The Teacher As A Person

Posted by Team Bal Utsav on August 29, 2016 in Strategies in Teaching

This article takes externally imposed staff development activities as a starting point for its major
argument that teachers must be appreciated and understood in terms of their purposes, as people,
and in terms of their work context—as ‘total teachers’. Teachers, in other words, should not be
seen as mere technicians, ‘Delivering a national curriculum or anything else’. Teaching involves
skill, values, and expertise. It draws on the whole person of teachers who must be valued as
people if they are to give their best. Teaching takes place in contexts which are challenging and
diverse and which call for expertise and judgement in resolving the dilemmas which are posed.

Many staff development initiatives take the form of something that is done to teachers rather
than with them, still less by them. Such top-down approaches to staff development embody a
passive view of the teacher, who is empty, deficient, lacking in skills, needing to be filled up and
fixed up with new techniques and strategies.

Approaches of this kind seriously underestimate what teachers already think, know, and can do.
They underestimate the active way that teachers relate to their work. They ignore the way that
teachers’ approaches to their work are deeply grounded in the accumulated learning of
experience, in the meaning that their work and the way they approach it has for them as people.
They do not recognise the important moral and social purposes they want to fulfil through their
teaching.

Teachers are more than mere bundles of knowledge, skill, and technique. There is more to
developing as a teacher than learning new skills and behaviours. As teachers sometimes say to
their students, they are not wheeled out of a cupboard at 8.30 am in the morning and wheeled
back in at 4.00 pm. Teachers are people too. You cannot understand the teacher or teaching
without understanding the person that the teacher is. And you cannot change the teacher in
fundamental ways, without changing the person the teacher is, either. This means that
meaningful or lasting change will almost inevitably be slow. Human growth is not like rhubarb.
It can be nurtured and encouraged but it cannot be forced. Teachers become the teachers they are
not just out of habit. Teaching is bound up with their lives, their biographies, with the kinds of
people they have become.

Many factors are important in the making of a teacher. Among them are the times in which
teachers grew up and entered the profession, and the value systems and dominant educational
beliefs that went with those times (compare the 1970s with the 2010s here, for instance). Also
important is the stage in life and career that teachers are at, and the effect this has on their
confidence in their own teaching, their sense of realism, and their attitudes to change. The
teacher’s gender is another factor, in particular the way that teaching and work in general for
men and women are often bound up with very different sorts of lives and interests.

This view of the teacher as a person has crucial implications for our understandings of change,
professional development, and working relationships between teachers and their colleagues. We
want to focus on two of these implications: the ways we often misjudge the competence,
commitment, and capacity of our colleagues; and the excessive and unrealistic expectations we
sometimes have of our teachers concerning their involvement in schools and their commitment
to change.

First, in teaching, as in life, we are quickest to judge those who fail rather than those who
succeed. When teachers are new to the job, incompetence can be excused or at least tolerated.
They are, after all, only learning. Experienced teachers, who should have matured with their
years in the classroom, get away less lightly. Where incompetence is persistent rather than
temporary, it is rarely excusable. Almost every reader of this blog would have known at least one
teacher in mid-to-late career whose competence and commitment have been in doubt among
their colleagues. We have a glossary of graphic labels for such teachers—‘Dead wood’, ‘Burned
out’, ‘Time-servers’, and ‘Past-it’! Such labels do not really explain these teachers’ difficulties,
though. They explain them away. They are not labels that invite action, that suggest solutions.
They are labels that legitimise inaction, that signal abandonment of hope. The fault is presumed
to be in the teacher, deeply ingrained in their personality. Little point, therefore, in trying to
change them. Not much you can do about bad teachers, especially bad old teachers, except wait
for them to leave, retire, or die! “If only I could get some new teachers…” or “Wait until my new
teachers arrive…”—these are heads stock responses to this apparently irremediable problem.

Yet have you ever wondered what these 55-year-old ‘time servers’ were like when they were 35,
or 25? Were they just ticking over then too? Were they that cynical? Is it possible that they were
once as bright-eyed and idealistic as many of their younger colleagues are now? And if they
were, what happened to them in the meantime? Why did they change? Have you ever wondered
what it might be like to be one of these people, ever wondered about the man or the woman
behind the mask?

Some of the reasons for the transformation, of course, have to do with ageing. Sikes’ (1985)
analysis of the ageing process within the ‘life-cycle of the teacher’ is instructive. One of the age-
phases she describes is between 40 and 50 or 55:

It is during this phase that it becomes apparent whether or not the work of establishing
occupational career, family and identity begun in the twenties and thirties has been successful;
and it tends to involve self reappraisal, questioning what one has made of one’s life. (Sikes
1985:52)

This is when disappointment can set in. It is also a time, particularly towards the later years, of
sheer decline in physical powers which puts morale and enthusiasm very much to the test. As
one of the teachers expressed it: “The kids are always the same age and you gradually get older
and older…And unfortunately too, their capacity for life, their energy remains the same as yours
diminishes.”

Disillusion and disappointment tend to go with the ageing process in the teacher’s unfolding
career. But there is nothing natural or inevitable about this. Much depends on the particular
experiences these teachers have had, on how their schools have treated them. To some extent,
ageing is a cultural process of learning, of interpreting the ways that other people repeatedly treat
you. The disillusioned are partly products of their own mortality, but they are also products of
their schools’ management—responsible as such management is for the quality of experiences
and treatment these teachers receive over the years. Trees do not kill themselves. ‘Dead wood’,
rather, is usually the product of an infertile, undernourished environment. In this sense, schools
often end up with the staffs they deserve.

Age, stage of career, life experiences, and gender factors make up the total person. They affect
people’s interest in and reaction to innovation and their motivation to seek improvement. When
we introduce new teaching methods, we often ignore these differences and treat teachers as if
they were a homogeneous lot. In the process, we often devalue large segments of the teaching
population. This problem is especially important at a time when many new teachers are entering
the profession, new teachers on whom many an eager head is staking his or her hopes for future
improvement. Heads have been waiting a long time for infusion of new blood into the system. It
is clear that a serious and unexpected danger looms ahead also—the danger of ostracising and
alienating existing staffs of more mature teachers who may not embrace with as much eagerness
and energy as their junior colleagues the new methods and approaches favoured by their heads.
These teachers deserve both our understanding and respect in a system which should be cautious
about granting inflated importance to very particular approaches to teaching, like ‘active’
learning, at the expense of all others which have preceded them. Without such understanding it is
likely that many teachers will disengage from their work, will ignore or resist change, and will
help create divided schools of ‘Old’ and ‘New’ teachers, polarised into opposing factions.

At the other end of the spectrum, the failure to recognise the special needs and contributions of
beginning teachers can also have a disastrous, lasting impact on their motivation and confidence
to become good teachers and good colleagues. Mentors are not just there to support their
protégés but also to learn from them. Teaching is inherently difficult. Even the most experienced
need help. From their recent training, their university subject knowledge and their willingness to
try things out under the right conditions, new teachers will have much to give to experienced
teachers. We must also be careful not to take advantage of new teachers and their seemingly
endless energy by loading them with extracurricular responsibilities and giving them the worst
classes. This is a sure path to early burn-out.

A second sense in which reform often glosses over the personal lives, interests, and backgrounds
of teachers concerns the expectations we have for change and commitment. Teaching is very
important. However, there is more to life than school. Life interests and responsibilities beyond
teaching must also be recognised. In our enthusiasm to involve staff more and more in the life of
the school, and to commit them to change within it, we should not forget the other legitimate
calls on their time and commitments, which in the long run may well make them better people
and teachers for it.

There are important gender implications here. In dealing with gender irregularities in teaching,
much of the policy emphasis has been on encouraging more women to apply for promotion. But
the focus is very much on making the characteristically male educational career more available
to women. What analysis of the experience of women teachers also suggests is that individual
development of all teachers, men and women, may also be well served by questioning and
revising our norms in schools and educational systems of what constitutes proper commitment
for a teacher, of how much involvement in the wider affairs of the school life is reasonable and
desirable, given various personal circumstances. Commitment to continuous improvement is
important. Becoming a professionally omnivorous workaholic is not!

So we should fight for a broadening of expectation, for an acknowledgement that there are
several versions of excellence and more than one route to achieving them. We should also
temper some of our expectations in the pursuit of excellence, not as an act of defeatism, but as an
exercise in realism where we abandon the pursuit of swift, drastic change for change which is
more modest in its scope, yet more widespread and enduring in its impact. Put another way,
sweeping blanket reforms, running to tight timelines, that are insensitive to the wider aspects of
the teacher’s life and career and that do not address the teacher as a person, are unlikely to be
successful.

What, in summary form, have we learned from this blog post of the ‘Teacher as a Person’?

1. That teaching behaviours are not just technical skills to be mastered, but behaviours that are
grounded in the kinds of people teachers are.

2. That among the many factors which shape what kind of people and teachers, teachers become,
one of the most important is how their schools and their heads treat them.

3. That schools often get the teachers they deserve. Teachers who are de- valued, discarded, and
disregarded become bad teachers. Ironically, such an approach also permits the seriously
incompetent to be ignored.

4. That we need to value and involve our teachers more. There is something to value in almost
every teacher. We should identify it, recognise it, and reward it.

5. That valuing our colleagues involves more than being more caring and sympathetic. It also
involves extending what we value. Faddish innovations, narrow views of excellence, rolling
bandwagons of active learning or performance-based assessment, which presume only one good
way to teach, divide insiders from outsiders and create alienation and incompetence among those
who are excluded.

6. That, while not any route to excellence will do, many routes are possible. Salvation has more
than one road. This applies to teaching methods and to professional development alike.

7. That extensive involvement in school decision making does not constitute the highest level of
professional development for all teachers. Maintaining a balance between work and life,
concentrating on expanding one’s own classroom repertoire rather than getting consumed by
school- wide innovation, is just as worthy a form of professional development for many teachers.

8. That massive commitment to whole-school change is an unrealistic goal for many teachers—
for many of those in later career, for instance. Modest but persistent attempts to expand teaching
repertoires and to improve practice in association with colleagues may be a more realistic
objective.
9. That meaningful and lasting change is slow. Changing people is not achieved overnight. It
requires patience and humility on the part of administrators. 


Acknowledging the teacher’s purpose and understanding and valuing the teacher as a person, we
want to suggest, should therefore be vital elements underpinning any strategy of staff
development and school improvement. It is one of the keys to unlocking motivation and to
helping teachers confront what it means to be a teacher.

https://balutsav.org/the-teacher-as-a-person/

Characteristics of Effective Teachers

OVERVIEW

Effective teachers appear again and again to display certain characteristics,

while ineffective teachers tend to make the same mistakes repeatedly. Below
is a look at some of the things more effective teachers tend to do right and less
effective teachers tend to do wrong.

WHAT EFFECTIVE TEACHERS DO RIGHT

Based on a scheme originally developed by M. Hildebrand, 1971.

Organization and Clarity

 explains clearly
 is well prepared (see Preparing for the First Day)
 makes difficult topics easy to understand
 uses examples, details, analogies, metaphors, and variety in modes of explanation to make material not
only understandable but memorable
 makes the objectives of the course and each class clear (see Course Design, Course Goals and Learning
Outcomes)
 establishes a context for material
 Analytic/Synthetic Approach

 has a thorough command of the field

 contrasts the implications of various theories
 gives the student a sense of the field, its past, present, and future directions, the origins of ideas and
concepts (see Consider Your Audience)
 presents facts and concepts from related fields
 discusses viewpoints other than his/her own

Dynamism and Enthusiasm

 is an energetic, dynamic person

 seems to enjoy teaching
 conveys a love of the field
 has an aura of self-confidence

Instructor-Group Interaction

 can stimulate, direct, and pace interaction with the class (see How to Lead a Discussion)
 encourages independent thought and accepts criticism
 uses wit and humor effectively
 is a good public speaker (see Speaking at the Hume Center for Writing and Speaking)
 knows whether or not the class is following the material and is sensitive to students’ motivation
 is concerned about the quality of his/her teaching

Instructor-Individual Student Interaction

 is perceived as fair, especially in his/her methods of evaluation (see How to Evaluate Students)
 is seen by students as approachable and a valuable source of advice even on matters not directly
related to the course (see Interacting with Students)

WHAT LESS EFFECTIVE TEACHERS DO WRONG

Doing the right things with your teaching is of course critical but so is avoiding the wrong things. Richard
M. Felder, North Carolina State University and Rebecca Brent, Education Designs, Inc., have come up with
a list to the ten worst mistakes teachers make. They are summarized here in increasing order of
badness. Further details and additional material can be found at Richard Felder’s Home Page.

Mistake #10: When you ask a question in class, immediately call for volunteers. When you do this most
students will avoid eye contact, and either you get a response from one of the two or three who always
volunteer or you answer your own question

Mistake #9: Call on students cold. If you frequently call on students without giving them time to think
("cold-calling"), the ones who are intimidated by it won't be following your lecture as much as praying
that you don't land on them. Even worse, as soon as you call on someone, the others breathe a sigh of
relief and stop thinking.
 Mistake #8: Turn classes into PowerPoint shows. Droning through lecture notes put into PowerPoint
slides is generally a waste of time for everyone.

Mistake #7: Fail to provide variety in instruction. Effective instruction mixes things up: boardwork,
multimedia, storytelling, discussion, activities, individual assignments, and group work (being careful to
avoid Mistake #6). The more variety you build in, the more effective the class is likely to be.

Mistake #6: Have students work in groups with no individual accountability. The way to make group work
work is cooperative learning, an exhaustively researched instructional method that effectively promotes
development of both cognitive and interpersonal skills

Mistake #5: Fail to establish relevance. To provide better motivation, begin the course by describing how
the content relates to important technological and social problems and to whatever you know of the
students' experience, interests, and career goals, and do the same thing when you introduce each new
topic.

Mistake #4. Give tests that are too long. If you want to evaluate your students' potential to be successful
professionals, test their mastery of the knowledge and skills you are teaching, not their problem -solving
speed.

Mistake #3: Get stuck in a rut. Things are always happening that provide incentives and opportunities for
improving courses. This is not to say that you have to make major revisions in your course every time you
give it-you probably don't have time to do that, and there's no reason to. Rather, just keep your eyes open
for possible improvements you might make in the time available to you.

Mistake #2. Teach without clear learning objectives. A key to making courses coherent and tests fair is to
write learning objectives-explicit statements of what students should be able to do if they have learned
what the instructor wants them to learn-and to use the objectives as the basis for designing lessons,
assignments, and exams.

Mistake #1. Disrespect students. If you give students a sense that you don't respect them, the class will
probably be a bad experience for everyone no matter what else you do, while if you clearly convey
respect and caring, it will cover a multitude of pedagogical sins you might commit.

NOTES

Richard M. Felder, North Carolina State University and Rebecca Brent, Education Designs, Inc.

M. Hildebrand, R.C. Wilson, and E.R. Dienst, Evaluating University Teaching . (Berkeley: UC Berkeley,
Center for Research and Development in Higher Education, 1971)

Findings The essays, combined with pre- and post-class discussions of the assignment, led me to
formulate twelve identifiable personal and professional characteristics of effective teachers:
Characteristic 1: Prepared The most effective teachers come to class each day ready to teach. 1. It is
easy to learn in their classes because they are ready for the day. 2. They don’t waste instructional time.
They start class on time. They teach for the entire class period. 3. Time flies in their classes because
students are engaged in learning—i.e., not bored, less likely to fall asleep. educational HORIZONS Fall
2008 64
Characteristic 2: Positive The most effective teachers have optimistic attitudes about teaching and about
students. They 1. See the glass as half full (look on the positive side of every situation) 2. Make
themselves available to students 3. Communicate with students about their progress 4. Give praise and
recognition 5. Have strategies to help students act positively toward one another

Characteristic 3: Hold High Expectations The most effective teachers set no limits on students and
believe everyone can be successful. They 1. Hold the highest standards 2. Consistently challenge their
students to do their best 3. Build students’ confidence and teach them to believe in themselves

Characteristic 4: Creative The most effective teachers are resourceful and inventive in how they teach
their classes. They 1. Kiss a pig if the class reaches its academic goals 2. Wear a clown suit 3. Agree to
participate in the school talent show 4. Use technology effectively in the classroom

Characteristic 5: Fair The most effective teachers handle students and grading fairly. They 1. Allow all
students equal opportunities and privileges 2. Provide clear requirements for the class 3. Recognize that
“fair” doesn’t necessarily mean treating everyone the same but means giving every student an
opportunity to succeed 4. Understand that not all students learn in the same way and at the same rate

Characteristic 6: Display a Personal Touch The most effective teachers are approachable. They 1.
Connect with students personally 2. Share personal experiences with their classes 3. Take personal
interest in students and find out as much as possible about them 4. Visit the students’ world (sit with
them in the cafeteria; attend sporting events, plays, and other events outside normal school hours)
Twelve Characteristics of an Effective Teacher 65

Characteristic 7: Cultivate a Sense of Belonging The most effective teachers have a way of making
students feel welcome and comfortable in their classrooms. 1. Students repeatedly mentioned that they
felt as though they belonged in classrooms taught by effective teachers. 2. The students knew they had
a good teacher who loved teaching and preferred it to other occupations.

Characteristic 8: Compassionate The most effective teachers are concerned about students’ personal
problems and can relate to them and their problems. Numerous stories established how the sensitivity
and compassion of caring teachers affected them in profound and lasting ways.

Characteristic 9: Have a Sense of Humor The most effective teachers do not take everything seriously
and make learning fun. They 1. Use humor to break the ice in difficult situations 2. Bring humor into the
everyday classroom 3. Laugh with the class (but not at the expense of any particular student)

Characteristic 10: Respect Students The most effective teachers do not deliberately embarrass students.
Teachers who give the highest respect, get the highest respect. They 1. Respect students’ privacy when
returning test papers 2. Speak to students in private concerning grades or conduct 3. Show sensitivity to
feelings and consistently avoid situations that unnecessarily embarrass students

Characteristic 11: Forgiving The most effective teachers do not hold grudges. They 1. Forgive students
for inappropriate behavior 2. Habitually start each day with a clean slate 3. Understand that a forgiving
attitude is essential to reaching difficult students 4. Understand that disruptive or antisocial behavior
can quickly turn a teacher against a student, but that refusing to give up on difficult students can
produce success
Characteristic 12: Admit Mistakes The most effective teachers are quick to admit being wrong. They 1.
Apologize to mistakenly accused students educational HORIZONS Fall 2008 66 2. Make adjustments
when students point out errors in grading or test material that has not been assigned

Conclusions

The findings of this study were drawn from essays of college students majoring in education. Students
also read their essays and discussed their most memorable teachers in class, where they shared their
opinions about effective teaching. They identified twelve characteristics of an effective teacher and in
turn committed themselves to becoming effective teachers themselves. It is my hope that educators will
recognize the validity of these twelve characteristics of an effective teacher and will seek to adopt them
as their own.

Section III - Philosophical

Perspectives in Education Part 2

Four General or World Philosophies

The term metaphysics literally means "beyond the physical." This area
of philosophy focuses on the nature of reality. Metaphysics attempts to
find unity across the domains of experience and thought. At the
metaphysical level, there are four* broad philosophical schools of thought that apply
to education today. They are idealism, realism, pragmatism (sometimes called
experientialism), and existentialism. Each will be explained shortly. These four
general frameworks provide the root or base from which the various educational
philosophies are derived.
* A fifth metaphysical school of thought, called Scholasticism, is largely applied in Roman Catholic schools in the
educational philosophy called "Thomism." It combines idealist and realist philosophies in a framework that
harmonized the ideas of Aristotle, the realist, with idealist notions of truth. Thomas Aquinas, 1255-127, was the
theologian who wrote "Summa Theologica," formalizing church doctrine. The Scholasticism movement encouraged
the logical and philosophical study of the beliefs of the church, legitimizing scientific inquiry within a religious
framework.

Two of these general or world philosophies, idealism and realism, are derived from
the ancient Greek philosophers, Plato and Aristotle. Two are more
contemporary, pragmatism and existentialism. However, educators who share one of
these distinct sets of beliefs about the nature of reality presently apply each of these
world philosophies in successful classrooms. Let us explore each of these
metaphysical schools of thought.

Idealism
Idealism is a philosophical approach that has as its central tenet that ideas are the only
true reality, the only thing worth knowing. In a search for truth, beauty, and justice
that is enduring and everlasting, the focus is on conscious reasoning in the mind.
Plato, father of Idealism, espoused this view about 400 years BC, in his famous
book, The Republic. Plato believed that there are two worlds. The first is the spiritual
or mental world, which is eternal, permanent, orderly, regular, and universal. There is
also the world of appearance, the world experienced through sight, touch, smell, taste,
and sound, that is changing, imperfect, and disorderly. This division is often referred
to as the duality of mind and body. Reacting against what he perceived as too much of
a focus on the immediacy of the physical and sensory world, Plato described a utopian
society in which "education to body and soul all the beauty and perfection of which
they are capable" as an ideal. In his allegory of the cave, the shadows of the sensory
world must be overcome with the light of reason or universal truth. To understand
truth, one must pursue knowledge and identify with the Absolute Mind. Plato also
believed that the soul is fully formed prior to birth and is perfect and at one with the
Universal Being. The birth process checks this perfection, so education requires
bringing latent ideas (fully formed concepts) to consciousness.

In idealism, the aim of education is to discover and develop each individual's abilities
and full moral excellence in order to better serve society. The curricular emphasis is
subject matter of mind: literature, history, philosophy, and religion. Teaching methods
focus on handling ideas through lecture, discussion, and Socratic dialogue (a method
of teaching that uses questioning to help students discover and clarify knowledge).
Introspection, intuition, insight, and whole-part logic are used to bring to
consciousness the forms or concepts which are latent in the mind. Character is
developed through imitating examples and heroes.

Realism
Realists believe that reality exists independent of the human mind. The ultimate
reality is the world of physical objects. The focus is on the body/objects. Truth is
objective-what can be observed. Aristotle, a student of Plato who broke with his
mentor's idealist philosophy, is called the father of both Realism and the scientific
method. In this metaphysical view, the aim is to understand objective reality through
"the diligent and unsparing scrutiny of all observable data." Aristotle believed that to
understand an object, its ultimate form had to be understood, which does not change.
For example, a rose exists whether or not a person is aware of it. A rose can exist in
the mind without being physically present, but ultimately, the rose shares properties
with all other roses and flowers (its form), although one rose may be red and another
peach colored. Aristotle also was the first to teach logic as a formal discipline in order
to be able to reason about physical events and aspects. The exercise of rational
thought is viewed as the ultimate purpose for humankind. The Realist curriculum
emphasizes the subject matter of the physical world, particularly science and
mathematics. The teacher organizes and presents content systematically within a
discipline, demonstrating use of criteria in making decisions. Teaching methods focus
on mastery of facts and basic skills through demonstration and recitation. Students
must also demonstrate the ability to think critically and scientifically, using
observation and experimentation. Curriculum should be scientifically approached,
standardized, and distinct-discipline based. Character is developed through training in
the rules of conduct.

Pragmatism (Experientialism)
For pragmatists, only those things that are experienced or observed are real. In this
late 19th century American philosophy, the focus is on the reality of experience.
Unlike the Realists and Rationalists, Pragmatists believe that reality is constantly
changing and that we learn best through applying our experiences and thoughts to
problems, as they arise. The universe is dynamic and evolving, a "becoming" view of
the world. There is no absolute and unchanging truth, but rather, truth is what works.
Pragmatism is derived from the teaching of Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914), who
believed that thought must produce action, rather than linger in the mind and lead to
indecisiveness.

John Dewey (1859-1952) applied pragmatist philosophy in his progressive

approaches. He believed that learners must adapt to each other and to their
environment. Schools should emphasize the subject matter of social experience. All
learning is dependent on the context of place, time, and circumstance. Different
cultural and ethnic groups learn to work cooperatively and contribute to a democratic
society. The ultimate purpose is the creation of a new social order. Character
development is based on making group decisions in light of consequences.

For Pragmatists, teaching methods focus on hands-on problem solving,

experimenting, and projects, often having students work in groups. Curriculum should
bring the disciplines together to focus on solving problems in an interdisciplinary
way. Rather than passing down organized bodies of knowledge to new learners,
Pragmatists believe that learners should apply their knowledge to real situations
through experimental inquiry. This prepares students for citizenship, daily living, and
future careers.

Existentialism
The nature of reality for Existentialists is subjective, and lies within the individual.
The physical world has no inherent meaning outside of human existence. Individual
choice and individual standards rather than external standards are central. Existence
comes before any definition of what we are. We define ourselves in relationship to
that existence by the choices we make. We should not accept anyone else's
predetermined philosophical system; rather, we must take responsibility for deciding
who we are. The focus is on freedom, the development of authentic individuals, as we
make meaning of our lives.

There are several different orientations within the existentialist philosophy. Soren
Kierkegaard (1813-1855), a Danish minister and philosopher, is considered to be the
founder of existentialism. His was a Christian orientation. Another group of
existentialists, largely European, believes that we must recognize the finiteness of our
lives on this small and fragile planet, rather than believing in salvation through God.
Our existence is not guaranteed in an after life, so there is tension about life and the
certainty of death, of hope or despair. Unlike the more austere European approaches
where the universe is seen as meaningless when faced with the certainty of the end of
existence, American existentialists have focused more on human potential and the
quest for personal meaning. Values clarification is an outgrowth of this movement.
Following the bleak period of World War II, the French philosopher, Jean Paul Sartre,
suggested that for youth, the existential moment arises when young persons realize for
the first time that choice is theirs, that they are responsible for themselves. Their
question becomes "Who am I and what should I do?

Related to education, the subject matter of existentialist classrooms should be a matter

of personal choice. Teachers view the individual as an entity within a social context in
which the learner must confront others' views to clarify his or her own. Character
development emphasizes individual responsibility for decisions. Real answers come
from within the individual, not from outside authority. Examining life through
authentic thinking involves students in genuine learning experiences. Existentialists
are opposed to thinking about students as objects to be measured, tracked, or
standardized. Such educators want the educational experience to focus on creating
opportunities for self-direction and self actualization. They start with the student,
rather than on curriculum content.

Think about It:

1. Which general or world view philosophy best fits with your own views of
reality? Why?

2. What have you learned from the history of education that is related to these
metaphysical philosophies?
3. It is said that an image is worth a thousand words. What might be your image
metaphor for each of these world or metaphysical philosophies?

Section III - Philosophical

Perspectives in Education Part 3

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.

Think about It:

1. Which of these educational philosophies would you describe as

authoritarian? Which as non-authoritarian? Why?
2. Each of the educational philosophies relates to one or more of the
metaphysical world view philosophies. What connections do you see?
3. Which educational philosophy is most compatible with your beliefs?
Why?

Section III - Philosophical

Perspectives in Education Part 4

Related Theories of Learning (Psychological

Orientations)

Related to both the metaphysical worldview philosophies and the educational

philosophies are theories of learning that focus on how learning occurs, the
psychological orientations. They provide structures for the instructional aspects
of teaching, suggesting methods that are related to their perspective on
learning. These theoretical beliefs about learning are also at the epistemic level
of philosophy, as they are concerned with the nature of learning. Each
psychological orientation is most directly related to a particular educational
philosophy, but may have other influences as well. The first two theoretical
approaches can be thought of as transmissive, in that information is given to
learners. The second two approaches are constructivist, in that the learner has to
make meaning from experiences in the world.

Information Processing
Information Processing theorists focus on the mind and how it works to explain
how learning occurs. The focus is on the processing of a relatively fixed body
of knowledge and how it is attended to, received in the mind, processed, stored,
and retrieved from memory. This model is derived from analogies between how
the brain works and computer processing. Information processing theorists
focus on the individual rather than the social aspects of thinking and learning.
The mind is a symbolic processor that stores information in schemas or
hierarchically arranged structures.

Knowledge may be general, applicable to many situations; for example,

knowing how to type or spell. Other knowledge is domain specific, applicable
to a specific subject or task, such as vowel sounds in Spanish. Knowledge is
also declarative (content, or knowing that; for example, schools have students,
teachers, and administrators), procedural (knowing how to do things—the steps
or strategies; for example, to multiply mixed number, change both sides to
improper fractions, then multiply numerators and denominators),
or conditional (knowing when and why to apply the other two types of
knowledge; for example, when taking a standardized multiple choice test, keep
track of time, be strategic, and don't get bogged down on hard problems).

The intake and representation of information is called encoding. It is sent to the

short term or working memory, acted upon, and those pieces determined as
important are sent to long term memory storage, where they must be retrieved
and sent back to the working or short-term memory for use. Short term memory
has very limited capacity, so it must be kept active to be retained. Long term
memory is organized in structures, called schemas, scripts, or propositional or
hierarchical networks. Something learned can be retrieved by relating it to other
aspects, procedures, or episodes. There are many strategies that can help in
both getting information into long term memory and retrieving it from memory.
The teacher's job is to help students to develop strategies for thinking and
remembering.
Behaviorism
Behaviorist theorists believe that behavior is shaped deliberately by forces in
the environment and that the type of person and actions desired can be the
product of design. In other words, behavior is determined by others, rather than
by our own free will. By carefully shaping desirable behavior, morality and
information is learned. Learners will acquire and remember responses that lead
to satisfying aftereffects. Repetition of a meaningful connection results in
learning. If the student is ready for the connection, learning is enhanced; if not,
learning is inhibited. Motivation to learn is the satisfying aftereffect, or
reinforcement.

Behaviorism is linked with empiricism, which stresses scientific information

and observation, rather than subjective or metaphysical realities. Behaviorists
search for laws that govern human behavior, like scientists who look for pattern
sin empirical events. Change in behavior must be observable; internal thought
processes are not considered.

Ivan Pavlov's research on using the reinforcement of a bell sound when food
was presented to a dog and finding the sound alone would make a dog salivate
after several presentations of the conditioned stimulus, was the beginning of
behaviorist approaches. Learning occurs as a result of responses to stimuli in
the environment that are reinforced by adults and others, as well as from
feedback from actions on objects. The teacher can help students learn by
conditioning them through identifying the desired behaviors in measurable,
observable terms, recording these behaviors and their frequencies, identifying
appropriate reinforcers for each desired behavior, and providing the reinforcer
as soon as the student displays the behavior. For example, if children are
supposed to raise hands to get called on, we might reinforce a child who raises
his hand by using praise, "Thank you for raising your hand." Other influential
behaviorists include B.F. Skinner (1904-1990) and James B. Watson (1878-
1958).

Cognitivism/Constructivism
Cognitivists or Constructivists believe that the learner actively constructs his or
her own understandings of reality through interaction with objects, events, and
people in the environment, and reflecting on these interactions. Early
perceptual psychologists (Gestalt psychology) focused on the making of wholes
from bits and pieces of objects and events in the world, believing that meaning
was the construction in the brain of patterns from these pieces.

For learning to occur, an event, object, or experience must conflict with what
the learner already knows. Therefore, the learner's previous experiences
determine what can be learned. Motivation to learn is experiencing conflict
with what one knows, which causes an imbalance, which triggers a quest to
restore the equilibrium. Piaget described intelligent behavior as adaptation. The
learner organizes his or her understanding in organized structures. At the
simplest level, these are called schemes. When something new is presented, the
learner must modify these structures in order to deal with the new information.
This process, called equilibration, is the balancing between what is assimilated
(the new) and accommodation, the change in structure. The child goes through
four distinct stages or levels in his or her understandings of the world.

Some constructivists (particularly Vygotsky) emphasize the shared, social

construction of knowledge, believing that the particular social and cultural
context and the interactions of novices with more expert thinkers (usually
adult) facilitate or scaffold the learning process. The teacher mediates between
the new material to be learned and the learner's level of readiness, supporting
the child's growth through his or her "zone of proximal development."

Humanism
The roots of humanism are found in the thinking of Erasmus (1466-1536), who
attacked the religious teaching and thought prevalent in his time to focus on
free inquiry and rediscovery of the classical roots from Greece and Rome.
Erasmus believed in the essential goodness of children, that humans have free
will, moral conscience, the ability to reason, aesthetic sensibility, and religious
instinct. He advocated that the young should be treated kindly and that learning
should not be forced or rushed, as it proceeds in stages. Humanism was
developed as an educational philosophy by Rousseau (1712-1778) and
Pestalozzi, who emphasized nature and the basic goodness of humans,
understanding through the senses, and education as a gradual and unhurried
process in which the development of human character follows the unfolding of
nature. Humanists believe that the learner should be in control of his or her own
destiny. Since the learner should become a fully autonomous person, personal
freedom, choice, and responsibility are the focus. The learner is self-motivated
to achieve towards the highest level possible. Motivation to learn is intrinsic in
humanism.

Recent applications of humanist philosophy focus on the social and emotional

well-being of the child, as well as the cognitive. Development of a healthy self-
concept, awareness of the psychological needs, helping students to strive to be
all that they can are important concepts, espoused in theories of Abraham
Maslow, Carl Rogers, and Alfred Adler that are found in classrooms today.
Teachers emphasize freedom from threat, emotional well-being, learning
processes, and self-fulfillment.
 *Some theorists call Rousseau's philosophy naturalism and consider this to be
a world or metaphysical level philosophy (e.g. Gutek)

Think about It:

1. Which psychological orientations are most compatible with which

educational philosophies? Explain.
2. Explain the differences in focus of the educational philosophies and
psychological orientations. Are there also similarities?
3. Non-western philosophies have also influenced American education,
such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Native American and African
American philosophies. Find out about these and think about their
current influences in education and where they might possibly be of
value.

5 THINGS THAT EDUCATORS

SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE
PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
BY MATTHEW LYNCH
MAY 1, 2017
2
Spread the love

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The word philosophy is derived from two Greek words. The first word, philo, means “love.” The
second, sophy, means “wisdom.” Literally, then, philosophy means “love of wisdom” (Power,
1982). Each individual has an attitude toward life, children, politics, learning, and previous personal
experiences that informs and shapes their set of beliefs. Although you may not be conscious of it, this
set of beliefs, or personal philosophy, informs how you live, work, and interact with others. What you
believe is directly reflected in both your teaching and learning processes. This article explores the
various philosophical views influence the teaching profession.

It is important to understand how philosophy and education are interrelated. In order to become the
most effective teacher you can be, you must understand your own beliefs, while at the same time
empathizing with others. In this chapter we will examine the study of philosophy, the major branches
of philosophy, and the major philosophical schools of thought in education. You will have a chance to
examine how these schools of thought can help you define your personal educational philosophy.
Developing your own educational philosophy is a key part of your journey to becoming a teacher. In
this article, we will discuss the 5 things that educators should know about the philosophy of education.

What are the major branches of philosophy? The four main branches of philosophy are metaphysics,
epistemology, axiology, and logic. Metaphysics considers questions about the physical universe and
the nature of ultimate reality. Epistemology examines how people come to learn what they know.
Axiology is the study of fundamental principles or values. Logic pursues the organization of the
reasoning process. Logic can be divided into two main components: deductive reasoning, which takes
general principles and relates them to a specific case; and inductive reasoning, which builds up an
argument based on specific examples.

What are the major schools of thought in philosophy? Idealism can be divided into three
categories: classical, religious, and modern. Classical idealism, the philosophy of the Greeks Socrates
and Plato, searches for an absolute truth. Religious idealism tries to reconcile God and humanity.
Modern idealism, stemming from the ideas of Descartes, links perception and existence.

Realism, the school of thought founded by Aristotle, believes that the world of matter is separate from
human perceptions. Modern realist thought has led to the “blank slate” notion of human capabilities.
Pragmatism believes that we should select the ideas, actions, and consequences with the most
desirable outcome, as well as learning from previous experiences to achieve desirable consequences.
John Dewey’s Experimentalism brought the scientific method of inductive reasoning to the educational
sphere.

Postmodernism and existentialism focus on intricate readings of texts and social and political
conventions, examining existing structures for flaws. Essentially, they focus heavily on the present, and
on understanding life as we know it. Jacques Derrida’s deconstruction methods of reading texts
suggests that universal rationality is not found in objective reality, but in the text. Michel Foucault,
another postmodern philosopher, examined the relationship between truth and power.

What are the major philosophies of education? The major philosophies of education can be broken
down into three main types: teacher-centered philosophies, student-centered philosophies, and
society-centered philosophies. These include Essentialism, Perennialism, Progressivism, Social
Reconstructionism, Existentialism, Behaviorism, Constructivism, Conservatism, and Humanism.

Essentialism and Perennialism are the two types of teacher-centered philosophies of education.
Essentialism is currently the leading style of public education in the United States. It is the teaching of
basic skills that have been proven over time to be needed in society. Perennialism focuses on the
teaching of great works.

There are three types of student-centered philosophies of education. Progressivism focuses on

developing the student’s moral compass. Humanism is about fostering each student to his or her fullest
potential. Constructivism focuses on using education to shape a student’s world view.
There are two types of socially-centered philosophies of education. Reconstructionism is the
perspective that education is the means to solve social problems. Behaviorism focuses on cultivating
behaviors that are beneficial to society.

What additional ideologies of educational philosophy exist? Other notable ideologies of

educational philosophy include Nationalism, American Exceptionalism, Ethno-nationalism, Liberalism,
Conservatism, and Marxism. Nationalism is a national spirit, or love of country, that ties the interests
of a nation to the symbols that represent it. American Exceptionalism is a form of Nationalism that
implies that the United States is a special country that is privileged to have a manifest destiny. Ethno-
nationalism is similar to nationalism, but rather than the loyalty lying with one’s nation, it lies with
one’s ethnic or racial group. Liberalism is the ideology that people should enjoy the greatest possible
individual freedoms and that it should be guaranteed by due process of law. The opposite of liberalism
is conservatism. Conservatism is the belief that institutions should function according to their intended
original purpose and any concepts that have not been maintained should be restored. Finally, Marxism
is an ideological and political movement that focuses on the class system as a form of conflict within
the social, political, and educational realms.

How is an educator’s educational philosophy determined? It is important to identify your own

philosophy of education in order to understand your own system of values and beliefs so that you are
easily able to describe your teaching style to potential employers.

While writing your own personal philosophy of education statement, it is vital to address several key
components: How do I think? What is the purpose of education? What is the role of the teacher? How
should the teacher teach? What is the role of the student? What should be taught? Additionally, make
sure that you be yourself and are clear and concise. Do some research about the school you are
applying for and address their missions and goals in your statement. Remember that education is
about the students and also remember to focus on your discipline. Think of the great teachers you
have had in your life. Remember to get feedback. Additionally, don’t make it long and don’t ramble.
Don’t rehash your resume, be a know-it-all, or use strong statements.