Philosopher John Dewey Educational Idea - Term Paper Example

Introduction John Dewey is one of the most popular educational reformers and philosophers from America. His ideas in education, which he developed in the early twentieth century, are very influential and applicable up to the present day. To him, education is as important to social life as reproduction and nutrition are important to physiological life. For education to be successful, information must be communicated between the teacher and the student who is learning. The teacher uses the experience that he or she has acquired in class as an inspiration to the student. He advocated for practical learning in schools and the physical education. Due to the difference between the education that was being offered and the education that the students needed to grow in life, Dewey advocated for the introduction of realistic education where the students will be taught what is applicable in real life. His determination to improve the quality of education that was being offered can be seen when he initiates the construction of new schools and colleges. John Dewey felt that education needed to be reformed so that a more applicable approach was adapted where the teacher was not only interested in offering knowledge to the student but also concentrated on discovering the actual experiences of the students. His contributions to Project Based Learning inspired many and have formed the basis to researchers. Bahamas is a country that is currently enjoying the fruits of education. Currently, adult literacy in Bahamas stands at around 93 percent. This paper will seek to give a critical account of philosopher John Dewey educational idea, the usefulness of these ideas and their applications to the Bahamas. Education as a Necessity of Life According to John Dewey, education is very important for the social continuity of life. The explanation is that when an individual is born, he or she knows nothing only that the individual is born in a particular social group. The individual born knows no language, no social standards, no ideas, no beliefs etc. Through exposure and experience of life, the individual is capable of learning new trends in the social environment where he or she is born. One fact that cannot be denied is that the individuals who are the carriers of the life experiences of certain social groups pass away as time goes by but these social groups keep on growing. The beliefs, ideas, social standards of these groups never end with the deaths of the individuals who pass on. This is because, when a child is born in a certain social group, it acquires these beliefs, ideas, social standards etc through education which is the experience that the child learns in the society. The expectation that the young children will acquire characteristics of the mature people in the society when they grow up makes the social group standing strong with its characteristics (John, 1). If a certain group of immature people is left in a way they cannot access any adult from that society that society will grow in a very weird institution. The gap between the unborn and the immature, the immature and the adult, and the adult and the elderly can only be bridged by education. The existence of any society and its behavior depends on the efficiency of the process of transmission. This is a case where the habits, feelings, and thinking are transmitted to the younger generations through communication. If communication between any two adjacent groups does not take place as a matter of necessity, the society is more likely to change its social life to accommodate behaviors of other societies. For a society to continue existing, a teaching and learning process must be existing. An individual learns the way to respond to an event through participation in communication that involves common understanding. According to John Dewey, all communication is educative and any individual who actively participates in communication learns something. This changes the experiences of the individual that participates in the communication as a recipient. Listening to another person’s thoughts influences the attitude of the recipient in the communication. When individuals live together in a setting, education takes place between the individuals. Living together enlightens and enlarges experience, enriches and stimulates imagination, and creates responsibility for accuracy (John, 1). It has been found earlier that living together is educative and this is especially in the experiences that the individual gains from the other members of the society. This kind of education is very incidental in that the incident at any given time determines the activities that will be taking place at that place. The experience here will purely depend on the place and the event that is taking place there. The formal education especially for the children is equally important. The formal education enables the young children to visualize the achievements of the society where they have been brought up. Also, the experience that they gain in formal education could not have been gained if they were left to gain this experience from it (John, 1). Bahamas is one of the places where people from different places have come and settled. These are people with different cultures and ways of living. Each child learns its parent’s culture through exposure to the community where it is brought up (David, 2004). Living together, members of the Bahamas have managed to learn the languages of each other and this way, the Bahamas learn to accept diversity and its consequences. Education as a Social Function Direct conveyance of emotions, beliefs, and knowledge are not sufficient for the development of a young individual to ensure the progressive and continuous life of the society. The environment plays a major part in it. The environment that interferes can be defined as the surrounding conditions that are related to the execution of the activity. These are the activities that are concerned in the way that the execution is carried out by the particular individual. The environment here is very different from the special environment which is concerned with the activities of fellow individuals that can affect the activity of any of the activities of the other members. Formal education is very educative since the individual who is learning participates in some activities that are common to all members of that class. Through this form of education, the individuals get the skills that are required in carrying out some activities that are related to the subject matter. In formal education, the individual learner does not know when he or she gains the skills because the individual just participates in the activity that he or she is supposed to be carrying out (John, 1). An environment that favors the development of the immature is necessary, if full capacity is to be achieved. Formal education has become a basic need in Bahamas. In fact, education in Bahamas is compulsory for young people aged between five years and sixteen years (David, 2004). The government plays a major role in Bahamas education where all students in public schools attend for free. Education as Direction Education can guide, direct, or control an individual. For the case of a young child that is born, the child knows no direction appertaining to the life customs of the society that the child has been born and will be brought up in. For the child to grow up in a way that is acceptable to the society, some guidance is necessary. Here, the child is exposed to conditions that will only favor the growth of the child in a certain line of events such that the child’s acts will always come in line with the guidelines. The actions that any individual takes are selected in a way that it will always influence the individual to act in a certain line of actions. However, a command language is used to directly influence action of the individual. The child looks at what the others are doing in order to come up with their own way of doing the same thing. With time, the child develops his or her own way of doing things such that he or she can now perform an event in its right order from the beginning to the end (John, 1). Education as Growth Any child that is born in a community is expected to become part of the larger society later in time. The nature of the individual that the society will have in the child will depend on the way that child was brought up in its early days. It is therefore advisable for the society to give the right guidance and directions to young children so that these children will grow to become responsible members of the society. The way that that child is brought up will determine the future of the community (Jay, 439). The whole process of bringing up the child from its younger days cumulatively to an adult is what is refereed to as growth. If the society wants its future to be well defined, then the children that will form part of the society must be given proper education. The entire process involves training the child so that it develops good habits. Education as a Preparation, Unfolding, And Formal Discipline Education is seen as a continuous process of acquiring knowledge for growth purposes. The individual who receives any form of education is expected to be headed somewhere probably to adulthood. This in itself makes education to be seen as a preparation for the adult life. Again, the individual who is being educated continues to acquire more knowledge and begins to develop. These developments can be seen as the unfolding of some powers towards attaining a particular goal (Jay, 438). Formal education offered in Bahamas is set in a way that the students learn what is applicable in class instead of using the old syllabus of mathematics, science, and social ethics. The government commitment to seeing the growth of its community is seen when it spares 10.7 percent of its budget on education. In Bahamas, there are also the unschoolars who go to school and one learns what he or she feels (David, 2004). If one dreams at night taking a course in carpentry, he or she can wake up that day and proceed to class to study that course. Education as Conservative and Progressive The same education is given to different people at different times. This implies that the characteristics that people who existed long ago had are probably the same characteristics that the people who are going through the same education have. The two minds are presented with the same contents but at different times. Here, emphasis is put on the early experiences where these experiences are seen to have little impact (John, 1). The teachers who train these people also undergo the same training so that even if one teacher left for a different school, the syllabus will still continue since the teachers are trained using the same system. The Democratic Conception in Education The education in two different societies will differ depending on the quality of life of the individuals in that society. A good social group has the interests of the group shared by all members of the society, but an undesirable society prevents free communication of experience from other members. A democratic society is the one that provides for the participation of all the members of the society when enjoying the goods in the similar ways and also calls for participation of all members in case any adjustments are to be made that affect the entire community (John, 1). The type of education that the individuals from these societies receive gives them some interest in social relationships and control. The habits of the individuals from the democratic groups allow them to participate actively and make social changes that will affect the entire society. Colleges like the College of Bahamas bring people from all parts of the country together and these people learn from each other. Play and Work in the Curriculum John Dewey actively participated in reforming education and that is one of the areas where he gained his name in education. To him, the management in the schools had concentrated in acquiring of knowledge by the students to the extent that time for physical education was unavailable. Dewey says that this type of education is very unfair to the student and gave some various reasons why students undergoing formal education should be given time to play. For the young students, allowing them to go to the field helps them play with each other. This brings joy to them and they have a desire to come to school the following day. Again, when the children play, learning becomes easier. This is because playing helps their minds relax. Everything needs a break including education itself. Physical education also makes the work of the management easier in that when the students participate in playing, they can now sit down and concentrate in their work (John, 114). In the early days of Bahamas, the form of education followed was that of mathematics, science, and social ethics. The form of education has today expanded to incorporate other out of class activities such as the physical education that helps the students to exercise for body fitness and refresh their minds. Intellectual and Practical Studies (Pragmatism) Dewey observed that the mode of education that was being offered didn’t give room for practice which is very essential in acquiring the true concept in an idea. The teachers concentrated in teaching theory all through the curriculum. The students left schools with no practical experience which they could take to the field. Introduction of practical in the schools could increase the understanding by the students since whatever the student learns in the classes can now be demonstrated in the laboratories (John, 115). Usefulness and the Impact of the Theory to the Bahamas When John Dewey was born, there existed a great gap between the education that was being taught in schools and the education that the individual needed in order to grow in life. The industries in the societies were changing at very high rates but the schools remained at the same point. The sciences were also changing and discoveries were being made but nobody was concerned about the education that was being offered to the students. The teaching characteristics that existed include; classes arranged in straight rows of desks, lectures were given by lecturers standing at one point in front of the class, cramming of figures and facts that were taught in class. There lacked a learner-centered learning, no practical, and the students were not being motivated towards lifelong learning (David, 1). Dewey defined the purpose of education as the process of acquiring knowledge that is useful for real life and for building good morals in the student leading to the development of the whole party. The dimensions of development included personal, social, intellectual, and professional. Dewey also felt that education should be made available to all members of the society but then public education was very rare to the students. The kind of education offered should also represent real life (David, 1). Dewey opened a school by the name Dewey school which was meant to be an experimental school that was designed for experimental learning. The school made a great impact on the public education. Dewey advocated for professional teachers and high quality of education that was offered to the students. In a bid to make some improvements on the level of education that was being offered Dewey founded a union for the teachers that went by the name American Association of University Professors. His idea of a practical approach to problem solving and affairs was adopted by many including the United States of America. He wrote many books and magazines with the sole intention of changing American public education which he later achieved (David, 1). Conclusion The contributions of John Dewey to the present education will always be felt. To him, education is as important to social life as reproduction and nutrition are important to physiological life. He viewed education as a necessity in life where a child is born knowing nothing only that it is born in a social group. According to John Dewey, all communication is educative and any individual who actively participates in communication learns something. For a society to continue existing, a teaching and learning process must be existing. An individual learns the way to respond to an event through participation in communication that involves common understanding. It has also been found earlier that living together is educative and this is especially in the experiences that the individual gains from the other members of the society. The environment that surrounds a learning area has some influence in the learning process. This environment that interferes can be defined as the surrounding conditions that are related to the execution of the activity. Education can also guide, direct, or control an individual. This can be seen in the case of a young child that is born. The child knows no direction appertaining to the life customs of the society that the child has been born and will be brought up in. For the child to grow up in a way that is acceptable to the society some guidance is necessary and this guidance can only be acquired through education. Education is also important in areas such as growth, preparation of the future, conservation etc. Students in schools should also be given opportunities to play. Dewey’s educational idea was very useful to the people of Bahamas as it paved way for applicable teaching, professional teachers, acquired knowledge for real life etc. References John, D. (1916). Democracy and Education. Retrieved on 29- Sep 2009 from http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/publications/dewey.html. John, D. (1994). Experience and education. New York: Kappa Delta Publishers, 114-118. Jay, M. (2000). The education of John Dewey: a biography. Columbia: Columbia University Press, 438-440. David, G. (2004). Bahamas Education. Retrieved on 05-Sep-09 from http://www.photius.com/countries/bahamas_the/society/education.html David, H. (1945). John Dewey and His Impact on Education. Retrieved on 29-Sep 2009. from http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~sibrown/johndewey.htm. Read More