lie in the philosophy of
7lato and Aristotle, as well as that of 5t. Thomas A4uinas
the thirteenth-century Italian whose ideas continue to shape the nature of 9atholic schools throughout the
world. 7erennialists are generally divided into two groups' those who espouse the religious approach to
education adopted by A4uinas, and those who follow the secular approach formulated in twentieth-century
America by such individuals as
:obert ?utchins and
Mortimer Adler.
%e will be concentrating here on this second branch of perennialism. It strives above all to develop our
capacity to reason and regards training in the humanities as particularly essential to the development of our
rational powers.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
imilarities to Essentialism
%hile ?utchins and Adler regard perennialism as a badly needed alternative to essentialism, the two
philosophies have many similarities. *oth aim to rigorously develop all students8 intellectual powers, first,
and moral 4ualities, second. Moreover, both advocate classrooms centered around teachers in order to
accomplish these goals. The teachers do not allow the students8 interests or e&periences to substantially
dictate what they teach. They apply whatever creative techni4ues and other tried and true methods are
believed to be most conducive to disciplining the students8 minds.
As with essentialism, perennialism accepts little fle&ibility in the curriculum. ;or e&ample, in his 7aideia
7rogram, published in +,.!, Mortimer Adler recommends a single elementary and secondary curriculum
for all students, supplemented by years of pre-schooling in the case of the educational disadvantaged. ?e
would allow no curricular electives e&cept in the choice of a second language.
The perennialists base their support of a universal curriculum on the view that all human beings possess the
same essential nature' %e are all rational animals. 7erennialists argue that allowing students to ta)e
vocational or life-ad@ustment courses denies them the opportunity to fully develop their rational powers. As
7lato might claim, by neglecting the students8 reasoning s)ills, we deprive them of the ability to use their
"higher" faculties to control their "lower" ones -passions and appetites3.
Differences from Essentialism
Bnli)e essentialism, perennialism is not rooted in any particular time or place. The distinctively American
emphasis on the value of scientific e&perimentation to ac4uire )nowledge is reflected in essentialism, but
not in perennialism. 5imilarly, while essentialism reflects the traditional American view that the "real"
world is the physical world we e&perience with our senses, perennialism is more open to the notion that
universal spiritual forms--such as those posited by 7lato or by theological philosophers--are e4ually real.
7erennialists see) to help students discover those ideas most insightful and timeless in understanding the
human condition. The study of philosophy is thus a crucial part of the perennialist curriculum. 7erennialists
regard essentialism, and its view that )nowledge stems primarily from the empirical findings of scientists,
as undermining the importance of our capacity to reason as individuals; that is, to thin) deeply, analyticallv,
fle&ibly, and imaginatively.
:ecogniing that enormous strides have been made in our )nowledge about the physical universe,
perennialists teach about the processes by which scientific truths have been discovered. 7erennialists
emphasie, though, that students should not be taught information that may soon be obsolete or found to be
incorrect because of future scientific and technological findings. They would not be as interested as the
essentialists, for e&ample, in teaching students how to use current forms of computer technology.
<i)e progressivists, perennialists criticie the vast amount of discrete factual information that educators
traditionally have re4uired students to absorb. 7erennialists urge schools to spend more time teaching about
concepts and e&plaining how these concepts are meaningful to students. 7articularly at the high school and
university levels, perennialists decry undue reliance on te&tboo)s and lectures to communicate ideas.
7erennialists suggest that a greater emphasis be placed An teacher-guided seminars, where students and
teachers engage in 5ocratic dialogues, or mutual in4uiry sessions, to develop an enhanced understanding of
history8s most timeless concepts. In addition, perennialists recommend that students learn directly from
reading and analying the Ereat *oo)s. These are the creative wor)s by history8s finest thin)ers and
writers, which perennialists believe are as profound, beautiful, and meaningful today as when they were
written.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
7erennialists lament the change in universities over the centuries from places where students -and teachers3
pursued truth for its own sa)e to mere glorified training grounds for the students8 careers. Bniversity
students may learn a few trees, perennialists claim, but many will be 4uite ignorant about the forests' the
timeless philosophical 4uestions.
Existentialism
"9hildhood is not adulthood; childhood is playing and no child ever gets enough play. The 5ummerhill
theory is that when a child has played enough he will start to wor) and face difficulties, and I claim
that this theory has been vindicated in our pupils8 ability to do a good @ob even when it involves a lot of
unpleasant wor)." A. 5. Ceill
FMan is nothing else but what he ma)es of himself. 5uch is the first principle of e&istentialism.88 =ean
7aul 5artre
E"istentialism as a Philosophical Term
The e&istentialist movement in education is based on an intellectual attitude that philosophers term
e&istentialism. *orn in nineteenth-century (urope, e&istentialism is associated with such diverse thin)ers as
5oren Gier)egaard -+.+"-+.663, a passionate 9hristian, and
;riedrich Cietsche -+.++ +,##3
who wrote a boo) entitled T!e Anti*!rist and coined the phrase Eod is dead. %hile the famous
e&istentialists would passionately disagree with one another on many basic philosophical issues, what they
shared was a respect for individualism. In particular, they argued that traditional approaches to philosophy
do not ade4uately respect the uni4ue concerns of each individual.
=ean 7aul 5artre8s classic formulation of e&istentialism--that "e&istence precedes essence"--means that there
e&ists no universal, inborn human nature. %e are born and e&ist, and then we ourselves freely determine
our essence -that is, our innermost nature3. 5ome philosophers commonly associated with the e&istentialist
tradition never fully adopted the "e&istence precedes essence" principle. Cevertheless, that principle is
fundamental to the educational e&istentialist movement. (&istentialism as an (ducational 7hilosophy
=ust as its namesa)e sprang from a strong re@ection of traditional philosophy, educational e&istentialism
sprang from a strong re@ection of the traditional, essentialist approach to education. (&istentialism re@ects
the e&istence of any source of ob@ective, authoritative truth about metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics.
Instead, individuals are responsible for determining for themselves what is "true" or "false," "right" or
"wrong," "beautiful" or "ugly." ;or the e&istentialist, there e&ists no universal form of human nature; each
of us has the free will to develop as we see fit.
In the e&istentialist classroom, sub@ect matter ta)es second place to helping the students understand and
appreciate themselves as uni4ue individuals who accept complete responsibility for their thoughts, feelings,
and actions. The teacher8s role is to help students define their own essence by e&posing them to various
paths they may ta)e in life and creating an environment in which they may freely choose their own
preferred way. 5ince feeling is not divorced from reason in decision ma)ing, the e&istentialist demands the
education of the whole person, not @ust the mind. Although many e&istentialist educators provide some
curricular structure, e&istentialism, more than other educational philosophies, affords students great latitude
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
in their choice of sub@ect matter. In an e&istentialist curriculum, students are given a wide variety of options
from which to choose.
To the e&tent that the staff, rather than the students, influence the curriculum, the humanities are commonly
given tremendous emphasis. They are e&plored as a means of providing students with vicarious e&periences
that will help unleash their own creativity and self-e&pression. ;or e&ample, rather than emphasiing
historical events, e&istentialists focus upon the actions of historical individuals, each of whom provides
possible models for the students8 own behavior. In contrast to the humanities, math and the natural sciences
may be de-emphasied, presumably because their sub@ect matter would be considered "cold," "dry,"
"ob@ective," and therefore less fruitful to self-awareness. Moreover, vocational education is regarded more
as a means of teaching students about themselves and their potential than of earning a livelihood. In
teaching art, e&istentialism encourages individual creativity and imagination more than copying and
imitating established models.
(&istentialist methods focus on the individual. <earning is self-paced, self directed, and includes a great
deal of individual contact with the teacher, who relates to each student openly and honestly. Although
elements of e&istentialism occasionally appear in public schools, this philosophy has found wider
acceptance in private schools and ill alternative public schools founded in the late +,2#s and early +,/#s.
e!aviorism
"Eive me a doen healthy infants, well informed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I8ll
guarantee to ta)e anyone at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select--doctor,
lawyer, artist, merchant-chief; and yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants,
tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors." =ohn %atson
%hile educational e&istentialism is based on the notion that we possess free will to shape our innermost
nature, behaviorism is derived from the belief that free will is an illusion. According to a pure behaviorist,
human beings are shaped entirely by their e&ternal environment. Alter a person8s environment, and you will
alter his or her thoughts, feelings, and behavior. 7rovide positive reinforcement whenever students perform
a desired behavior, and soon they will learn to perform the behavior on their own.
*ehaviorism has its roots in the early +,##s in the wor) of the :ussian e&perimental psychologist Ivan
7avlov -+.0.-+,"23 and the American psychologist , =ohn %atson -+./.-+,6.3. *y refining and e&panding
their studies, ?arvard professor, *. ;. 5)inner -+,#0-+,.,3 has been the driving force behind the spread of
behaviorism within modern American culture. 5)inner developed the now-famous 5)inner bo&, which he
used to train small animals by behavioral techni4ues. ?e also invented a %orld %ar II guided missile ystem
that employed pec)ing pigeons to )eep a pro@ectile on course, a controversial air crib for )eeping babies in
a climatically controlled environment, and programmed learning.
Underlying Philosophical Basis
*ehaviorism asserts that the only reality is the physical world that we discern through careful, scientific
observation. 7eople and other animals are seen as comple& combinations of matter that act only in response
to internally or e&ternally generated physical stimuli. %e learn, for instance, to avoid overe&posure to heat
through the impulses of pain our nerves send to our brain. More comple& learning, such as understanding
the material in this chapter, is also determined by stimuli, such as the educational support you have
received from your professor or parents or the comfort of the chair in which you sit when you read this
chapter.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html
Paris, N. A.
EDUC 7700/7703
?uman nature, according to behaviorism, is neither good nor bad, but merely the product of one8s
environment. It is not human nature but defective environments that are responsible for harmful things that
people do to themselves and others. To a behaviorist, there is no such thing as free will or the autonomously
acting person; such ideas are only myths that may ma)e us feel better but do not correspond to scientific
observation.
5)inner recommends that moral standards ought to be derived from the scientific observation of human
behavior. %e should identify through e&perimentation those environments that best utilie human)ind8s
potential. In such environments, we would find the moral code that people ought to follow. That
scientifically developed code would be much preferable to our present codes, which are derived from the
histories and cultures of particular groups. :egarding esthetic appreciation, behaviorists consider our sense
of beauty environmentally formed. ?ave you ever wondered why something believed to be beautiful by
another culture appears ugly to youH *ehaviorism says that the reason lies in the way your environment has
shaped your tastes. A good e&ample is the effect of the media on your appreciation of clothing styles. Aver
a few months or years, the media may convince you to regard as beautiful a style you previously found
unattractive.
Re*onstr%*tionism
5ocial reconstructionism is a philosophy that emphasies the addressing of social 4uestions and a 4uest to
create a better society and worldwide democracy. :econstructionist educators focus on a curriculum that
highlights social reform as the aim of education. Theodore *rameld -+,#0-+,./3 was the founder of social
reconstructionism, in reaction against the realities of %orld %ar II. ?e recognied the potential for either
human annihilation through technology and human cruelty or the capacity to create a beneficent society
using technology and human compassion. Eeorge 9ounts -+..,-+,/03 recognied that education was the
means of preparing people for creating this new social order.
9ritical theorists, li)e social reconstructionists, believe that systems must be changed to overcome
oppression and improve human conditions. 7aulo ;reire -+,!+-+,,/3 was a *railian whose e&periences
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 re4uires
dialog and critical consciousness, the development of awareness to overcome domination and oppression.
:ather than "teaching as ban)ing," in which the educator deposits information into students8 heads, ;reire
saw teaching and learning as a process of in4uiry in which the child must invent and reinvent the world.;or
social reconstructionists and critical theorists, curriculum focuses on student e&perience and ta)ing social
action on real problems, such as violence, hunger, international terrorism, inflation, and ine4uality.
5trategies for dealing with controversial issues -particularly in social studies and literature3, in4uiry,
dialogue, and multiple perspectives are the focus. 9ommunity-based learning and bringing the world into
the classroom are also strategies.
Adapted from'
9ohen, <. -+,,,3 7hilosophical perspectives in education. :etrieved =une +0, !##6, from
http'>>oregonstate.edu>instruct>ed0+2>77".html
5haw, <. -+,,63 ?umanistic and 5ocial Aspects of Teaching. :etrieved =une +0, !##6,
from http'>>edweb.sdsu.edu><5haw>f,6syll>philos>phbehav.html