Western Connecticut State University - Pahquioque Yearbook (Danbury, CT)

Page 74 text:

EDUCATIONAL It is now generally accepted that the process by which a student is transformed into a teacher must include reference to the meta- physical meaning of human existence as well as sound training in methodology. By the time a student's training as a teacher is completed the' pioneers in educational thought are as familiar to him as old friends. . Plato's educational plans were mainly utopian but nevertheless he contributed valuable ideas to the body of educational thought. He considered the spirit of education more important than educational technique. He stressed the value of being able to see things in their relationship to each other. He believed that education should continue through life, making daily experiences more meaningful. Aristotle, Plato's disciple, further contributed to educational thought. He emphasized intellectual freedom and the spirit of inde- pendent inquiry but he also attached much importance to methodical knowledge. The foundation stones of educational philosophy were laid by Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, Quintilian, Luther, Erasmus, Montaigne, Bacon, Descartes. The superstructure of education as we know it today has been built upon their foundation by Locke, Rousseau, Pestalozzi, Herbart, Froebel and Dewey. John Locke, although influenced greatly by the social conditions of his time, was an advocate of tolerance, personality development rather than bookishness, and the encouragement of independent judg- ment, initiative and the critical use of reason. Rousseau's ideas are important, not so much for their originality as for their vigor. They stimulated the trend toward educational reform which was later carried forward by Johann Pestalozzi. Pestalozzi at- tacked the artificial methods of education of his time but he is best known as the priphet of equality and individual difference teaching. 70

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PHILUSOPHY Inspired by Petalozzi's work, Johann Herbart, founder of one of the first colleges for teacher training, attempted to clarify the prob lems of education. His valuable research in psychology is based on such principles as respect for individuality and encouragement of free expression. Froebel, whose work was closely related to that of Petalozzi and Herbart, also tried to formulate a system of teaching from the existing mass of philosophical and psychological knowledge. Although he is associated with education of the pre-school child his findings hold implications for all phases of education. But the best known name in educational thought is John Dewey, often called the godfather of modern education. Dewey looked upon education as a social process which cannot be separated from the character and responsibilities of society. He identifies education with life instead of regarding it as just another of its facets and considers the satisfaction and happiness of the individual and the fostering of civilization as the two main ends of education. Sifflkvlkakfkvllfiffllfifilf Talk about Philosophies of Education is, to many, just part of the mass of jargon for which the teaching profession is often ridiculed and criticized. And this criticism is just, to the extent that Philosophies of Education are allowed to remain in the abstract without being pinned down to the realities of life. It is not enough to passively accept as an abstraction the basic principle which is common to all of the foregoing philosophers. This basic principle, regard for the individual and his rights, must be wielded consciously by teachers as a weapon against its antithesis of totalitarian education. It must be wielded in the cause of the defense of liberty against usurped authority, of justice against oppression, of the common welfare against exploitation. It must be applied to all of the problems that confront us- as we try to prove that Democracy is right. 71