John Dewey
America’s most significant philosopher, but so strikingly prolific that it’s difficult to get to the heart of his philosophy. He asked questions still central today, which probably explains his surge in popularity. What is learning? How are knowledge and skills acquired? What knowledge and skills are worthwhile acquiring? What is knowledge? How does it differ from belief? What is a human being? How does it differ from other species? What are the limits of human potential? What are the goals of education? Who should teach, by what methods, and with what curriculum? What is society and what institutions are involved in the educational process? Who should be educated? Why do people disagree? How is consensus achieved? Whose opinion takes precedence? Dewey’s answers developed a systematic pragmatism, an approach that viewed knowledge as arising when humans adapt to their environment. So, inquiry is not the mind passively observing the world and drawing truths that reflect reality. Rather it is a process that starts with an obstacle, and truths change as obstacles change. With this view as his starting point, Dewey developed a huge body of work day.
See also: Learning from experience
Reading:
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Dewey, J.
- (1916). Democracy and Education. An introduction to the philosophy of education. Full text. Tough going. Rambling and repetitive, but contains key ideas.
- (1929). Experience and Nature. Full text. Explores the relationship of the external world, the mind and knowledge.
- (1933). How We Think. A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process. Full text.
- (1938). Experience and Education.
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Campbell, J. (1995). Understanding John Dewey: Nature and Cooperative Intelligence. Blurb. Intelligence belongs to the group, not the individual.
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Hickman, Larry A. (1998). Reading Dewey: Interpretations for a Postmodern Generation. Blurb.
Acknowledgement: Picture: John Dewey at the University of Chicago, 1902. Wikimedia Commons. Reproduced with the understanding that it is in the public domain.
01 Oct 2005
