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A Short Note on Educational Ideas of John Dewey For B.Ed.
John Dewey was born on October 20, 1859, in Burlington, Vermont. He was a famous American Philosopher, educationist as well as a psychologist. Major Dewey’s educational theories were presented in these writings:
- My Pedagogic Creed (1897)
- The School and Society (1900)
- The Child and the Curriculum (1902)
- Democracy and Education (1916)
- Experience and Education (1938)
- How to Think
- A Common Faith
John Dewey died on June 2, 1952, at age 92.
Education According To John Dewey:
John Dewey gave the following statement regarding education:
“I believe that all education proceeds by the participation of the individual in the social consciousness of the race.”
“I believe that the only true education comes through the stimulation of the child’s powers by the demands of the social situations in which he finds himself. Through these demands he is stimulated to act as a member of a unity, to encourage from his original narrowness of action and feelings, and to conceive of himself from the standpoint of the welfare of the group to which he belongs.
John Dewey’s Philosophical Theories and Beliefs on Education
Dewey’s philosophical theories and beliefs on education are discussed below. John Dewey’s educational ideas in the aspects of the method of teaching, curriculum, teacher, discipline, and school are also discussed below. Following are the chief educational ideas of John Dewey.
Experimental Education:
John Dewey focused his concept of “instrumentalism” in education on “learning by doing or hands-on learning”, which means to learn not only by theory but also by practice. “Instrumentalism” is a theory of knowledge created by Dewey in which ideas are seen to exist primarily as instruments for the solution of problems encountered in the environment.
Dewey thought that people learn the best through experience. He emphasized inquiry-based education
Education as Life:
Education is not preparation for life, education is life itself. Education, therefore, is a process of living and not a preparation for future living. A school is a miniature form of society that faces problems, similar to those faced in life outside. Education must enable the students to participate actively in the school and community life of the school and this train in cooperative and mutually helpful living.
Education as Growth:
Dewey believed that growth is the real function of education. The individual personality is ever growing and ever-changing personality and therefore, education is to facilitate growth.
Education as social efficiency:
Dewey believed that education must transform the immature child into a social human being. Education is a social process and the development of the social efficiency of the individual becomes the aim of all education.
In the process of social living, the child owns character and mind, habits and manners, language and vocabulary, good taste, and aesthetic appreciation of his/her interaction with society.
Therefore education must teach the child about this exchange or give and take process to make him/her aware of his/her social obligations.
John Dewey Educational Ideas on The School’s Role:
The school is simply that form of community life. Dewey stressed the importance of education in school not only as a place to gain content knowledge but also as a place to learn how to live. He believed that students should be actively involved in real-life tasks and challenges.
Role of Curriculum According to John Dewey:
Dewey advocated for an educational structure that makes a balance between the child and the curriculum.
- The curriculum must be child-centered.
- The curriculum should reflect the social life and activities. It should have utility.
- The curriculum should be flexible and changeable according to Child’s interests.
- The curriculum must follow the principle of progressive organization of knowledge consisting of educative experiences and problems of learners.
Also Read: Educational Ideas of Gandhi
Educational Ideas of John Dewey on Methods of Teaching:
According to Dewey, the following method of teaching should be used in the teaching-learning process.
- Learning by doing
- Project method
- Learning by integration and correlation
- Learning through productive and creative activities
The Teacher’s Role:
He believed that the teacher’s role should be that of facilitator and guide. The teacher becomes a partner in the learning process who leads students to independently discover meaning within the subject area.
Teachers are responsible for achieving the goals of the school. The learner’s past experience should be taken into account in the teaching-learning process, as well as the environment. The teacher is always the “Prophet of the true God”
Dewey’s Ideas on Discipline
- Discipline among pupils should be developed by engaging them in performing their part of the work.
- Promotes self-discipline.
John Dewey’s Sequence of Problem-Solving
- Step One: Define the Problem
- Step Two: Analyze the Problem
- Step Three: Determine criteria for the optimal solution
- Step Four: Propose a solution
- Step Five: Evaluate the proposed solution
- Step Six: Select a solution
- Step Seven: Strategies to implement the solution.