An Exercise to Determine Your Educational Philosophy

Find out to which philosophy you adhere. To what extent does each statement apply to you? Rate
yourself 4 if you agree with the statement always, 3 if you agree but not always, 2 if you agree
sometimes, and 1 if you do not agree at all.
Statements 1 2 3 4
1. There is no substitute for concrete
experience

2. The focus of education should be there

ideas that are as relevant today as when
they were first conceived.

3. Teachers must not force their students to

learn the subject matter if it does not
interest them.

4. Schools must develop students’ capacity to

reason by stressing on the humanities.

5. In the classroom, students must be

encouraged to interact with one another to
develop social virtues such as cooperation
and respect.

6. Students should read and analyze the

Great Books, the creative works of history’s
finest thinkers and writers

7. Teachers must help students expand their

knowledge by helping them apply their
previous experiences in solving new
problems

8. Our course of study should be general not

specialized; liberal, not vocational;
humanistic not technical.

9. There is no universal, inborn human

nature. We are born and exist and then we
ourselves freely determine our essence.

10. Human beings are shaped by their

environment.

11. Schools should stress on the teaching of

basic skills.
12. Change of environment can change a
person.

13. Curriculum should emphasize on the

traditional disciplines such as Math,
Natural Science, History, Grammar,
Literature.

14. Teacher cannot impose meaning; students

make meaning of what they are taught.

15. Schools should help individuals accept

themselves as unique individuals and
accept responsibility for their thoughts,
feelings and actions.

16. Learners produce knowledge based on

their experiences.

17. For their learner to acquire the basic skills,

s/he must go through the rigor and
discipline of serious study.

18. The teacher and the school head must

prescribe what is most important for the
students to learn.

19. The truth shines in an atmosphere of

genuine dialogue.

20. A learner must be allowed to learn at

his/her own pace.

21. The learner is not a blank slate but brings

past experiences and cultural factors to the
learning situation.

22. The classroom is not a place where

teachers pour knowledge into empty minds
of students.

23. The learner must be taught how to

communicate his ideas and feelings.

24. To understand the message from his/her

students, the teacher must listen not only
to what his/her students are saying but
also what they are not saying.
 25. An individual is what he/she chooses to
become not dictated by his/her
environment.

Interpreting your Scores: If you have 2 answers of 2/4 in numbers:

1,3,5,7 – you are more of progressivist

2,4,6,8 – you are more of a perennialist

9,15,20,25 – you are more of an existentialist

10,12 – you are more of a behaviorist

11,13,17,18 – you are more of a essentialist

14,16,21,22 – you are more of a constructivist

19,23,24 – you are more of a linguistic philosopher

If you have 2 scores of 4 several of the 7 clusters, you have an eclectic philosophy which means you put the
philosophies together. If your scores are less than 4, this means that you are not definite in your philosophy. Or if your
scores are less than 3 in most of the items, this means your philosophy is vague.