THE SEVEN PHILOSOPHIES OF

EDUCATIONPHILOSOPHY WHY TEACH WHAT TO TEACH HOW TO TEACH
1.Essentialism
 
This philosophy contends thatteachers teach for learners toacquire basic knowledge, skillsand values.
 
The emphasis is on theacademic content for studentsto learn the basic skills and
fundamental r’s – 
 reading,
‘riting, ‘rithmetic and right
conduct.
The teachers and administratorsdecide what is most importantfor the students to learn.
 
Essentialist teachers emphasizethe mastery of the subjectmatter.
 
They are expected to b eintellectual and moral modelsof their students.
 
They are seen as “fountain ofknowledge” and as “paragon ofvirtue”.
 
2.
 
Progressivism

 
Progressivist teachers teach todevelop learners into becomingenlightened and intelligentcitizens of a
democraticsociety.

 
The progressivists areidentified with need-based andrelevant curriculum.

 
The curriculum should respond
to students’ needs and thatrelates to students’ personal
lives and experiences.

 
Progressivist teachers employexperiential methods.
3.
 
Perennialism

 
To develop the students’
rational and moral powers.

 
The perennialist curriculum is auniversal one on that all human beings possess the sameessential
nature.

 
It is not a specialist curriculum but rather a general one.

 
The perennialist classrooms are
“centered around teachers”.

 
The students do not allow the
students’ interests and
experiences to substantiallydictate what they teach.
4.
 
Existentialism

 
To help students understandand appreciate themselves asunique individuals who acceptcomplete
responsibility fortheir thoughts, feelings andactions.

 
To help students to define theirown essence by exposing themto various paths they take inlife.

 
In an existentialist curriculum,students are given a widevariety way of options fromwhich to choose.

 
Provide students with vicariousexperiences that will helpunleash their own creativityand self-expression.

 
Existentialist methods focus onthe individual.

 
They help students knowthemselves and their place insociety.
5.
 
Behaviorism

 
Behaviorist schools areconcerened with the

 
Behaviorist teachers teachstudents to respond favorably

 
Behaviorist teachers ought toarrange environmentalmodification and shaping of students’ behavior by
providing
for a favorable environment.to various stimuli in theenvironment.conditions so that students canmake the
responses to stimuli.

 
Teachers ought to make thestimuli clear and interesting to
capture and hold the learners’
attention.

 
They ought to provideappropriate incentives toreinforce positive responsesand weaken eliminate thenegative
ones.
6.
 
Linguistic Philosophy

 
To develop the communicationskills of the learner.

 
To develop in the learner theskill to send messages clearlyand receive messages correctly.

 
Learner should be taught tocommunicate clearly
 – 
 how tosend clear, concise messagesand how to receive andcorrectly understand messagessent.

 
Communication takes place inthree (3) ways
 – 
 verbal, non-verbal and paraverbal.

 
Experiential is the mosteffective way to teach languageand communication.

 
The teacher facilitates dialogueamong learners and betweenhis/her students.
7.
 
Constructivism

 
To develop intrinsicallymotivated and independentlearners adequately equippedwith learning skills for
them toconstruct knowledge and makemeaning of them.

 
The students are taught how tolearn.

 
They are taught learning processes and skills such assearching, critiquing andevaluating information.

 
The teachers provide studentswith data or experiences thatallow them to hypothesize, predict, manipulate
objects, pose questions, research,investigate, imagine and invent.Prepared by:
Euphemia Abigael Bas
BSCS

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.

Realism, in philosophy, the viewpoint which accords to things which

are known or perceived an existence or nature which is independent of
whether anyone is thinking about or perceiving them.
Educational realism is the belief that we should study logic, critical thinking, and the scientific
method to teach students to perceive and understand reality. As you might imagine, there is a
heavy emphasis on math and science, though the humanities can also be influenced by
educational realism.

Pragmatism is an educational philosophy that says that education should be about life and

growth. That is, teachers should be teaching students things that are practical for life and
encourage them to grow into better people. Many famous educators, including John Dewey,
were pragmatists

Pragmatism in Education:
In the present world pragmatism has influenced education
tremendously. It is a practical and utilitarian philosophy. It makes
activity the basis of all teaching and learning. It is activity around
which an educational process revolves.

It makes learning purposeful and infuses a sense of reality in

education. It makes schools into workshops and laboratories. It gives
an experimental character to education. Pragmatism makes man
optimistic, energetic and active. It gives him self-confidence. The child
creates values through his own activities.

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.

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.

Social-reconstructionist education

Social-reconstructionist education was based on the theory that

society can be reconstructed through the complete control of
education. The objective was to change society to conform to the basic
ideals of the political party or government in power or to create
a utopian society through education.

Philosophy means "love of wisdom." It is made up of two Greek words, philo,

meaning love, and sophos, meaning wisdom. Philosophy helps teachers to reflect on
key issues and concepts in education, usually through such questions as: What is
being educated? What is the good life? What is knowledge? What is the nature of
learning? And What is teaching? Philosophers think about the meaning of things and
interpretation of that meaning. Even simple statements, such as "What should be
learned? Or What is adolescence?" set up raging debates that can have major
implications. For example, what happens if an adolescent commits a serious crime?
One interpretation may hide another. If such a young person is treated as an adult
criminal, what does it say about justice, childhood, and the like? Or if the adolescent
is treated as a child, what does it say about society's views on crime?

Your educational philosophy is your beliefs about why, what and how you teach,
whom you teach, and about the nature of learning. It is a set of principles that guides
professional action through the events and issues teachers face daily. Sources for your
educational philosophy are your life experiences, your values, the environment in
which you live, interactions with others and awareness of philosophical approaches.
Learning about the branches of philosophy, philosophical world views, and different
educational philosophies and theories will help you to determine and shape your own
educational philosophy, combined with these other aspects.

When you examine a philosophy different from your own, it helps you to "wrestle"
with your own thinking. Sometimes this means you may change your mind. Other
times, it may strengthen your viewpoint; or, you may be eclectic, selecting what
seems best from different philosophies. But in eclecticism, there is a danger of sloppy
and inconsistent thinking, especially if you borrow a bit of one philosophy and stir in
some of another. If serious thought has gone into selection of strategies, theories, or
philosophies, this is less problematic. For example, you may determine that you have
to vary your approach depending on the particular learning needs and styles of a given
student. At various time periods, one philosophical framework may become favored
over another. For example, the Progressive movement led to quite different
approaches in education in the 1930s. But there is always danger in one "best or only"
philosophy. In a pluralistic society, a variety of views are needed.

Branches of Philosophy

There are three major branches of philosophy. Each branch focuses on a different
aspect and is central to your teaching. The three branches and their sub-branches are:

Branch Metaphysics: What is the Epistemology: What is the Axiology: What

nature of reality? nature of knowledge? How do values should one
we come to know? live by?
Educational –Do you think human –How would an anthropologist –Is morality
Examples beings are basically good look at this classroom? A defined by our
or evil? political scientist? A biologist? actions, or by
–What are conservative or –How do we know what a child what is in our
liberal beliefs? knows? hearts?
–What values
should be taught
in character
education?
Sub- –Ontology Knowing based on: –Ethics
branches What issues are related to –Scientific Inquiry What is good and
nature, existence, or –Senses and Feelings evil, right and
being? Is a child inherently –From authority or divinity wrong?
evil or good? How might –Empiricism (experience) Is it ever right to
your view determine your –Intuition take something
classroom management? –Reasoning or Logic that does not
–Cosmology        What reasoning processes belong to you?
What is the nature and yield valid conclusions? –Aesthetics
origin of the cosmos or        –Deductive:  reasoning What is beautiful?
universe? Is the world and from the general to the      How do we
universe orderly or is it particular All children can recognize a great
marked by chaos? What learn. Bret is a fifth grader. He piece of music?
would one or the other has a learning disability. Can Art?
mean for a classroom? Bret learn?      Can there be
       –Inductive:  reasoning beauty in
from the specific to the destruction?
general. After experimenting
with plant growth under varied
conditions, stu-dents conclude
plants need water and light
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.

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.

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.
ANSWER KEY to Assignment No. 2
KEY TO CORRECTION.
Assignment 1: Review the items below and be ready for a quiz on Sept. 19
TEST YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PHILOSOPHIES
Essentialism Question and Answer
1. Do essentialists aim to teach students to reconstruct society? No. They aim to transmit the
traditional moral values and intellectual knowledge that students need to become model citizens.
2. Is the model citizen of the essentialist the citizen who contributes to the re-building of society?
No. The model student is the one who show mastery of the basic skills and that one who lives by
traditional moral values.
3. Do the essentialist teachers give up teaching the basics if the students are not interested? No.
They teach subject matter even if the students are not interested. They are more subject matter-
oriented than student-centered.
4. Do the essentialist teachers frown on long academic calendar and core requirements? No.
They need long academic calendar and core requirements for mastery of basic skills.
Progressivism
1. Do the progressivist teachers look at education as a preparation for adult life? No. They look
at education as life.
2. Are the students’ interests and needs considered in a progressivist curriculum? Yes.
3. Does the progressivist curriculum focus mainly on facts and concepts? No. They focus more
on problem-solving skills.
4. Do the progressivist teachers strive to stimulate in the classroom life in the outside world?
Yes.
Perennialism
1. Do the perennialist teachers concerned with the students’ mastery of the fundamental skills?
No. They are more concerned with the study of the Great Books.
2. Do the perennialist teachers see the wisdom of ancient, medieval and modern times? Yes.
3. Is the perennialist curriculum geared towards specialization? No. It is geared towards general
or liberal education.
4. Do the perennialist teachers sacrifice subject matter for the sake of students’ interests? No.
Like the essentialist, subject matter is foremost to the perennialist.
Existentialism
1. Is the existentialist teacher after students becoming specialists in order to contribute to
society? No. They are more concerned in helping students appreciate themselves as unique
individuals who accept responsibility over the thoughts, actions and life.
2. Is the existentialist concerned with the education of the whole person? Yes.
3. Is the course of study imposed on students in the existentialist curriculum? No. Students are
given a choice.
4. Does the existentialist teacher make heavy use of the individualized approach? Yes, to allow
each student to learn at his own pace.
Behaviorism
1. Are behaviourists concerned with the modifications of students’ behavior? Yes.
2. Do the behaviourist teachers spend their time teaching their students on how to respond
favourably to various environmental stimuli? Yes.
3. Do behaviourist teachers believe they have control over some variables that affect learning?
Yes.
4. Do behaviourist teachers believe that students are a product of their environment? Yes.
Linguistic Philosophy
1. Do linguistic philosophers promote the study of language? Yes.
2. Is the communication that linguistic philosophers encourage limited to verbal language only?
No.
3. Do linguistic philosophers prefer the teacher who dominates discussion to save time to a
teacher who encourages dialogue? No.
4. Is the curriculum of the linguistic philosopher open to the learning of as many languages, like
other Tongue, as possible ? Yes.
Constructivism
1. Does the constructivist agree to a teaching methodology of “telling”? No
2. Do constructivists believe that students can construct knowledge? Yes.
3. Do constructivists approve of teaching learners the skill to learn? Yes.
4. Do constructivists believe that meaning can be imposed ? No

Page 35
Teaching is the most valued and most professed profession in the world ,Giglio, M.
(2015). Today, it is seen that countries have mobilized their resources to a great extent
to obtain qualified human power. Because the development and progress of a country
depends on qualified human power. The attainment of qualified human power is closely
related to the success of the teacher. This is why the teaching profession is the task that
requires the most work, sensitivity and responsibility.

It is filled with advice that promotes the value of knowledge and the glory of the
comrade. As knowledge, has become so important, the teacher has also been at the top
of the values ladder.

The teacher is not only a person who teaches and teaches at school; a leader, a model
man, and a respected big man. In this way, it is understood how important the teaching
profession is and how sensitive it should be. “We have to consider the needs and
interests of their parents, employers as well as the learning institutions” (Ho, 2015)

It is not enough for a successful teacher to have sufficient knowledge and teaching
formation. In addition to these, it should be sufficient in terms of community culture,
(Medrado, 2013)

teaching experience and practice. Because the teaching profession is an activity that
requires knowledge and experience to be handled together. This is very important for
success.
A teacher should have enough knowledge and skills to teach at a level sufficient to
teach at a general cultural, subject matter level. Because it is arogoogarinaccurate thing
to do in the teaching profession which is a human being; society, and the future of the
state. For this reason, the training of both teachers and students is extremely important.
(MCGINNIS et al., 2016)

Education is vitally important in terms of the independence of nations, their

development and their strengthening. We can understand the significance that Atatürk
gave to education by saying: “The most important and most important point is
education.” Because “Education is to live as a nation either as a free, independent,
glorious, supreme society, or a nation abandons the slave and the
altruism”(Ataturk,1928).

Teachers must have gained the ability to acquire knowledge, transfer knowledge and
use knowledge in order to conduct successful work. It is also expected that people have
also acquired methods of developing constructive relationships.

To give positive behaviors to the students, to make the information permanent and to
use; judiciary, thinking, reasoning, interpreting, communicating and comprehension are
the behaviors expected from a teacher. (Lee and Nie, 2016)

Teachers have five basic tasks in the general sense. These; Teaching, management,
expertise, personality development and guidance. The coordination and execution of
these tasks as a whole is related to teaching skills (Sung,2015). This is based on the
combined use of knowledge and practice.

Teachers today are increasingly important, and their duties and responsibilities are
increasing. Teachers need to work harder than ever, to raise the human power and
human type that the society and the country desire. In order to carry out this difficult
and important task, they must have acquired the subtleties, rules and personality traits
of the teaching profession. (Ustuner, 2017)

Page 36
I feel that to be a professional teacher it is necessary that you have patience. Some children may
take longer to understand certain subjects or pieces of information and it is vital that you are patient
and take the time to fully explain so that they understand and learn from your teaching. During
school, I found that in particular subjects I would require the teacher to explain things in a little more
depth before I fully understood, and this would only help my learning if the teacher had the patience
to spend extra time on the same thing. Many teachers wouldn’t do this and I would therefore struggle
in their subjects. I feel that it is unacceptable for a teacher to act this way. As a teacher it is your job
to make sure that all pupils can work and learn to the best of their ability, and without the patience to
do so you are not fulfilling your role as a professional teacher. In my opinion, a professional teacher
would consider their teaching style to make sure that it is meeting the needs of all learners,
remembering that everyone learns in different ways – visually, orally and kinaesthetically.
Another quality which I feel is vital for a teacher to possess is fairness. Teachers must have the
ability to treat all children equally. Teachers must take a fair approach, for example when it comes to
behaviour, and ensure that all children are disciplined equally. From my own experience of primary
school, I found that many of the male pupils in my class would receive harsher discipline than the
females, even though they were being punished for the exact same thing. I find this to be extremely
unprofessional as a teacher should make a conscious effort to ensure that all of her pupils are
treated equally. It is also a requirement that as a teacher you must adhere to the Equality Act 2010
and so this helps to guarantee that all teachers will be fair.
An extremely important virtue for a professional teacher to hold is respect. Teachers must be able to
show their pupils that they respect everyone around them, no matter what religion or culture they
belong to. Respect is a quality which everybody should have, and so if teachers reinforce this idea
with their own actions, children are more likely to follow and respect others. Teachers should always
consider themselves to be role models for their pupils and so they should model this virtue alongside
all of the others so that children can learn from it.
Personally, I feel that empathy is a very important quality in being a professional teacher. Being
empathetic allows teachers to understand their pupils’ emotions and gives them the ability to relate
to them. Pupils will originate from various cultures and backgrounds and so teachers need to be able
to understand each individual’s situation as this will help the children to feel more comfortable to
discuss any problems which they might be having at home. It is necessary to keep professional
boundaries between student and teacher, but learners should see their teacher as someone that
they can approach if they need or want to. Having empathy can help the children to understand that
they are not alone and that the things that they are feeling are normal.
I feel that integrity is an important characteristic for a professional teacher to have. Integrity is the
quality of honesty and having strong moral principles and so it is necessary for the teacher to have
these so that the pupils can be educated to act in the same way. Pupils should see their teachers as
a figure to look up to and so integrity allows teachers to be a role model for their pupils.

I have chosen these five qualities to be the most important from the list, however I believe that all of
the qualities listed are important and that they should come naturally to a professional teacher.