The Pragmatist and Postmodernist Foundations of the 21st Century Education:

Evaluating the Philosophical Basis of the 21st Century Education and Its

Implication to the Moral Decline among the Students

ROJUNE C. ALDEMO

Introduction

Experts in educational philosophy acknowledge the fact that the 21st Century

education has its foundation on John Dewey’s (1859-1952) ideology: The Progressive

Education. The current educational system already evolved and adopted different

ideologies since his time, but the roots of Progressive Education are still intact.

Progressive Education is “education built upon an experience-based curriculum

developed by both students and teachers.” 1 This is based on Dewey’s progressivism or

pragmatic humanism which, among others, promotes participation to open discussion of

every member in a group to solve a particular problem. 2 He believed that knowledge

must be obtained through experience.

Added to Dewey’s ideology, the 21st Century Education adopts the philosophical

principle of postmodernism. According to Norman Geisler, “Even though the exact date

cannot be agreed upon as to when the transition was made into the post-modern era, it

did not really take shape until around 1950.” 3 One of the basic tenets of postmodernism

is the deconstructionist method of interpretation. One can see this in the discussions

about textual analysis which advocates the rereading of a particular text in search for a

deeper meaning beyond what the author meant. Subjective understanding is being

preferred more than the objective and absolute knowledge.

Although the author of this paper affirms that there are still other philosophical

ideas that are being adopted by the current educational system, yet his primary

objective in writing is to evaluate the philosophical foundations of 21st Century

Education that were identified. Despite the good intentions of the policy makers who

1
Progressive Education (2019), accessed 1 October 2019 <https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-
law/education/education-terms-and-concepts/progressive-education>
2
Geisler, N. (2012). A History of Western Philosophy Volume II: Modern and Postmodern: From Descartes to
Derrida. Matthews, NC: Bastion Books
3
ibid.
adopt different educational philosophies for the current educational system, the author

of this paper believes that some of the effects of these philosophies have negative

consequences to the moral status of the students. Hence, the thesis of the paper is: The

philosophical pragmatism and postmodernism behind the current educational system

are some of the factors that could explain the moral decline among the students.

The Pragmatism of 21st Century Education

One of the ideas of pragmatism is that the reasoning of man needs to function as

a tool for problem-solving. A pragmatist believes that an idea or knowledge is only true if

it works. Therefore, the idea or knowledge that failed to solve problems should be

rejected as false. 4 This is the reason Progressive Education insists that educational

institutions should use teaching methods that will enable the students to participate in

classroom discussions as they search for knowledge that works, hence, the truth. Kelvin

Yew, an advocate of Progressive Education states, that if the method of teaching is

“syllabus-bounded and teacher-centred, students gradually lose the freedom to discover

and their interest in learning.” 5 He also asserts that in applying Dewey’s ideology,

“teachers become more aware of their role as facilitators, who stimulate new

discussions in class rather than imposing ideas on learners.” 6 The traditional setup

wherein the teacher is the one imparting knowledge to students is deemed irrelevant.

Let the teacher facilitate as the students discover what truth is.

Progressive Education as an educational philosophy has its affirmative aspects.

Educators will agree to the idea that practical learning should be capitalized. It is true

that one of the effective ways of learning is by taking action and not just by listening

alone. That teachers should encourage the students to participate well in class is being

demanded. But the author of this paper believes that the pragmatism behind this

educational philosophy could have negative effects to the way students search for

ideas.

4
Geisler, N., Feinberg P. (1980). Introduction to Philosophy: A Christian Perspective. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books
5
Yew, K. (2019). Towards an Educational Philosophy for the Twenty-first Century Classroom, accessed 1 October
2019 https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/education/education-terms-and-
concepts/progressive-education
6
Ibid.
 If pragmatism believes that the truth is the idea or knowledge that works, this

could lead to some actions that might be dangerous as long as the desired result works.

A case in point could be a student who is struggling with depression. She might give in

to the abuse of substance because she believes this idea is able to give her a feeling of

comfort and ease. Hence, the result – which is being able to feel comfort and ease –

works, but the idea could be more life-threatening than the depression itself. Indeed,

“Pragmatism does not advocate any absolute standards… It [pragmatism] may lead to

many vices in the society.” 7 The author of this paper agrees to the idea that teachers

should be able to become facilitators to the students, but this should not erode into the

absence of the traditional authority of students’ second parents.

The Postmodernism of 21st Century Education

As stated above, 21st Century is within the postmodern era. Postmodernism is a

movement “characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism; a general

suspicion of reason…” 8 This is a rejection of everything traditional, objective, and

absolute. It empowers personal ideas at the expense of established standards. This is

the reason Kelvin Yew believes that Dewey’s ideology, which does not advocate any

standard, is compatible with the postmodernist atmosphere of 21st Century Education. It

will encourage “teachers and students to explore the postmodern perspectives of

questioning prescribed answers and considering multiple realities.” 9

One commendation about postmodernism is the way it respects the individuality

of a person. Other than this, it is a philosophy that could cause discord in the thought-

life of the students. Since “post-modernism embraces a conventionalist theory of

meaning which affirms that all meaning is culturally relative,” 10 the students are now left

to choose their own meaning for their own lives. Students may realize that they should

7
Shawal, M. n.d., Pragmatism in Education: Study Notes, accessed 3 October 2019
<http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/education/pragmatism-in-education-study-notes/69152>
8
Duignan, B. (2019). Postmodernism, accessed 3 October 2019
<https://www.britannica.com/topic/postmodernism-philosophy>
9
Yew, K. (2019). Towards an Educational Philosophy for the Twenty-first Century Classroom, accessed 1 October
2019 <https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/education/education-terms-and-
concepts/progressive-education>
10
Geisler, N. (2012). A History of Western Philosophy Volume II: Modern and Postmodern: From Descartes to
Derrida. Matthews, NC: Bastion Books
not listen to their teachers since they are the ones creating their own knowledge. The

stress of the current educational system on student-centered classroom is good, but

postmodernism could devalue the significance of having a teacher-facilitator inside the

classroom. The objective of “education is to help man to create his standards of life,” 11

but postmodernism will make imparting knowledge through teaching irrelevant.

Postmodernist ideology of elevating the self over anyone and anything could

create students who can become the cause of damage to the society. A professor of

education, William Kilpatrick of Boston College, wrote the book Why Johnny Can’t Tell

Right from Wrong, wherein he identified that one of the elements of a problematic

society is the students produced by the failure of educational philosophy of the schools.

Whether the schools are aware or not, postmodernist ideology is being expressed

through their educational materials which remind the students that they are the “only

proper judges of what is right and wrong for them.” 12 It is true that there are numerous

factors that will explain the moral decline of the students. Family background, culture,

mass media, etc. has their own contribution to the downgrade of morality. Nevertheless,

it is also possible that the educational philosophies that are being adopted by the

schools have their share to this phenomenon as well.

Conclusion

No matter what the opinions of various educators are, it is a fact that education

plays a significant role in the community, whether for good or for ill. The process of

learning should not be seen as something exclusive within the four walls of a classroom.

On a positive side, education can become an important tool to help individuals become

good members of the society. Negatively, this paper has shown that education can also

produce a group of people that can cause undesirable effects on that same society.

Therefore, policy makers behind the current educational system should be aware of the

repercussions of adopting any educational philosophy. It is evident, that the moral

decline among the students demands a well-developed and consistent philosophy of

education among teachers and educational institutions.

11
Shawal, M. n.d., Pragmatism in Education: Study Notes, accessed 3 October 2019
<http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/education/pragmatism-in-education-study-notes/69152>
12
Johnson, P. (1995). Reason in the Balance: The Case Against Naturalism in Science, Law & Education. Downers
Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, pp.159
REFERENCES

Duignan, B. (2019). Postmodernism, accessed 3 October 2019

<https://www.britannica.com/topic/postmodernism-philosophy>

Geisler, N. (2012). A History of Western Philosophy Volume II: Modern and

Postmodern: From Descartes to Derrida. Matthews, NC: Bastion Books

Geisler, N., Feinberg P. (1980). Introduction to Philosophy: A Christian Perspective.

Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books

Johnson, P. (1995). Reason in the Balance: The Case Against Naturalism in Science,
Law & Education. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press

Progressive Education (2019), accessed 1 October 2019

<https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/education/education-terms-
and-concepts/progressive-education>

Shawal, M. n.d., Pragmatism in Education: Study Notes, accessed 3 October 2019

<http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/education/pragmatism-in-education-study-
notes/69152>

Yew, K. (2019). Towards an Educational Philosophy for the Twenty-first Century

Classroom, accessed 1 October 2019 <https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-
and-law/education/education-terms-and-concepts/progressive-education>