Philosophical thoughts

on Education
Philosophy Education
The term has been derived In literary sense, education owes its
from two Greek words, origin to the two Latin words:
“Educare” and “Educere”.
“Philos” means love and
“Educare”- means to nourish, to
“Sophia” means wisdom. bring up, to raise;
“Educere”- means to bring forth, to
draw out, to lead out.
“Philosophy of education
offers a definite set of
principles and establishes a
definite set of aims and
objectives”.

- Philosophy of Education
Function of Educational Philosophy

a. Determining the aspect of education:

1. Aims of education
2. Curriculum
3. Methods of teaching
4. Discipline
5. Teacher & Student
6. Administration
Function of Educational Philosophy

b. Harmonizing old and new traditions in the

field of education.
- In the process of social development the old traditions become
outdated for the people. They are replaced by the new traditions.

- This process of replacement is not always smooth. It is faced

with lots of opposition from certain orthodox sections of the
society.
Function of Educational Philosophy
c. Providing the educational planners,
administrators and educators with the
progressive vision to achieve educational
development.

- Philosophy of education provides the educational

planners, administrators and educators with the right
vision which guides them to attain the educational goals
efficiently.

- It is very much useful to educational practitioner for his

work and its place in the general scheme of life.
Function of Educational Philosophy

d. Preparing the young generation to face the

challenges of the modern time.

- Society is not static; it changes its value, tradition,

custom, culture etc. from time to time.

- Philosophy of education is a guiding, steering and

liberating force that helps young people to and society
at large to face the challenges of the modern time.
 01

Major Philosophies of Education

Major Philosophies of Education

1. Perrenialism

To develop the mind of rationale

beings to control our emotions.

Perennialists urge that students

read the Great Books and
develop their understanding of
the philosophical concepts that
underlie human knowledge.
Major Philosophies of Education

2. Progressivism

Active rather than passive learning.

The whole focus is student.

To develop the curriculum according to

the personal experiences, interests and
needs of the students.

It should be relevant to the students in

order for them to learn.
Major Philosophies of Education

3. Essentialism

- Aims to instill students with the

“essentials” of academic knowledge
Reading, writing, literature, history,
Mathematics, science, arts, and music.

- Students are required to master a set of

body of information and basic techniques
for their grade level before they are
promoted to a higher level
Major Philosophies of Education

4. Existentialism

- It is derived from a powerful belief in human free will, and the

need for individuals to shape their own futures.

- Emphasizes the ability of an individual to determine the

course and nature of his life and the importance of personal
decision making.

- Students are encouraged to understand and appreciate their

uniqueness and to assume responsibility for their actions
In a grade 3 Science Class:

Teacher: What is the function of the Mouth?

Student: To break the food into smaller pieces.
Teacher: Very Good! How about the stomach?
Student: To digest the food.
Teacher: Very Good! Perfect! And the small intestine?
Student: To absorbs food nutrients.
 02

Thoughts of Education
 John Locke: the Empiricist Educator

Acquiring knowledge about the world through the senses

– learning by doing and interacting with the environment.

Simple ideas become more complex through comparison,

reflection and generalization – the inductive method.

Questioned the long traditional view that knowledge came

exclusively from literary sources, particularly the Greek
and Latin Classics.

Aristocrats are not destined by birth to be rulers. People

were to establish their own government and select their
own political leaders from among themselves; civic
education is necessary.

People should be educated to govern themselves

intelligently and responsibly.
 Herbert Spencer: Utilitarian Education

Spencer’s concept of “Survival of the Fittest” Means that

human development had gone through an evolution
series of stages from the simple to complex and from the
uniform to the more specialized kind of activity.

Industrialized society vocational and professional

education based on scientific and practical (utilitarian)
objectives rather than on the very general education
goals.

Curriculum should emphasized the practical utilitarian

and scientific subject that helped human kind master the
environment.

Was not inclined to rote learnings; schooling must be

related to life and to the activities needed to earn a living
 Herbert Spencer: Utilitarian Education

Curriculum must be arrange according to their

contribution to human survival and progress.

Science and other subjects that sustained human life and

prosperity should have curricular priority since it aids in
the performance of life activities.

Individual competition leads to social progress. He who is

fittest survives.
 John Dewey: Learning Through Experiences

Children are socially active human beings who wants to

explore their environment and gain control over it.

Education is a social process by which the immature

members of the group, especially the children, are
brought to participate in the society.

The school is a special environment established by

members of society, for the purpose of simplifying,
purifying and integrating the social experience of the
group so that it can be understood, examined and used by
its children.

The sole purpose of education is to contribute to the

personal and social growth of an individual
 John Dewey: Learning Through Experiences

The learner has a genuine situation of experience,

involvement in the activity in which he /she is interested.

Within this experience the learner has a genuine problem

that stimulates thinking.

The learner posses information or does research to

acquire the information needed to solve the problem.

The learners develops possible and tentative solutions

that may solve the problem.

The learners test the solutions by applying them to the

problem. In this way one discovers the validity for oneself.
 George Counts: Building a new Social Order

Education is not based on eternal truths but is relative to a

particular society living in a particular time and place.

By allowing themselves with groups that want to change

the society, schools should cope with social change that
arises from technology.

Instruction should incorporate a content of a socially

useful nature and a problem solving methodology.
Students are encourage to work on problems that have
social significance.

Teachers should lead the society rather than follow it.

Schools ought to provide an education that afford equal
learning opportunities to all students.
 Theodore Brameld: Social Reconstructionism

Critically analyze world events

Explore controversial issues

Develop vision for new and better world

Promote programs of cultural renewal

Unites theory and practice – Provides students with critical

thinking tools. Public Education should be the direct
instrument of world reformation. Use moral dilemmas to
direct attention toward social and world reform
 Paulo Fraire: Critical Pedagogy

Systems must be change to overcome oppression and

improve human conditions.

Education and literacy are the vehicle for social change. In

this view, humans must learn to resist oppression and not
become its victims, nor oppress others. To do so it
requires dialogue and critical consciousness and the
development of awareness to overcome domination and
oppression.

Rather than “teaching as banking” in which the educator

deposits information into students head, he saw teaching
and learning as a process of inquiry in which the child
must invent and reinvent the world.
QUIZ
QUIZ
1. It urges that students read the
Great Books and develop their
understanding of the
philosophical concepts that
underlie human knowledge.
QUIZ
2. He believes that Individual
competition leads to social
progress and he who is fittest
survives.
QUIZ
3. They emphasize on group activity
and group problem solving so that
the students learn through
cooperative learning strategies. It is
anti-authoritarian, experimental and
visionary and aims to develop
problem- solving ability.
QUIZ
4. The sole purpose of education is to
contribute to the personal and social
growth of an individual. And an ideal
learner is not just one who can learn
by doing, but one who can connect
accumulated wisdom of the past to
the present.
QUIZ
5. It Aims to instill students with the
“essentials” of academic knowledge
Reading, writing, literature, history,
Mathematics, science, arts, and
music.
QUIZ
6. He pioneered in
Building a new Social
Order
QUIZ
7. A method in which the educator
deposits information into students
head
QUIZ
8. He introduces the idea of Tabula
rasa means “blank slate.” Also
believed that we were all born with a
mind like a blank slate – containing
NO innate ideas.
QUIZ
9. He pioneered the Social
Reconstructionism
QUIZ
10. This philosophy focuses on conditions
of human existence such as:
 Emotions
 Actions
 Responsibilities
 Thoughts
 Meaning or purpose of life
 You as a Teacher

Philosophy is vital only Formulating Your

when the questions are
mine and so is the Philosophy of Education
struggle towards
answers.
-W. Luipen
 What does a philosophy of
education contain or include?
It includes your concept about:
▪the human person, the learner in particular and
the educated person.
▪what is true and good and therefore must be
taught.
▪how a learner must be taught in order to come
close to the truth.
You as a Teacher