Lesson 1-The Teacher and the Community School

RESEARCH WORK:

1. John Locke
English philosopher whose works like at the foundation of modern
philosophical empiricism and political liberalism. He was an inspirer of both the
European Enlightenment and the Constitution of the United States. His
philosophical thinking was close to that of the founders of modern science,
especially Robert Boyle, Sir Isaac Newton, and other members of the Royal
Society. His political thought was grounded in the notion of a social contract
between citizens and in the importance of toleration, especially in matters of
religion. Trained in medicine, he was a key advocate of the empirical approaches
of the Scientific Revolution. In his “Essay Concerning Human Understanding,” he
advanced a theory of the self as a blank page, with knowledge and identity
arising only from accumulated experience. His political theory of government by
the consent of the governed as a means to protect the three natural rights of “life,
liberty and estate” deeply influenced the United States’ founding documents.

2. Herbert Spencer

Herbert Spencer is famous for his doctrine of social Darwinism, which asserted
that the principles of evolution, including natural selection, apply to human societies,
social classes, and individuals as well as to biological species developing over geologic
time. The first part of his article notes the main conceptual insights which he established
and aligns them within the wider context of a re-reading of Spencer's sociology.
Particular attention is paid to the “social organism” and the spontaneous cooperation of
social individuals in society (with each possessing “social self-consciousness”). This
part also reappraises Spencer's account of the emergence of “professionals” and their
distinctive “cunning, skill, and acquaintance with the nature of things,” which
professionals have brought to bear on what has been experienced in the ordinary social
lives of people as complexity or the unfamiliar in the world. The subsequent discussion
focuses on, first, a retrieval of Spencer's theoretical

3. John Dewey

American philosopher and educator who was a cofounder of the philosophical

movement known as pragmatism, a pioneer in functional psychology, an innovative
theorist of democracy, and a leader of the progressive movement in education in the
United States.

4. George Counts

George Sylvester Counts was an American educator and influential education

theorist. An early proponent of the progressive education movement of John Dewey,
Counts became its leading critic affiliated with the school of social reconstructionism in
education. He is a American educator and activist who, as a leading proponent of social
reconstructionism, believed that schools should bring about social change.

5. Theodore Brameld

A philosopher and visionary educator who developed the reconstructionist

philosophy of education, Theodore Brameld spent a lifetime working for personal and
cultural transformation through education. Influenced by John Dewey's educational
philosophy, Brameld urged that schools become a powerful force for social and political
change. He welcomed reasoned argument and debate both inside and outside the
classroom.

6. Paulo Freire

Paulo Freire was one of the most influential philosophers of education of the
twentieth century. He worked wholeheartedly to help people both through his philosophy
and his practice of critical pedagogy. A native of Brazil, Freire’s goal was to eradicate
illiteracy among people from previously colonized countries and continents. His insights
were rooted in the social and political realities of the children and grandchildren of
former slaves. His ideas, life, and work served to ameliorate the living conditions of
oppressed people.

Answer the following questions:

1. What are the contributions of these philosophers to education?

The discipline of philosophy contributes in an indispensable way to the realization

of four goals that should be fundamental to any institution of higher learning:
instilling habits of critical thinking in students; enhancing their reading, writing,
and public speaking skills; transmitting cultural heritages to them
2. What words can be associated with them?
The Empiricist, The utilitarianist, Pragmatism, reconstructionism, Progressivists

3. Make a table summary of the philosophies of education

Philosopher Philosophy on Aims/and Classroom/School

methods of Education
1. John Locke The Help students to become
Empiricist an active and intelligent
citizen in a democratic
country.
•The Students gradually
acquire knowledge
through interacting and
comparing.
 They are able to
form complex
ideas through
generalization and
reflecting with
concrete
experiences
Application
Knowledge is not contained
inthe Classics/Great books.
•The school engage the
learners in some recreational
activities that helps to
develop the child, and able
to acquire knowledge
through empirical
observations.
2. Herbert Spencer  Helps the students  Students are engage
The utilitarianist to survivein a in the activities like
complex society. memorization
 And aims to make andlearning
learners a information that
productive citizen positively affects their
that leads tosocial cognitivedevelopment.
progress.  The educators provide
a learning
environment that is
physically and
emotionally safe.
3. John Dewey  Pragmatism is an  teachers should never
Pragmatism educational pressure students to
philosophy that says conform. Instead of
that education going into a
should be about life
classroom with certain
and growth.
expectations, accept
 the aim of education
students of all
is the development
different.
of child's powers
and abilities. For
this reason,
education must aim
at creating social
efficiency and skill.
4. George Counts  Counts’  teachers need to go
Reconstructionisms educational beyond abstract,
philosophy was philosophical
also an outgrowth conceptions of
of John Dewey's democracy and teach
philosophy. Both explicitly about power
 men believed in and injustice.
the enormous  teachers and
potential of students need to
education to count among their
improve society primary goals the
and that schools building of a better
should reflect life social order.
rather than be
isolated from it.
5. Theodore Brameld  Reconstructionist  teachers should never
educators focus pressure students to
Progressivists on a curriculum conform. Instead of
that emphasizes going into a
social reform as classroom with certain
the aim of expectations, accept
education students of all
 he creation of a different cultures,
new social order religions and family
through education backgrounds. Within
would fulfill the individual school
basic values of regulations, respect
society and students who wear
harmonize with different or unusual
the underlying attire
social and
economic forces
of the modern
world
6. Paulo Freire  aims to liberate  student should play
Banking system people. In order to an active role in their
achieve this aim, own learning, instead
 he offers problem- of being the passive
posing education. recipients of
 According to this knowledge.
method, designed
as an alternative
to traditional
education models,
education should
not be provided
through one-sided
imposition by
teachers.

3. Secure a copy of the Moral Recovery Program by Leticia Ramos Shahani. Make
a summary of it following this format:
LOÓB AND KAPWA
THOMAS AQUINAS AND A FILIPINO VIRTUE ETHICS

Introduction

The seeds of this work came from two random encounters which happened at
the same time. The first encounter was with Norris Clarke’s creative retrieval of
Aquinas, particular his emphasis on “person-in-relation” as a fundamental metaphysical
principle. The second encounter was with the movement Virgilio Enriquez founded
called Sikolohiyang Pilipino (Filipino Psychology) and its “core value” called kapwa (the
other person). My instinct at the time was that Clarke’s “person-in-relation” and
Enriquez’s kapwa, though not exactly the same, were similar enough to be mutually
enriching concepts. The first was backed up by the comprehensive metaphysics of
Aquinas, the second by a real historical culture, specifically Filipino Tagalog culture.
Perhaps in these two concepts one could have an interesting dialogue between
metaphysics and living culture
Highlights

pointed out the weaknesses of talking about a “Filipino value system” and indicated the
general advantages of shifting to a “Filipino virtue ethics.” It showed that the shift is not
merely a switching of names but one with significant philosophical consequences.
“Values” fail to give precise definitions for Filipino ethical concepts and explain how they
are all interrelated to each other. On the other hand, “virtue ethics” has the advantage of
a centuries-old philosophical tradition with powerful resources for explanation, from
Aristotle to its most sophisticated development in Aquinas. “Virtue ethics” has also
witnessed an international revival in the 20th century—a revival in which “Filipino virtue
ethics,” if it is embraced, could productively take part.

One of the primary objectives of this dissertation is to advocate for a shift of

thinking: from Filipino “values” to Filipino “virtues.” Although at first glance this might
seem merely a matter of semantics, it actually has profound philosophical implications.

Conclusion

The goal of this dissertation was the articulation and organization of a Filipino
virtue ethics. It was both a constructive and descriptive project. It was constructive in
that it built on entirely new philosophical foundations (the metaphysics, psychology, and
ethics of Aquinas) and descriptive in that it tried to remain faithful to how Filipino
scholars have described Filipino concepts and how these concepts are encountered in
real life. Rather than a complete innovation, one could call this project a “Renovation,”
similar to how an abandoned building that is on the verge of collapse can be renovated
and improved with brand new construction materials.