HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
Author/s:
Arch. Glenn R Desquitado, uap,
Mapua University, Manila, Philippines
Glenn.desquitado1.gd@gmail.com
Abstract:
History and Philosophy of education. This abstract shows the thinking of teaching may be deemed a branch of practical
philosophy, aimed finally at the leadership of an essential aspect of human affairs. Its problems thus arise more or less
immediately from the aspects of learning training and the responsibility of learning in the marketing of personal and social
health, however much its responses may be prepared by the bigger theoretical and chronological situations in which they
are posed. Thinkers have worried themselves about what the aims of teaching should be, and through what forms of
teaching, inquiry, and training those plans might be achieved. This requires attention to the contents of teaching and who
shall have influence over it. It demands consideration of the kind of teaching itself, its situations, behaviour, epistemological
factors, and what is implied by its dependence on foreign language; the natural world of learning and human growth, both
ethical and scholarly; and how all of these are interconnected. The idea of education thus stands at the crossroads of ethical
and partisan philosophy, epistemology, and the attitude of mind and language, as they bear on the institutions of learning
practice.
INTRODUCTION
There was perhaps a moment when the social culture was communicated naturally from one group to a different one.
The young of the species cannot endure to adulthood unless they understand some theories about the planet, some
feelings toward it, and some proficiency in solving the everyday problems it presents; and the only source from which
they can derive this minimal wisdom is the culture of their elders. The propensity to copy offers a ready-made device
for an inheritance, and in primitive groups, where benign environs allowed an unhurried and impulsive connotation
with broods or were an exacting setting spared no period from the effort to keep soul and body together, the teaching
of the young must have continued without much hypothetical or care. In traditions that were a little more established,
the need for teaching in tribal rituals and the training of sons to fathers and of daughters to mothers may have covered
spontaneous learning with a thin veil of unhurriedness. Still, in uncouth areas generally, culture must have been passed
on without the assistance of persons particularly dedicated to that reason.
Through time, beliefs accumulate, attitudes grow more varied, and skills become more frequent and more complicated.
This rise in the volume of culture must have made obsolete the intentional spontaneity of its communication. Mastering
what there was to know necessary special and lasting effort; instructing others to master it insisted more than
comfortable supervision of their lives. A culture thus improved could find lodgment only in a special class of
individuals—those who were able to embrace it. And this class—seers, priests, and scholars—must have become its
chief dispenser to succeeding inventions.
Beginnings in Greece
There are two important concerns about the intensity of culture in the hands of a specialized class. Mindful of their
possession, researchers naturally got to ask how it could be enhanced and cleansed; and this problem led to the start
of doing research. Second, since they were held accountable for teaching, both academics and seculars came to believe
that some good intent should be served by their education—that it not only should protect and extend society, but that
education should serve some other intent as well.
The original records show that the opening of these effects, the start of the research, began to appear in Europe near
the beginning of the sixth century BCE. For a long time, no doubt, the learned had looked upon the things of physical
knowledge as complex citizens of the globe and, trusting upon ancient sacred belief, had described the beginning and
differences of those things by note to the deities who officiated over them. Now, however, a torrent of rumor deprived
physical things of their complicated reality and the gods of their descriptive force. Water, pure matter, air, fire—each
was developed as the best stuff of things by some. Other intellectuals preferred a material that had all the characteristics
of physical things and that was broken down into many tiny bits. Some regarded sensory things as nothing but atoms
moving in the void; others resolved their hitherto independent life into statistics or mathematical constructions. And
others, still, saw their autonomy disappear into the supreme unity that was the only truth. Almost all noticed the ideas
of common physical knowledge as resultant of pure forces running upon the components or in some way cracking up
the unity. The more than old-fashioned insight was enhanced by indicating out that the planet was a bit different from
what it looked to the sensations and by rejecting any illustrative value to fiction.
CONTENT
According to Article XIV Sections 1-5(5) (Pambansa 1987)
Article XIV Sections 1-5(5)
Section 1. The state shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take
appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.
Section 2. The state shall:
1.
Establish, maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education relevant to the
needs of the people and society.
2.
Establish and maintain s system of free public education in the elementary and high school levels. Without
limiting the natural rights of parents to rear their children, elementary education is compulsory for all children
of school age.
3.
Establish and maintain a system of scholarship grants, student loan programs, subsidies, and other incentives
which shall be available to deserving students in both public and private schools, especially to the
underprivileged.
According to (Batas 1982) or The Education Act of 1982)
This was an act providing for the establishment and maintenance of an integrated system of education. In accordance
with Section 2, this act shall apply to and govern both formal and non-formal systems in public and private schools at
all levels of the entire educational system.
As provided by this Act, the national development goals are as follows:
1.
To achieve and maintain an accelerating rate of economic development and social progress.
2.
To assure the maximum participation of all the people in the attainment and enjoyment of the benefits of
such growth; and
3.
To achieve and strengthen national unity and consciousness and preserve, develop, and promote desirable
cultural, moral, and spiritual values in changing world.
It is also stated in Section 3 that:
The State shall promote the right of every individual to relevant quality education, regardless of sex, age,
creed socio-economic status, physical and mental conditions, racial or ethnic origin, and political or other
affiliation. The State shall therefore promote and maintain equality of access to education as well as the
benefits of education by all its citizens.
Rights of Students in School (Section 9)
1.
The right to receive competent instruction, and relevant quality education.
2.
The right to freely choose their field of study subject to the existing curricula and continue their course up to
graduation, except in cases of academic deficiency or violations of disciplinary regulations.
3.
The right to school guidance and counselling services.
4.
The right to access to his own school records and their confidentiality of it.
5.
The right to issuance of official certificates, diplomas, transcripts of records, grades, transfer credentials, and
similar documents within thirty days from the request.
6.
The right to publish a student newspaper and invite resource persons during symposia, assemblies, and other
activities.
7.
The right to free expression of opinions and suggestions and to effective channels of communication with
appropriate academic and administrative bodies of the school or institutions.
8.
The right to form or establish, join and participate in organizations and societies recognized by the school…,
or to form, join and maintain organizations and societies for purposes not contrary to law.
9.
The right to be free from involuntary contributions except those approved by their organizations and societies.
It is also stated in the Manual Regulation of Private schools of section 74, that every private school shall
maintain good discipline inside the campus as well as outside the school premises when pupils are engaged
in activities authorized by the schools.
Imposition of sanctions
School officials and academic personnel have the right to impose appropriate and reasonable measures in
case of minor offenses or infractions of good discipline committed in their presence. However, no cruel or
physically harmful punishment shall be imposed or applied against any pupil or student.
Basic rule. As parents, the teachers shall use discipline not to punish but to correct, not to force, but to
motivate, and not to obey with rigid cadence but to choose the right way.
Common Types of Penalties
1) Fine
2) Extra Work
3) Corporal punishment
4) Grade Reduction
Cognitive Theories of Learning
The cognitive perspective was heavily influenced by the
• development of computer technology and telecommunications, and use of the computer as a
metaphor to understand what is happening
• in the human mind. Learning is defined as storing and establishing information and concepts in the
mind.
Cognitive Theories of Learning
• When you need to remember something that you learned previously, you retrieve it from your longterm memory and move it back into your short-term memory, a process analogous to opening a file on
your computer and displaying it on the desktop. This is why short-term memory is also known as working
memory. (These two terms originated from different but similar theoretical models of how memory
works.)
Constructivism
• Constructivists believe that learning occurs as an individual interacts with the environment and constructs
meaning by making sense of his or her experience. While still a cognitivist theory, it emphasizes meaningmaking processes that may be unique for each learner. The teacher’s role is to create experiences that facilitate
this meaning-making process
• Learning is active. Learners manipulate the environment and learn from observing the natural
consequences of their actions.
• Learning is constructive. Learners integrate new experiences with prior knowledge to construct meaning.
• Learning is intentional. Learners articulate learning goals and reflect on the progress towards these goals.
• Learning is authentic. Learners need to experience a rich authentic context for their meaning-making.
• Learning is cooperative. Learners construct knowledge through productive conversations with other
learners.
Observational Learning (Albert Bandura)
• Observational learning is based on behaviorist principles but is a focused model—learning by observing
the behavior of others. To demonstrate the importance of observational learning in children,
• Bandura, Ross, and Ross (1963) showed children a live image of either a man or a woman interacting with
a Bobo doll, a filmed version of the same events, or a cartoon version of the events. As you can see the Bobo
doll is an inflatable balloon with a weight at the bottom that makes it bob back up when you knock it down.
In all three conditions, the model violently punched, kicked, sat on, and hit the doll with a hammer:
Observational learning is useful for animals and for people because it allows us to learn without having to
engage in what might be risky behavior. Although modeling is normally adaptive, it can be problematic for
children who grow up in violent families. These children are not only the victims of aggression, but they also
see it happening to their parents and siblings. Because children learn how to be parents in large part by
modeling the actions of their own parents, it is no surprise that there is a strong correlation between family
violence in childhood and violence as an adult. Observational learning is also the basis for concern about the
effect violent television shows and video games may have on children.
MOTIVATION
• Think of an activity you do regularly that you love. Why do you do it? How hard do you work at it, and
why? Now think of an activity you don’t like so much. Why do you do it, and how hard do you work at it?
Are there differences between the activities you love and those you dislike, in terms of your reasons for doing
them, the effort you put into them, or the results and satisfaction you receive? Motivation can be defined as
“a theoretical construct used to explain the initiation, direction, intensity, persistence, and quality of
behavior” (Brophy, 2004, p. 3). Or more simply, the reasons a person engages in a given behavior. It is
important for educational technologists to understand and consider motivation when designing learning
experiences for students.
Goal Orientation
• One-way motives vary is by the kind of goals that students set for themselves, and by how these goals
support students’ academic achievement. As you might suspect, some goals encourage academic
achievement more than others, but even motives that do not concern academics explicitly tend to affect
learning indirectly. What kinds of achievement goals do students hold? Imagine three individuals—Maria,
Sara, and Lindsay—who are taking algebra together. Maria’s main concern is to learn the material as well as
possible because she finds it interesting and because she believes it will be useful to her in later courses,
perhaps at university. Hers is a mastery goal because she wants primarily to learn or master the material.
Lindsay, for her part, is primarily concerned about avoiding a poor or failing mark. Hers is a performanceavoidance goal, or failure-avoidance goal, because she is not really concerned about learning algebra, as
Maria is, or about competitive success, as Sara is; she is simply intending to avoid failure.
Goals that Indirectly Affect Achievement
• Failure-avoidant goals by nature undermine academic achievement. If a teacher (and sometimes also fellow
students) puts too much emphasis on being the best in the class, and if interest in learning the material as
such therefore suffers, then some students may decide that success is beyond their reach or may not be
desirable in any case.
The alternative—simply
• avoiding failure—may seem wiser as well as more feasible. Once a student adopts this attitude, he or she
may underachieve deliberately, doing only the minimum work necessary to avoid looking foolish or to avoid
serious conflict with the teacher. Avoiding failure in this way is an example of self-handicapping—or making
deliberate actions and choices that reduce a student’s chances of success.
Teachers can encourage mastery goals in various ways. One way is to allow students to choose specific tasks
or assignments for themselves, when possible because their choices are more likely than usual to reflect prior
personal interests, and hence be more intrinsically motivated. The limitation of this strategy, of course, is that
students may not see some of the connections between their prior interests and the curriculum topics at hand.
Locus, Stability, and Controllability
• Attributions vary in three underlying ways: locus, stability, and controllability. The locus of attribution is
the location (figuratively speaking) of the source of success or failure. If you attribute a top mark on a test to
your ability, then the locus is internal; if you attribute the mark to the test’s having easy questions, then the
locus is external. The stability of attribution is its relative permanence. If you attribute the mark to your
ability, then the source of success is relatively stable — by definition, the ability is a relatively lasting quality.
If you attribute a top mark to the effort you put into studying, then the source of success is unstable effort
can vary and has to be renewed on each occasion or else it disappears.
Learning about the Philosophers
In ancient Greece, philosophers envisioned and speculated about many different ideas such as human being
nature, ethics, and moral dilemmas. Ancient Greek philosophers can be categorized into three groups: the
Pre-Socratics, the Socratics, and the Post-Socratics.
Pre-Socratic philosophers mostly investigated natural phenomena. They thought that humans derived from a
single substance, which could be water, air, or an unlimited substance called “Apeiron.
The Socratic philosophers in ancient Greece were Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. These are some of the most
well-known of all Greek philosophers. Socrates (470/469–399 B.C.E.) is considered for his teaching methods
and for asking thought-provoking questions. Instead of lecturing his students, he asked them difficult
questions to challenge their underlying assumptions—a method still used in modern-day law schools.
Because Socrates wrote little about his life or work, much of what we know gets from his student Plato.
Plato studied ethics, virtue, justice, and other ideas relating to human behavior. Following in Socrates’
footsteps, he became a teacher and encouraged the work of the next great Greek philosopher, Aristotle.
Aristotle, while also interested in ethics, studied different sciences like physics, biology, and astronomy. He
is often credited with creating the study of logic, as well as the basis for modern-day zoology.
The Post-Socratic philosophers founded four schools of philosophy: Cynicism, Skepticism, Epicureanism,
and Stoicism. The Post-Socratic philosophers concentrated their attention on the person rather than on
communal issues such as politics. For example, stoicism sought to recognize and cultivate a certain way of
life, based on one’s virtues, or wisdom, courage, justice, and temperance. Modern philosophers and educators
still employ the outlines of thinking and exploration created by ancient Greek philosophers, such as the
application of logic to questions of thought and engaging in debate to better convey philosophical ideas.
The most basic problem of the philosophy of education is that concerning aims: what are the proper aims and
managing ideals of education? What are the proper criteria for evaluating knowledge pains, organizations,
performances, and goods? Many aims have been future by theorists and other instructive truth-seekers; they
include the tilling of inquisitiveness and the nature to ask; the development of innovation; the production of
information and of well-informed students; the improvement of understanding; the raise of moral thinking,
feeling, and action; the expansion of the ingenuity; the development of growth, development, and selfrealization; the contentment of potential; the tilling of “liberally educated” peoples; the overcoming of
parochialism and close-mindedness; the development of sound judgment; the cultivation of tameness and
compliance to authority; the development of independence; the expansion of liberty, contentment, or selfesteem; the growth of care, anxiety, and related manners and natures; the fostering of feelings of municipal,
social unity, nationality, and civic-mindedness; the making of good citizens; the “humanizing” of pupils; the
defense of students from the harmful effects of progress; the expansion of piety, religious belief, and spiritual
fulfillment; the fostering of philosophical purity; the tilling of political consciousness and action; the addition
or balancing of the needs and welfares of the separate student and the larger culture; and the fostering of
skills and natures constitutive of levelheadedness or critical thinking.
Other philosophers such as Confucius, Jesus Christ, and Buddha tend to deliver religion as the formal and
right way of living.
Sociology and education are mutually interrelated, and they are interdependent on each other. They are
interrelated disciplines like philosophy and education and psychology and education.
The sociology of education is the scientific study of the analysis of the social progress and social patterns
involved in the educational system. Sociology without education is like a body without a soul and education
without sociology is like a vehicle without wheels. Hence, we may analyze the interrelationship between
sociology and education.
(1) Sociological basis and meaning of education:
The meaning of education is considerably influenced by sociology. According to educational sociologists,
education is a social process that socializes the child and causes certain changes in his behavior. In defining
education sociologists have stressed its social aspects. Educational sociology focuses upon the social forces
through which the individual is created and the social relations by which the individual gains experience".
(2) Sociological basis and aim of education: According to educational sociologists, the aim of education from
the sociological point of view is to develop those social qualities and social feelings in the child which will
allow him to grasp his errands in society and the nation, and to become an ideal inhabitant of his country.
Thus, the aim of education is to enable the individual to live as a member of his society. Educational sociology
brings about a change in behaviors, skills, interests, and attitudes. Sociological knowledge and abilities
develop a person into a socially accepted personality, who is adjusted to his environment and is socially
responsible.
We can include the following aspects in the aim of education from the sociological point of view:
(3) Sociological basis and functions of education:
Educational sociologists have stressed the social functions of education. From the sociological point of view,
these are the following functions of education:
(a) Flow of more and more knowledge: The first task of education is to provide various kinds of understanding
to the child. The spread of knowledge develops the mind of the child, without which other improvements are
not feasible.
(b) Education as a means of social control: Social control through teaching ultimately gives self-control to
the child. Hence, in every society, school instills the elements of social control into the younger generation
through the development of education.
(c) Protection and transmission of social heritage:
Education is an important medium for protecting and transmitting social heritage and culture from one
generation to the next. It is through learning that the invention is taught to adopt the culture of our ancestors.
The new group makes its own contribution to this heritage and passes it on to its successor.
(d) Education as a means of social development:
Individual development is not possible in the absence of social development. The school is considered a
miniature society. Therefore, educators try to create an ideal social environment with a view to inculcating
the best possible picture of society in the minds of the educed.
(e) Development of constructive and creative outlook of the individual:
After leaving school, the educed retains the ideal social environment of the society in his mind and tries to
recreate it. Through education, the individual develops a constructive and creative outlook required for the
ideal members of society.
(4) Sociological basis and curriculum:
Educational sociologists have given valuable suggestions in relation to the restructuring of the national
curriculum which reflects the quality and quantity of education. From the sociological point of view, the
primary concern of the curriculum is the development of 'we feel'. Theorists have pointed out the principles
of constructing school curriculum from the point of view of learning sociology:
(a) Curriculum should be based on conditions, difficulties, and needs of society.
(b) It should be based on the real worries and difficulties of pupils.
(c) It should indicate the basic social values of the society it operates.
(d) It must be a representative in the communication of the greatest value of the culture.
(e) It should prepare the child for the world society.
(f) It should be conducive to the development of responsible citizenship.
(g) It should prepare socially efficient individuals.
(h) It should develop healthy attitudes regarding human relations.
(i) It should be flexible and changeable for the effective realization of socially determined objectives.
(j) It should lead to the development of authentic "we feeling", a feeling that the student belongs to the society
and has a spirit of social interaction.
(k) It should treat with dignity all worthwhile vocations and services in the community life. It must function
in relation to adult living and concurrently be adapted to the level of the development of the child.
(5) Sociological core and method of teaching: From the sociological point of view, only those techniques are
good which will develop a democratic outlook, social behavior, and social values in the child. The efficacy
of learning for social expertise depends on the suitability of motives and procedures. Educational sociologists
suggest some methods of education such as the project method, group discussion, problem-solving, socialized
techniques, and practical thinking. The doctrines of the sociologically based method of teaching are:
(6) Sociological basis and school:
According to sociologists, "School is regarded as a miniature society". But in modern times, a school is like
a living creature. It is because the university brings into mind various useful social activities and skills which
promote the growth of social qualities in individuals. In fact, school becomes a social being where all-around
personality development is possible and the child develops their internal and external abilities.
(7) Sociological basis and discipline:
Educational sociologists stress the view that education should inculcate social discipline. Authority should
come through involvement in group activities and social service activities. Social order should naturally
emerge in the dedicand so that he may not indulge in activities that are harmful to the individual or society.
In this way, public feeling, and social discipline can be developed.
(8) Sociological basis and child education movement:
From a sociological point of view, developed countries began a movement for the education of infants. For
instance, many infant schools were established in America and in many European countries which aimed at
providing education to the children of poor laborers.
(9) Sociological basis and adult education:
The sociological influence on education insists upon the fact that no individual in society should be left
uneducated. As a result, many movements for adult education have been established and classes are
conducted during evenings and nights.
(10) Sociological basis and social education: The sociological tendency has a great impact on the field of
social education. Social education familiarizes the person with every aspect of his natural environment and
trains him to fulfill his duties as a citizen. This type of training aims not only at the full development of the
individual but also at evolving social unity in him. The agencies of social education are lecturers, exhibitions,
meetings, debates, dramas, tours, etc.
(11) Sociological basis and responsibility of state:
Educational sociologists stress that it is the obligation of the state to provide schooling. Hence, it is for the
state to make every individual capable of earning his livelihood and developing his personality to fulfill his
social duties. Proper education of the masses is very important without which a democratic system can never
be a success. As a result, the state provides primary, secondary, university, and specialized education. The
different levels of education make better citizens and build a powerful nation.
Bibliography
Batas, blg 232 Pambansang. 1982. The Education Act of !982. Manila.
Pambansa, batas. 1987. The 1987 Constitution. Manila.