“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.”
-John Dewey (from: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/john_dewey.html)
Dewey’s Life:
October 20th 1859 – Dewey was born in Burlington, Vermont. His father was Archibald Sprague, who
worked in a successful grocer business and his mother was Lucina Artemisia Rich, a devoted Christian.
1879 – Dewey graduates from University of VT, Phi Betta Kappa
1882 – After the Journal of Speculative Philosophy publishes his first articles (“The Metaphysical
Assumptions of Materialism” & “The Pantheism of Spinoza”) Dewey decides to make philosophy his life
pursuit.
1884 – Dewey receives his doctorate from John Hopkins University and his hired as associate professor
at University of Michigan
1886 – Dewey marries Alice Chipman
1894 – His 2 ½ year old son dies of diphtheria.
1899 – elected President of American Psychology Association
1902 – Dewey finds school of Education at University of Chicago
1924 – Dewey goes to Turkey to assist gov’t in educational reform
1927 – Dewey’s wife Alice, dies.
1933 – Dewey works to socialize gov’t programs during Depression
1934 – Art of Experience published
1935 – John Dewey Society founded, Dewey publishes Liberalism and Social Action.
June 1st 1952 – John Dewey dies at age 92 of pneumonia in New York City.
1965 – The United States commemorates John Dewey’s life and works by making the official John
Dewey Stamp.
Source: No Author. 2010. Timeline/Biography. The Center for Dewey Studies at Southern Illinois
University Carbonale. Retrieved 27 August 2012. From
http://www.siuc.edu/~deweyctr/about_bio.html
His Philosophies:
-
Teachers must take into account all the differences each student has. Individual differences
should be taken into account while designing a curriculum.
Dewey argues that the authoritative method of teaching is ineffective and does not provide a
good model for life in a democratic society.
Humans are affected by experience. They learn from experience whether it be positive or
negative.
“Whilst they can't control students' past experiences, they can try to understand those past
experiences so that better educational situations can be presented to the students.”
(Wilderdom, 9th pargraph)
Source: James Neill. 26 Jan 2005. John Dewey, the Modern Father of Experiential Education.
Wilderdom. Retrieved 27 August 2012. From
http://wilderdom.com/experiential/ExperientialDewey.html
-Education and democracy are intimately connected. Education should have a purpose in society
along with that individual purpose.
-Experience arises from the interaction of two principles—continuity and interaction. Continuity
is that each experience will influence a person’s future, whether it be for good or bad.
Interaction refers to the situational influences of a person’s experience. “For example, my
experience of a lesson, will depend on how the teacher arranges and facilitates the lesson, as
well my past experience of similar lessons and teachers.” (Wilderdom, 8th paragraph)
- A teacher must be able to effectively understand a student’s past experiences in order to
design a “liberating” educational experience so that this student can become a high achieving
member of society.
Source: James Neill. 1st October 2005. 500 Word Summary of Dewey’s Experience & Education.
Wilderdom. Retrieved 27 August 2012. From
http://www.wilderdom.com/experiential/SummaryJohnDeweyExperienceEducation.html
-“During the 1920s, when education turned increasingly to "scientific" techniques such as
intelligence testing and cost-benefit management, progressive educators insisted on the
importance of the emotional, artistic, and creative aspects of human development” (Uvm, 3rd
paragraph).
-According to progressive educators, democracy means active participation by all citizens in
decisions that directly affect their lives. Progressive educators believe it is important to bring
this into the classroom.
-“The education of engaged citizens, according to this perspective, involves two essential
elements: (1). Respect for diversity, meaning that each individual should be recognized for his or
her own abilities, interests, ideas, needs, and cultural identity, and (2). the development of
critical, socially engaged intelligence, which enables individuals to understand and participate
effectively in the affairs of their community in a collaborative effort to achieve a common good.”
(Uvm, 1st paragraph)
Source: N.A. 30 January 2002. A Brief Overview of Progressive Education. UVM. Retrieved 27
August 2012. From http://www.uvm.edu/~dewey/articles/proged.html
-Dewey considered the school to be his laboratory as a means to test his theories of integrating
learning with experience.
- Dewey’s methods were attractive because his style emphasized on the student rather than just
the curriculum.
Source: N.A. N.D. John Dewey| Philosophy and Education. The University of Chicago
Centennial Catalogues. Retrieved 27 August 2012. From
http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/projects/centcat/centcats/fac/facch08_01.html
Here are some key points I found on Wikipedia, of course we can NOT use these but it should
help us personally kind of get a general idea of the philosophies he’s developed regarding
education..
“Throughout these writings, several recurrent themes ring true; Dewey continually argues that
education and learning are social and interactive processes, and thus the school itself is a social
institution through which social reform can and should take place. In addition, he believed that
students thrive in an environment where they are allowed to experience and interact with the
curriculum, and all students should have the opportunity to take part in their own learning”
“Dewey discusses two major conflicting schools of thought regarding educational pedagogy. The
first is centered on the curriculum and focuses almost solely on the subject matter to be taught.
Dewey argues that the major flaw in this methodology is the inactivity of the student; within this
particular framework, "the child is simply the immature being who is to be matured; he is the
superficial being who is to be deepened" (1902, p. 13).[26] He argues that in order for education
to be most effective, content must be presented in a way that allows the student to relate the
information to prior experiences, thus deepening the connection with this new knowledge.”
“Dewey advocated for an educational structure that strikes a balance between delivering
knowledge while also taking into account the interests and experiences of the student. He notes
that "the child and the curriculum are simply two limits which define a single process. Just as
two points define a straight line, so the present standpoint of the child and the facts and truths
of studies define instruction" (Dewey, 1902, p. 16).”