‘THE NATURE OF PHILOSOPHY AND EDUCATION 1 Why Study Philosophy of Education? Miser pertinent and accurate csm of American education inthe twenteth een tury. There has been a great deal of activity in the field oF ‘cational innovation and experimentation, but most of it has fot been adequately evaluated in terms of purpose, goals and Actual needs. Charles Silberman noted that education “has st fered to long rom too mary answers and 00 few questions" Nai Postman and Charles Weingartner have incated that mindlessness in elation isa natural outcome for a society which has traditionally been concerned with the “how” rather than the “why” of moder Ife America has been making “unclening assault on technique for more than cetary. A 9 ration thas been busy creating new techniques for traveling, communicating healing cleaning dying and killing, The Amer fan people, however, Rave seldom asked whether or not they ‘wanted the improvements need them, should have then or Whether thy would eome at too high a cost. The very word progress” has come t be seen in terms of new methods. Thismémlityclaim Postma and Welngarner, hasbeen adopted by the educationalists of America who are busy erating new th ‘lgues fr teaching speling, new method for tschingariime- tclotworyearlds, new mays of Keeping school hl uit ae ‘ew modes for messuring ineligence. Educators have beta 30 busy creating and implamenting new methodology that they Fave often fae to ask such questions as wheter two-year-old rmathematicansare worth having? “Why allthis education? To what purpose?" These are two ‘ofthe most important queations that must be faced. Yet they ae [Benerally not serous confronted. Edvetors have een con ered mote with mation than progres, with means han ends “They have filed to ask the larger question of purpose, andthe professional taining of datos, ith emphasis on method ‘logy as largely sl them up for ia prolem Columbia University’s Lawrence Cremin met the issue squarely hen he noted that too few educational leaders inthe United States are gen ‘lnelypeeoccupled with educational sues because they Ihave no clear fdean abot edcaton, And ie look st {he way these leaders have been ecrlted and tained, ‘They have loo often been managers, fcitatorm pl {lan inthe narrowest sense. They have been concemed ‘sth busking bullings, balancing budgets, and pac Ing parents, but they have nt been prepared to spark = feat poble dialogue about the ends and meane fe tons And tn the abecnee of such a loge, lange Segments ofthe ule Rave had at best hinted Serstandigg of the whys and wherfores of popular sehoing The Nar of Pic ed Edeton There isa stong need forthe preparation ofa new bred of profesional educates who re shew focus on “thought about purpose” and"t think aboot what they ae dong and why ey Eredaingit"* Cerin edeatonal hoop lade arecaling ft Profesional trsining that emphasis sade Inte mates Er edueation~thoe sais ofthe history, piosophy and iter ‘ture of education tt il enable eduction to evap 3 deat ‘ion regarding the purpose of eda and is lato foe rreningot ite Inthe heemeth century, studs in the humanities of duce ton have been nlc te taining of edwin profs Stonals because ter immediate utlty hes been difieal o demonstrate Bet notes Cremin ite he lente uty hat relly matters” Aer al tis ot ven pose talk n terms te uty of edsestona mean nls ow what they desi os an en prot ad why they eae one parca tnd product stove or pone otemex When a dsed gol ‘Sin'mind then peso na poston thinkin tems of the ‘late aie of he anos mathedaoges tat wan ache inp bat destation 4 The sk of ecational philosophy it bring future teach crs prinpals superintendents couse and calm spe Stats into face-to-face contact withthe large questions Serving the meaning snd Parpece of Ife and Cduaton. To ‘endrstand these question, Ue sadent mast wrestle wth such ‘Sues a the nate of ely the meaning and sure of Koo gern he suc of ves, atonal psc st tring stent ino a poston fm whch they can ngeniy ante emai ef lt th img to ced end and Sekt peaprpcl methods that harmonize witht im. Thus ‘Trujor t of esata plsopy eo hep ductors thnk traning abou te total eucoal and ie proces 2 at {hey wil be ins better postion to develop consistent andcomprehenive program that will asst heir tents in arsving Stthedesred gol In summary, the study of educational philosophy i (1) to hp educators become scuaitted with the basic problems of ‘ucation, (2 to enable them to evaluate beter the wide variety [St supgestions offered ss solutions to these problems, ) to assist ih caniying thinking about the gels of bot hfe and eduction, and (0 to ue in te development ofan internally consistent point of view anda program hat lates realistic the ager ror context. What Is Philosophy? Literally the word “philosophy” maans love of wisdom. It shoul be noted, however, that ving wisdom does not make fone philosopher, Philosophy, nts technical sense, might best. {Be tought ofin tre aspects on activity, ast of ates, anda ody of content se gure 1)® Philosophy as an Activity ‘The activity aepetof philosophy is best een by noting what philosophers do. Spntheaing speculating prescribing and ana [juing are four activites that have tacitonally been athe center ol plosophic endeavors “The synthesizing role ofthe pilosopher rests on mankind's sire snd need to posses a comprehensive and consistent view Of lle that provides a bass upon which t0 unify though, base ‘ipiations and interpet expences. To sos people ational stence demands a world ew that adds significance to ind ideal scion by placing therm i hol wider context. In their Tole as synthesizers, philosophers seek to uit and intograte Inambind’s speializad knowledges into @ urufed vw of the word * choy Mate hnapy mln ne Anand om son ng lh tyes metry Se Th ate of Phyl Ebon Peuet Aspe Phlxophy ‘The speculative dimension of philosophy is based upon the limitations of human knowledge ‘There fe not enowgh seni tally vere data to provide a ase for action. Furthermore, the ‘ost important aspects of aman snd universal existnce are not Amenable to siete treatment Tf ily acy isnt be pare Sled, tis ncensary to move beyond what can be demonsrted empirically Tee the speculative function of philosophy that a Jos 9 rational ump fom the known 10 the unknawa, and ‘which permits movement with a relative degree of confidence {nto the undefined. The aleratve to speculation isto be sy ‘nied by doubt, Prescription in philosophy secs to establish standards for evaluating alsin cont and art. Presripons are usally ‘expressed in forms of how people “ought” 40 act oF Feat in & 5ven situation involving asthete judgments or moral alters fives Intra to prescribing isthe ask of defining what meant by good, bad, right, wrong Bautfl, and ugly. The aim of pre iptv pllosophy sta dlecover and laminate pringples for deciding what actions and qualities are most worthwhile. The ‘ltenative to prescription so face every decon-making sta ton asi were unique Analyzing in philosophy focuses on an examination of human language and our use of iin an attempt to clan out nderstanding of problems and how they might be salve. In "hays the posopherseitniaes the ute of loge ian arg ‘ent and examines such words as “ibera” “good” “intel fence” and "motivation" in an attempt to evaluate thee Iisnings in varying contus. The analyte philosopher operat fm the assumption that basie misundertandings In regard 10 ‘sings might eat the roo of harman problems. In the tenth centary many plilosophers have lft the other activities of pllosoply and made analysis thet only Func ‘Hon This has led to a narowness that has largely stonized the ddpline and robbed It of le meaning and relevance forthe ‘aly activites of soll. Meaning and wal philosophy confine an interaction and Balance of four ental aces Philosophy as an Attitude Philosophers bring certain ways of thinking to thei tsk. The characteristic ofa person who ib philosophicminded may be listed as sele awareness, comprchensivenes, penetration, and exit. Sel-awarenes entails «commitment to being as honest a5 possible ith one’s sof in regard # personal ase, assump Hons, and prejudices. No one i neutal, and one of the mest hifiele and elusive actives of human existance sto come to {gps with our personal predepostons Ktmight be si that tis Ffapouile evento bola to arive ata correct perspective of he ‘word unt pple tealize the color of the plstes they are wear Ing. Once individvals become aware ofthe effect of their personal praispositons, they nes to take thisinormation into $ccount in both interpretation and communication. ‘Comprehensveness involves an icination toward collet Sng ss much relevant data on a subject as posible om a ide spectrum of sources, rather than beng salisted with a narrow Simple. This aitude is rated to the synthesizing function of ‘Philosophy, in that itis inleested in seeing the seholenes of phenome rather han the parts Penetration is a desire tht leads perion to go as deeply ‘nto problem as sil me, and energy allow. Ie isa sguelching ofthe inclination toward the superial n favor ofa search for bse principles sues, an soutons eeibity migh be thought of a5 the anthesis of rigity oF paychological set” The attude of ebilty sa form of sens ‘iy that enables one to be able to prceve old problems in new ways I includes a wilingnes to reatucture ideas in the fae of ‘font evidence andthe aby Yo envision viable altematives toa viewpoint Flesbiity, however, should not be confused with {eisiveness othe nablty to make a decision” Alter earful Stdy, one may decide hata sition Is the most reasonable and then St in accord with that decision. "The points sve en ‘one's willingness even readiness to change that position ‘ven suficent reason Philosophy as Content thas been noted that philosophy in prt an acti and anatttude, If poopie are involved in such aches as synthesis, Speculation, preseription, and analysis; and i they possess the stds of set awareness, comprehensiveness,pentrauon, and Fest, then they soon wll be confronted with some badtock _qsostons relates to the nature of reality, truth and value "The content of philosophy is better sen in the Hight of ues fons than in the light of answers Ir even can Be sid that 2 si daly of cin p18ilosophy s the study of questions. Van Cleve Moris noted That the chor of the rater basking the "High questions By "ight he means questions ich are menningful and relevant the kind of questons people realy want answered and whi ‘nil make diference in how they live and work “There ae thre fundamental categories around which phil sophia content hasbeen organized: Delp, the study of {juss concerning the nature of reality, 2) eens, the ‘Rey of the nature of truh and knowledge and how thst ar tained and G)aslogy, the study of questions of vac, A di ‘toon af these three bake categories wil form the suet mat ferofehapte What Is Education? 1 am not going to get married unt after sh my eduee tion delved young man to hs ends, What i he mean by the term “ehucaton’? Wat was tate hoped to complete before mariage? Was ft education, learning, or schooling? Is there a conceptual difference among these words? If heres one ugh to conte to gripe with that difleence and wse the tems tri preclon, The fllowing cussion wil present some di Tncions among thse concep and offer defitons® that will Ido ta bater tncerstanding ofthese rated but often confused processes mn the above ilustation the young man evidently meant hat he would not get marred unt Ke was ished with schoo. Even though wal i rm “ian hema reing Sh Ing Schooling might be thought of asattendance at an institution invhich caters and stodets operate in a prescibed manner. $Shigoing ean be equated wih formal edvaton—that dation trhich takes pace a seo sh Aer Sh oo: Hog tatenct deepest fac ny ped isnng he ® The Nate of Pp and Eduction Leaming proves to bea more ficult concep to define and lfren earning theorists have arsed at varying positions com ‘ering the nature of learlng. For present purposes, lamin, tay be defined as “the process tat produces the capability of tshbting new or changed human Behavior (or which increases the probably that new or changed behavior wil be elite by felevantstimuus), provided thatthe new behavior or Behatiot ‘hange eanaat be explained onthe bass of some other process oF fexperinca”™—such ab aging or fague™ From this definition t canbe ssen that learning is 3 proces that unlike schooling, ot limited oan instttonal content. It {s possible to lear individually o eth the help of oreo ee. People can lear in-school, But they can also learn i they have never seen school. Learning ta iflong proces that may occor Stany time and any place Education may be seen a. subse flaring John A. Laska ‘made a hepful daintion between faring and ection when Ihe deli edcnton asthe deliberate tempt by the earner oF by someone else to contol (or guide, oF diet, oF influence, oF ‘manage) a learning stunt in order to bring about the ata rent of desired losing outa ga)" "Edueation, seen from this perspective, is not limited to schooling of fo the tradonal cumculum or methodologies of Schools. Education, lke lering, a lifelong process that can take place in an infinte variety of ercumstances and contexts (On the other hand, edation is distinc fom the broader con ‘epLof learning, since education embodies the idea of deliberate “contol by the leer or someone eee toward a desired goal Education might be thought ofa directed learning, as opposed to nondirectd or inadvertent learning ‘fourth term that is sometimes confused with education i “traning” The concept (not nesessrly the way in whlch the sword is always use) of taining may be dilferemtated fom the ‘Therese ring Rede Yo Appiac canta Cs 1p_TeNeweof Psp and Eton concep of education on the ts of the development of under Singing, Understanding grows as one edo tn ectvey ‘Sout Suscandeict atonchips her Dan st eponding ete simul A development understandings intrentin {Sicaion whe unrefuatveroponave sti generally a= Sata wah tung, Trang can tube place onthe anal iScc ie edcauon is evenly human process. It should te not that cation ay at ne nl Some Wann 3s fect since tainngis wenn of evento, ist as edvation a Ei of ering Figure? iastaes the ration of lesning cation cranny and seoolng Enon and wamng ae specalized ‘Spot ning, whe taining In turn isa specialized ype of icaon Slings elated thes ve ors faring in fhe sence that imvertent leaning edocaton, and taining ie Ee The Relationship of Sela Laring Related Conceps 0 may take place in the context of schooling, Figure 2ilustrates however, tat there are many other ife experiences (sich a et tng tench or going to the nurse) which take place in school bt not necessarily elated to one ofthe various learning exper nce. Hay als be seen fm igure 2 that mos ler ‘ation, and taining take place outside the contest of formal school sting ‘The Role of the School in Society The schools only one of society's agent for ean, ec ion, and raining. The famly, medi, per group, and chr are ome of the oer ineituione that share tls responsiblity. In fact, the school may even be seen asa minor parc in the du cational process, with the famuly and the media playing the ‘major rol inthe lives of most children The itl poim should be rocpgrized, even though the treatment of education in this book wll tend to use categories that are most often inked with ‘Schooling It should be understood, however, thatthe “eacher™ fn the fulest sense of the word may not be an employee of & ‘School system, but may be a Broadcaster parent pastor, oe pee. Likewise, television program or an individual home has a ew of truth and realty and set of values that lead it to slat rtain “curriculum” and tesching methodology as it goes about {ts educational fnctions. In seat follows, this idea may nok cooneteaeat za phaarractratenes ase eee Sihcutarncctateateyuen er fetsCome rei imatrowce heap bet ecard ‘ow tre lect Le ne Eun Oe Ya bat 70,7 chanson we nalways be exp sted, bat timp inthe dsusion and ‘must be recognized if ene to gan he fullest understanding of ‘Socaton ltd process “The school exists in a complex educations miu. To com plcate mater, the Componente ofthat mihew may not all Be porsing the’ some menage in regard to realty rth, and fdlus Ths undoubtedly weakens te impact of the schools Vrell es the impact of solely soter “educntos”) and gives ci PHILOSOPHIC ISSUES {tena garbled message about thee world and whats important 2 inf. should ever be born in mind that learning, education, IN EDUCATION training anc schooling take place in tis complenty of forces. Bogen piesety rt sinc om genera owophy itis general philsophy ppd to education asa space area of human endeavor. Belore understanding the Structure of educational pllosophy, i i imperative 10 learn Something ofthe basic ouie of philosophy. In onde oo this ‘we must examine the eatgorce of metaphysics epstemelosy, tnd asolgy. ‘Metaphysics Mataphysis i the branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of lity. “What ulmaely real” is he base question asked in the study of metaphysics. [At first glance, it seems too simple a query to waste much time on After l, average people sem ob gute sure about the “realty” of ther word fst ak ther, and they will most Wkly tal you to open your eyes and lok atthe lock on the wall # lst othe sound ofa pasing tin orto bend down and touch the Moor beneath your fet. These things they clam are rel. Upon reflection, however, one is tempted to question these Ina concepts of realty. For example, what exact Is the rally ‘ofthe floor upon which you stand? It may scem to havea rather Straighorvard exstnce. Is ebviouly ft sai nd smooth, ithasa paricule color it is composed ofan identifiable mate. ‘al suchas wood or concrete; and i supports your wight. At B 7