Ella Higgins

Lori Cory

DMACC Teacher Academy

November 8, 2020

Educational Philosophy Assignment

Over the course of the past centuries, many wise people have come up with their own

philosophies on education. Philosophy is known as the love for wisdom, and the people who

come up with and share these ideas are called philosophers. Many of the techniques, ideas, and

teachings from these people are still used in classrooms today. In school, students are taught

about some of the more common philosophers and philosophies. However, there are so many

more. It is important for teachers to have their own philosophy and for students to learn about

them.

One of the most well known greek philosophers of all time is Aristotle. To begin with a

little bit of background knowledge, Aristotle was the student of Plato, who was also a greek

philosopher. Aristotle lived from 384 B.C. - 322 B.C. Over the course of his life, Aristotle was a

very accomplished man. He enrolled himself in Plato’s academy, tutored Alexander the Great,

founded his own school, wrote many books, and on top of all of that, was a scientist. Aristotle’s

philosophy is called realism. His philosophy of realism maintains that matter is real and exists

independent of the mind (267). He also suggested that ideas can exist independent of matter,

such as mathematics, but cannot exist independent of Form (267). Therefore, he believed that

there is an underlying idea to all matter and that we should try and understand the reality of all

things.
 After reading about Aristotle’s philosophy of realism, I began to reflect on my thoughts

about it. If I am being honest, it is a very big concept that kind of just goes over my head.

However, what I do like about his philosophy is that he says we should try and understand the

reality of all things because I am someone who is very realistic.

The second philosopher that I chose to research is John Dewey. John Dewey lived from

1859-1952 and was a philosopher during the nineteenth and mid twentieth centuries. Over the

course of his life, Dewey published over 1,000 books and essays covering his ideas of

physiology, philosophy, educational theory, etc. We associate John Dewey with the philosophy

of pragmatism. Compared to Aristotle’s philosophy of realism, Dewey’s is much more

contemporary (269). Pragmatism is the theme that ideas must serve as a useful purpose (269). It

also focuses on seeking out the processes that help people reach where they want to be. Dewey

also suggested that genuine thought begins with a problematic situation. This means that when

people think they do it for the purpose of solving a problem or question. Therefore, our purpose

when looking at it through a pragmatic sense, is to solve problems.

I really liked the idea of pragmatism in the sense that we use a process or method when

we are trying to reach a certain goal. Something I have noticed about myself is that I am

someone who makes a plan or process and sticks with it until I achieve my goal. I am also very

practical and I don’t waste my time on things that will not benefit me or be useful to me.

The final philosopher that I researched is Mortimer Alder. Alder was a philosopher in the

twentieth century and lived from 1902-2001. Robert Hutching and Mortimer Alder were the two

main philosophers of perennialism. The idea of perennialism states that certain ideas and truths

transcend time and remain vital today (273). Perennialism also supports that education should

represent an organized effort to make such ideas accessible to students (275). Another one of
Alder’s main ideas was that everyone should receive the same education and that philosophy

should be brought into the curriculum.

One part of the idea or perennialism that I agree with is that ideas are still just as

important today as when they were written long ago. In my opinion, it is important that we don’t

forget some of the facts and ideas that originated from long ago because they are a part of our

history and they are the reason why we got to this point today.

I think it is very important for teachers of all ages to have their own philosophy of

education. I think having a philosophy helps the teacher stay true to their core beliefs. As of the

past four weeks, I have been observing in a seventh grade english classroom. The teacher, Mrs.

Shuka has been teaching at Nevada for five years. Her first year teaching here was actually my

class. I feel that some of Mrs. Shuka’s strengths as a teacher are her organizational skills,

patience, and her classroom management. She is also a very young teacher, only 28, so students

can connect with her on a much deeper level than those who are older. When I asked Mrs. Shuka

about her philosophy on education, one of her main points was that she focuses on teaching her

students to be better humans. What she means by this is that she focuses more on relational,

social, and emotional learning while at the same time teaching her content. She also spends a lot

of time teaching her students to have good social skills. PBIS, positive reinforcement for good

behavior, is one technique that she uses in her classroom that she says works really well. Mrs.

Shuka also focuses on teaching her class to be mature, respectful, and hard working. She feels

that her students cannot learn content until they reach a certain comfortability with the teacher

and themselves, which is gained through her teaching style.

As I listened to Mrs. Shuka tell me about her philosophy of teaching, I realized that I

agreed with a lot of the things that she was saying. I think it is very important to teach students to
become better people because this is something that we will all need to know how to do in the

real world, especially as adults. She also mentioned how she teaches her students to have good

social skills, which is something I wish I would have worked on more when I was in middle

school. Having good social skills is also very important in our futures if we want to be

successful. Overall, I like that Mrs. Shuka focuses on the overall aspect of becoming better

humans, rather than just teaching the content required.

The second teacher that I decided to interview about their philosophy of education was

Mr. Lillquist. He is a seventh grade science teacher and has been teaching here for three years.

Some of his strengths as a teacher include his very outgoing and welcoming personality, ability

to work with other staff, and how he keeps the information relevant. Mr. Lillquist’s philosophy

of education is focused on the phrase “Engage, build, launch”. Beginning with the word engage,

he practices this by getting to know his students, while also being an “entertainer” and keeping

his students interested in the lessons. One way he likes to keep the class engaged in lessons is by

doing hands-on activities, which he says works really well with his classes. Next up is build,

which he explained as building relationships with his students throughout the whole year and

also building content knowledge through lessons. So, not only is he focusing on the physical and

emotional relationships, but also how he can expand the students knowledge about the subject.

Lastly is the word launch, which also has two meanings. First, he wants his students to “launch”

into the next grade using all of their knowledge that they learned throughout his class. At the

same time, he is also launching them into young adulthood, and teaching them how to be a

young adult. Similar to what Mrs. Shuka said, he also mentioned that he wants to help make his

students into better people and not just focus on the required content.
 When I began to reflect on his philosophy I realized that it is very similar to Mrs. Shukas.

This may be because they are both young teachers and work together every day, however, I still

found it interesting. I like that Mr. Lillquist has two meanings to each of the words in the motto

that he follows each day. He focuses on the aspects of connections, relationships, and young

adulthood, while still teaching the content with the purpose of excelling his students. I am

thankful that I got to ask these questions to Mr. Lillquist and learn more about his classroom

environment and why he teaches the way he does.

When coming up with my own philosophy of education, I want it to be something that

reflects my core values and beliefs in terms of teaching and learning. I believe that the purpose of

education is to provide people with the knowledge they need to become independent and

successful in their future. I think it is important for us to be able to thrive on our own and have a

positive impact on our society. While teaching, I want my students to be able to reach their full

potential while still enjoying what they are learning. We must find a way to make it relevant to

the students so that they are interested. Lastly, I believe that students learn best when they are in

a comfortable environment. Whether that means the seating, people, temperature, or lighting, I

think teachers should adjust to what helps their students reach their full potential.

In conclusion, there have been many people over time who have come up with their own

ideas on education. Philosophies should reflect the beliefs and thoughts that people have on

education. After reading all the different philosophies, it is obvious that many people have their

very own different ideas, which is a good thing. It is important that teachers come up with their

own philosophy so that their students can be successful.

 Works Cited

“Aristotle.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 10 Sept. 2019,

www.biography.com/scholar/aristotle.

Bowers, Hannah S., and Hannah S. Bowers. “Mortimer Adler's Philosophy of Education.”

Coffeeshopthinking, 31 Oct. 2016,

coffeeshopthinking.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/mortimer-adlers-philosophy-of-education/.

Ebert, Edward S. School: an Introduction to Education. Wadsworth, 2014.

“John Dewey.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 16 Oct. 2020,

www.britannica.com/biography/John-Dewey.