Philosophical Foundations of Education

Janeth G. ConcepcionJoy R. Tolosa

Activity

Given the following situation/instances, as a

teacher, which do you prefer or focus more? Write the

letter of your choice.

Set I:5 items

A B

1. The teachers decided what is most important for the students to learn and place little emphasis on students’ interest.

1. The teachers help students define their own essence and they are given a wide variety of options from whish/what subject matter to choose.

A B

2. more on academic content of education

2. more on vocational courses of education

A B

3. The teachers focus heavily on students’ achievement test scores, longer school day, more challenging books, more core requirement

3. The teachers focus/encourage individual’s creativity, potentials and imagination

A B

4. Teachers should instill the traditional approach to education

4. Teachers show a strong rejection of the traditional approach to education

A B

5. Math and Natural Sciences

5. Humanities, Philosophy and arts for aesthetics expression

Set 2:5 items

A B1. Education develops the individual spiritually, mentally and morally.

1. Provide an education that could produce individuals who can meet their principal needs and give direction to individual’s basic potentialities and talents.

Aims of Education

A B2. Philosophy, Theology, Values Education, Christian Living, GMRC (essential for mental, moral and spiritual development)

2. Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Poetry

( acquisition of research skills, library skills, critical thinking skills, application of principles

Curriculum

A B3. meditation, reading, question and discussion

3. scientific methods

Methods of Teaching

A B4. chief source of inspiration, knowledge and information

4. develop initiative and ability to control their experiences

Role of Teachers

A B5. develops moral character of a person

5. develops concepts and principles through scientific methods

Role of School

Common sense

Science

Philosophy

Three Levels of Knowledge natural to man:

Philosophy

“philo” – friend of or

love of

“sophia” - wisdom

Etymology

- The introduction of the terms "philosopher" and "philosophy" has been ascribed to the Greek thinker Pythagoras.

- The ascription is said to be based on a passage in a lost work of Herakleides Pontikos, a disciple of Aristotle.

- "Philosopher" was understood as a word which contrasted with "sophist" (from sophoi).

- Traveling sophists or "wise men" were important in Classical Greece, often earning money as teachers, whereas philosophers are "lovers of wisdom" and not professionals.

Other Definitions of Philosophy

It is the science that seeks to organize and systematize all fields

of knowledge as a means of understanding and interpreting

the totality of reality.

Good

Other Definitions of Philosophy

It is the attempt to give a reasoned conception of

the universe and of man’s place in it.

Montagne

Other Definitions of Philosophy

A complete philosophy includes a world view or reasoned

conception of the whole cosmos, or a life-view or doctrine of values, meanings and purposes of human

life.

Leighton

Other Definitions of Philosophy

It is a search for a comprehensive view of nature, an attempt at a

universal explanation of the nature of things.

Weber

Summing up, philosophy is a systematic and logical explanation of the nature, existence, purposes and relationships of things, including human beings, in the universe.

Main Branches of Philosophy

Metaphysics- origin

and essence of things

Epistemology

- deals with

knowledge and

with ways of

thinkingLogic

- systemati

c treatment

of the relation of ideas

What is Educational Philosophy?

- is a branch of general philosophy and is concerned with the

interpretation of education in relation to general philosophy.

Functions of Educational Philosophy

1. It focuses the attention of teachers and laymen alike on the values and objectives which the school should aim to achieve.

2. It provides a basis for criticism of the school system and of the educational process.

Functions of Educational Philosophy

3. It sets the procedure to be followed in the reconstruction of the educational program.

4. It helps the educator to organize and analyze educational objectives.

1. Provides the teacher with a basis for making his decisions concerning his work.

Importance of Philosophy of Education to Teachers

2. Helps the teacher to develop a wide range of interests, attitudes and values concomitant to his professional life as a teacher.

3. Makes the teacher more aware of his own life and work and makes him more dynamic, discriminating, critical and mentally alert.

Importance of Philosophy of Education to Teachers

4. Philosophy of education saves time, money and effort.

Oriental/Eastern Philosophies

Philosophy Origin Philosophies

Confucianism Confucius, China

The “Golden Rule”

Taoism China “Harmony with Nature”

Buddhism Buddha, Japan

“Enlightenment through Meditation”

Shintoism Shotoku,Japan

Behaves in the Kami No Michi

Oriental/Eastern Philosophies

Philosophy Origin Philosophies

Hinduism India “Dharma”

Modern Hinduism

Gandhi and Tagore

“Ahimsa”

Buddhism Siddharta Gautama, India

Eightfold path

Islam Mohammed One God, Polygamy

Filipino PhilosophiesPhilosopher Philosophy

Jose Rizal • His Educational Legacy for Today’s Society• “Education is indispensable to the task of nation building and must occupy a top priority”.•“Without education and liberty – no reform is possible.”• “Beside the duty of man to seek his own perfection, thereis the desire innate in man to cultivate his intellect.”

Apolinario Mabini • “Individuals must develop his faculties of the intellect and the will, to master his talents – contribute to the cause of justice and ommon good human progress.

Educational Philosophies

1. Idealism2. Realism3. Pragmatism4. Essentialism5. Progressivism6. Reconstructionism7. Existentialism

1. Idealism

- is a term with several related meanings. It comes via idea from the Greek idein (ἰδεῖν), meaning "to see". The term entered the English language by 1796.

Examples of Idealism:

Utopia- Thomas More

Cultural Revolution- Maoism

Marxism

Examples of Idealism:

Leninism

Socialism

Thinkers

Plato Socrates

Rene Descartes

Assumptions- Emphasize the importance of mind,

soul and spirit.- Believes in refined wisdom. Based on

the view that reality is a world within a person’s mind.

- Schools exist to sharpen the mind and intellectual processes.

- One of the oldest school of thoughts with its origin traced back to Plato’s ideas.

Role of Teachers

- Transmitter of knowledge- Chief source of inspiration,

knowledge and information- Creator of educational

environment (teacher-centered).

- Excellent mentally, morally and spiritually

- A reserved person/conversant

Models/Strategies- Lecture-Discussion

Method- Excursion- Question Method- Project Method- Informal Dialectic- Meditation- Reading

Educational Aim -To develop the

individual spiritually, mentally, and

morally.- Education develops the

individual spiritually, mentally and morally

Curriculum Emphasis• Subject Matter of mind: - literature - history - philosophy - mathematics -arts

-Christian Living -Values Education -GMRC

• Role of School- A thinking institution- Promotes high cognitive

level of education- Promotes cultural learning- Develops moral character

of a person

Realism

AristotleHarris Broudy

John Comenius

John Locke

Johann Henrich Pestalozzi

Jean Jacques Roseau

• Assumptions- Reality is what we

observe.- Experience exists only

in the physical world.- Mind is like a mirror

receiving images only from the physical world.

• Role of Teachers- Help develop initiative

and ability to control experiences.

- Help realize that they can enter into the meaning of their experiences

- The students would be taught factual information for mastery.

• Models/Strategies- The use of Scientific

Methods- Defining the problem- Observing factors related

to problem- Hypothesizing- Testing the hypothesis

• Educational Aim- Gives direction and form to

individual’s basic potentialities.

- Determines the direction of the individual’s inherited tendencies.

- Provide an education that could produce a good individual and a good society by meeting 4 principal needs of an individual.

1. Aptitude needs2. Self-determination needs3. Self-realization needs.4. Self-integration needs

4 principal needs of an individual

• Curriculum Emphasis- Study habits- Research skills- Library skills- Evaluation- Observation- Experimentation-Analytical and critical thinking-Natural science-Literature-Poetry-Natural science-Social Science

Role of School

• Further develops discipline• Utilizes pupil activity through instruction• Regards the pupils as more superior than

other objects• Develops concepts and principles

through scientific methods

Pragmatism/Experimentalism

Thinkers

John DeweyCharles Sanders Peirce

Pragmatism

William James

Richard Rorty

• Assumptions- Conservative philosophy- Primarily an American

philosophy.- Focuses on reflective

thinking. The knowledge process, the relationship of ideas into action.

- Encourages people to find processes that work in order to attain desired goals.

- Makes use of experience as a source of knowledge

• Role of Teachers

- Keeps order in the class

- Facilitates group work

- Encourages and offers suggestions, questions and help in planning

- Curriculum planner.

• Models/Strategies• Experimental

Methods–Statement of the

problem–Hypothesizing–Investigating or

data gathering–Testing hypothesis

–Forming conclusions–Creative and

constructive projects–Field trips–Laboratory work–Activity-centered–Student-centered

activities

• Educational Aim-For social efficiency.- Train the students to

continuously and actively quest for information and production of new ideas needed to adjust to the ever-changing society.

• Curriculum Emphasis- Creation of new social

order- Integrated and based on

the problem of society (NCBTS based).

- Subjects are interdisciplinary.

- Combined academic and vocational disciplines.

Role of School

• A miniature society• Gives child balance and genuine experience in

preparation for democratic living• A place where ideas are tested, implemented

and restructured• An agency for transmitting heritage• A specialized environmentalist established to

enculturate the young people.

EssentialismEducational essentialism is an

educational philosophy whose adherents believe that children should learn the traditional basic subjects and that these should be learned thoroughly and rigorously. An essentialist program normally teaches children progressively, from less complex skills to more complex.

Thinkers

Karl Popper Plato

John Stuart Mill William Bagley

• Assumptions- Assumes that values are embedded

in the universe waiting to be discovered and understood.

- Learning is relatively static, since there is only one way to understand the world that is already written in the book (textbook approach to learning).

- Study of knowledge and skills based on the book is imperative to become productive member of the society.

• Role of Teachers- Base the lesson to

the book.- Prepare well-

organized lesson to prove that he is an authority of instruction.

• Models/Strategies- Deductive method- Drill method- Recitation-Memorization

• Educational Aim- Provide sound

training of the fundamental skills.

- Develop individual to perform justly, skillfully and magnanimously.

• Curriculum Emphasis

- Natural science and Math

Progressivism

• Educational progressivism is the belief that education must be based on the principle that humans are social animals who learn best in real-life activities with other people.Progressivists, like proponents of most educational theories, claim to rely on the best available scientific theories of learning

• Most progressive educators believe that children learn as if they were scientists, following a process similar to John Dewey's model of learning: 1) Become aware of the problem. 2) Define the problem. 3) Propose hypotheses to solve it. 4) Evaluate the consequences of the hypotheses from one's past experience. 5) Test the likeliest solution.

Progressivism

Thinkers

John Dewey

William Heard Kilpatrick

• Assumptions• Exactly opposite of perennialism.• Assumes that the world changes.• Learner must be taught to be

independent, self-reliant thinker, learn to discipline himself, be responsible for the consequences of his actions.

• Emphasize on the concept of progress which asserts that human beings are capable of improving and perfecting their environment.

• Curriculum must be derived from the needs and interests of the students.

• Role of Teachers- Acts as a resource person- Guide or facilitator of learning

(student-centered).- Teaches students how to learn and

become active problem solvers.- Teachers provide experiences that

will make students active and not passive.

• Models/Strategies- Cooperative learning

strategies- Reflective strategies- Problem solving

strategies

• Educational Aim-To provide the learner

the necessary skills to be able to interact with his ever changing environment.

• Curriculum Emphasis- Activity and experience

centered on life functions.- 4 H’s (health, head, heart and

hand)

Reconstructionism

Thinkers

Theodore Brameld

George Sylvester Counts

Reconstructionism

Thinkers

Ivan IllichPaulo Reglus Neves Freire

• Assumptions- Man to a significant degree plan and

control his society.- Society is in need of constant

reconstruction.- Social change involves a

reconstruction of education and the use of education in reconstructing society.

- Mankind has the intellectual, technological, and moral potential to create a world civilization of abundance, health and human capacity.

• Role of Teachers- Lead the learners in designing

programs for social, educational, practical and economic change.

- Primary agent of social change.- Initiates lively discussions on

controversial issues, political and educational.

- Enables the learners to critically examine their cultural heritage.

• Models/Strategies- Community-based

projects-Problem-oriented method

Educational Aim- Education is based on the

quest for better society.- Education enlivens the

students’ awareness of different societal problems.

• Curriculum Emphasis- Stresses learning that enable the

individual to live in a global milieu.

- Controversial national and international issues.

- Emphasis on social sciences and social research methods; examination of social, economic and political problems.

- Focused on present and future trends.

Role of School

• Primary agent of social change• Venue for airing opinions/ideas• Critical examination of cultural heritage• Center of controversy/problem solving

Existentialism

Soren Aabye Kierkegaard

Jean-Paul Sartre

Thinkers

Existentialism

- strong rejection of the traditional, essentialist approach to education

- Vocational education is needed more as means of teaching students about themselves

• Assumptions- Man has no fixed nature and he

shapes his being as he lives.- Man exists of his own choice.- Reality is what you experience.- School exists to discover and

expand society we live in. Students study social experiments and solve problems.

- Existence precedes essence.

• Role of Teachers- Good provider of experiences.- Effective questioner.- Mental disciplinarian.- Creates an atmosphere for active

interaction.- Discuss the different situations

based on each individual experiences.

- To help students define their own essence by exposing them to various path they may take in life.

• Models/Strategies- Inquiry Approach- Question-Answer Method

• Educational Aim- To train an

individual for significant and meaningful existence.

• Curriculum Emphasis- Subject-centered.- Arts for aesthetic

expression- Humanities for ethical

values.- Philosophy

References

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realism• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idealism• http://saicebrian.wordpress.com/

2009/11/22/philosophical-foundation-of-education/

JANETH G. CONCEPCION JOY R. TOLOSA