FOUNDATIONS

OF EDUCATION
UNIT 1 AND 2
LESSON 1:
LESSON
OUTLINE:
Introduction​
Module Outcome
Class activity and discussion
​
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INTRODUCTION
• The word philosophy is derived from a Greek term ‘Philosophia’ which means
love for wisdom.
• The module focuses on philosophy of education. Why?
• You should be able to understand and critically analyse the philosophies
impacting education in the 21st century.

Let us go through the introduction that has been provided in the module outline to
further explore the meaning of philosophy, its importance to education and basically
what to expect from the module.
 MODULE OUTCOME:
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of basic
terminology, concepts, principles, and fields of study in
educational philosophy.

• Compare and apply the major theories and perspectives

used in educational philosophy to locally relevant
scenarios.

• Defend a chosen educational philosophy or perspective in

relation to its possible benefits on curricula, teaching and
learning in a given context.
SOME IMPORTANT
KEY TERMS FOR
THE LESSON…
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EDUCATION:
THE ACT OF TEACHING TO DEVELOP THE CAPACITIES OF
PEOPLE.
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PHILOSOPHY:
A STUDY OF FUNDAMENTAL NATURE OF KNOWLEDGE,
REALITY, AND EXISTENCE.

A SYSTEM OF THOUGHT CONSISTING OF SET OF IDEAS

OR BELIEFS RELATING TO A PARTICULAR FIELD.

Philosophy refers to general

beliefs, concepts and attitudes
possessed by an individual
group.
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PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION:
AN ACADEMIC FIELD OR SYSTEM OF THOUGHT THAT
PROMOTES A SPECIFIC TYPE OR VISION OF
EDUCATION AND EXAMINES THE DEFINITION, GOALS
AND MEANING OF EDUCATION.
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“ ASSESSMENT:
• Four activities- amounting to 10
percent of final mark.
• Assignment 1- 25 percent. Research
• Assignment 2- 30 percent. Research
• Assignment 3 -35 percent. Open
book summative assignment,
additional research required
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ACTIVITY AND DISCUSSION

Write two paragraphs of not more than five lines each:

1. Discussing your understanding of education.
2. Discussing the purpose of education.

Keep these paragraphs as they are a foundation of the philosophies we will unpack later in the module. We will
be studying historical figures and how their thoughts influence the way we view and experience education today.

Time to share…
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LESSON 2:

Socrates was the teacher of

Plato, and Plato the teacher
of Aristotle.
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THE IMPORTANCE OF
‘PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION?

• Educational philosophy provides original ideas about all aspects of education, especially educational goals. It
helps providing education according to the needs of the community.
• Uniting old and new traditions in the field of education. In the process of social development, the old tradition
becomes obsolete for the community. They were replaced by new traditions. Therefore, there is a need to co-
ordinate the two to maintain harmony between the two.
• Educational philosophy provides educational planners, administrators, and educators with the right vision that
guides them to achieve educational goals efficiently.
• Prepare young people to face challenges everyday.
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SOCRATES

• Socrates was a Greek philosopher who was credited as the founder of Western philosophy among the first moral
philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought.

• Socrates’ philosophy had a profound effect on western thought; the Ancient Greek philosopher spent his life
examining the meaning of virtue (the quality of being morally good).
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CONTINUES…

• Getting a straight answer from the philosopher Socrates was almost impossible. When asked by a wealthy
young man, “Is being good something that can be taught?” Socrates replied, “Far from whether it is teachable,
I haven’t the faintest idea of what being good is.” Instead of answering, they investigate the problem together.
Socrates questions, the young man answers, the discussion moving round and round until finally, they reach a
conclusion. But with one final salvo from Socrates, the conclusion crumbles and they are back where they
started. As the bewildered young man leaves, Socrates says, “Go tell what you have learned.” According to
Socrates’ philosophy, it is in examining life that you learn something, not in reaching an answer.
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CONTINUES
Socrates and his method of examining life had such an impact on philosophy that philosophy is divided into
what came before him and what came after. The philosophers that came before him are termed the pre-Socratics
for precisely this reason, and although we don’t call the philosophers that came after him post-Socratics, it has
been said that “all philosophy is a footnote to Plato.” And Plato was Socrates’ most revered pupil and the
primary disseminator of Socrates’ philosophy.
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PLATO

• Plato is one of the world’s best known and most widely read and studied philosophers.

• He was the student of Socrates and the teacher of Aristotle, Though influenced primarily by Socrates, to the
extent that Socrates is usually the main character in many of Plato’s writings.

• Some of his works blend ethics, political philosophy, moral psychology, epistemology, and metaphysics into
an interconnected and systematic philosophy.
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• Aristotle was one of the greatest philosophers who ever lived and the first
genuine scientist in history.

ARISTOTLE • He made pioneering contributions to all fields of philosophy and science,

he invented the field of formal logic, and he identified the various
scientific disciplines and explored their relationships to each other.

• In his metaphysics, he claims that there must be a separate and

unchanging being that is the source of all other beings.

• Aristotle wrote initially in dialogue form, and his early ideas show a
strong Platonic influence. His dialogue Eudemus, for example, reflects
the Platonic view of the soul as imprisoned in the body and as capable of
a happier life only when the body has been left behind. According to
Aristotle, the dead are more blessed and happier than the living, and to
die is to return to one’s real home.
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SOME MAJOR BRANCHES OF EDUCATIONAL

PHILOSOPHY THAT ARE OF PARTICULAR Idealism- A belief that knowledge

comes from within. Originally
conceived by Plato, idealism
SIGNIFICANCE TO TEACHERS. states that the only true reality is
reality within the mind. For
teachers, this implies the need to
develop children to their true
potential and guide their minds so
that they are living up to their
purpose.

• Emphasizes mind and truth.

• Focuses on knowledge and truth.
• Values abstract reasoning.
• Character and morality.
EXAMPLES OF AN • Teacher as a mentor;
IDEALISTIC IDEA: • Values creativity and critical thinking
• Aims for personal fulfilment.
• Believes in absolute truth.
• Idealism is traditional
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CONTINUES
Realism- The belief that we should study
logic, critical thinking, and the scientific
method to teach students to perceive and
understand reality. As you might imagine,
there is heavy emphasis on math and science,
though the humanities can be influenced by
educational realism.

Realism has nothing to do with the human

mind, but has everything to do with the way
the world functions outside of the mind.
Realist believe in rational thought and will
only perceive things the way that they are
seen, without any type of interpretation.
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CONTINUES…
• Emphasizes practicality and uselessness.
• Focuses on skills and abilities
• Socialisation and conformity.
• Science and practical subjects.
• Teacher as a facilitator.
• Values efficiency and productivity
• Aims for success in the workforce.
• Realism sees truth as relative.
• Realism is modern and progressive.
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CONTINUES…
• Metaphysics- Derived from the Greek meta ta physika: Referring to an idea, doctrine, or posited reality outside of
human sense perception. In modern philosophical terminology, it refers to the studies of what cannot be reached
through objective studies of material reality.

• Marked by two types of inquiry: Investigation into the nature of reality and uncovering what is ultimately real.
What is existence and what sort of things exist in the world? How can things continue to exist and yet undergo the
change we see about us in the natural world? And how can this world be understood? Does not only emphasise the
development of the mind.

• Metaphysics is the philosophical investigation of the ultimate nature of reality. The study of reality and existence is
metaphysics, names from a set of books written by Aristotle asking what is being, what are first causes and what is
change. It studies what we are and what our purpose is, seeking knowledge about everything from the nature of the
entire universe to that of a human mind.
 HOW CAN WE APPLY
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METAPHYSICS IN OUR
CLASSROOMS?
• We can focus heavily on understanding what students feel when being taught.
• Metaphysics tells us that education should no longer simplest emphasize the development of the mind,
• But additionally encourage students’ awareness on all enduring values.
• Encourage prayer in your classroom. But what if you find yourself in a school environment that does not support
such? Refer to the video as an alternative tactic.
• Within the syllabus: Pick a prescribed reading and make a session for role playing of the characters in the book
(can be applied to epistemology as well).
• Allow students to think for themselves and recognise their role as citizens. Refer to PM2, for and exceptional
example.
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EPISTEMOLOGY
• Epistemology- It is the study of knowledge and how we come to know. It is concerned with the mind’s relation to
reality. Do we know things? And if we do, how and when do we know things? The study of knowledge acquisition.
It involves an awareness of certain aspects of reality, and seeks to discover what is known and how it is known.
This branch of philosophy seeks to answer several basic questions, such as:
• 1. What is knowledge?
• 2. What is truth?
• 3. Where did knowledge originate?
• 4. How do we come to know?
• 5. How do we learn?
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EPISTEMOLOGY IN THE
CLASSROOM:
• Epistemology can be used to promote critical thinking in the classroom.
• Teachers can encourage students to analyse knowledge, question individual beliefs, and reflect on their learning
process.
• Real-world examples can make epistemological concepts more tangible and relevant to students.
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EPISTEMOLOGICAL IDEALISM AND REALISM

RETRIEVED FROM: HTTPS://JAMESBISHOPBLOG.COM/2021/06/12/WHAT-IS-EPISTEMOLOGICAL-AND-SUBJECTIVE-IDEALISM-IN-
PHILOSOPHY/

Epistemological idealism is a subjectivist position in epistemology that holds that what one knows about an object exists only in
one's mind. It is opposed to epistemological realism.

Epistemological idealism accepts the existence of something independent of the mind but maintains that everything that is
known about this mind-independent reality is the result of the mind’s creative and formative functions.

Epistemological realism is a philosophical position, a subcategory of objectivism, holding that what can be known about an
object exists independently of one's mind.

Epistemological realism deals with subject matter represented truthfully without artificiality and avoiding speculative and super-
natural elements.
METAPHYSICAL IDEALISM AND

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REALISM

IDEALISM
The Self is the primary reality of individual experience.
Ultimate reality is self.
The individual self has all the freedom
REALISM
The world is as it is independent of how humans or other inquiring agents
take it to be.
The objects the world contains, together with their properties and the
relations they enter into, fix the world’s nature and these exist
independently of our ability to discover they do.
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….
• In realism, human acquire knowledge by inculcating knowledge to the minds because in realism, it believes that
the human beings have no inborn, or innate, ideas in their minds at birth. When it first exists it is a blank slate, a
"tabula rasa," an empty surface on which experience will then subsequently write all that we ever know. All
contents of consciousness, that is, everything that ever gets into the mind, comes into it from one source only, and
that source is experience. Experience is the one source of input into the human mind. Ideas (or sensations) in
minds are caused by qualities in things. A quality is a power in a thing to cause an idea in a mind. So, a quality is
not a thing, really, but is a power in a thing to cause an idea in a mind.
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STILL LOOKING AT REALISM METAPHYSICALLY

• Aims of Education. In realism, it prepares the child for a happy and successful life. It acquaints the child with
nature and social environment. It develops the physical and mental powers of the child. It develops and trains the
senses of the child. It prepares the child for real life. It provides the understanding of the material world through
inquiry. It is a study of science and the scientific method. It transmits culture and develop human nature and there
is a need to know the world in order to ensure survival and good life.

• Realism and the Teacher. In realism, a teacher should be supreme. He brings the child in touch with external
realities of life. Imparts scientific knowledge in an easy and effective way. A teacher should be educated and well
versed with the customs of belief and rights of people and the trends. He needs to find out the interest of the child
and to teach accordingly. He should teach subjects in proper order. He must be able to expose and guide the
learners towards the hard realities of life
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….
• Realism and Curriculum. It was developed according to utility and needs. It contains subjects concerning day to
day activities. The main subjects are natural science, physical science, health culture, physical exercise, math,
geography, history and astronomy.
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…
Methods of Teaching. Observation is very important aspect in the teaching-learning process. The emphasis on
critical reasoning is through observation. Responsibilities and accountabilities are given emphasis, and it promotes
performance-based teaching. Scientific research and development is one of the priorities in realism. Education should
proceed from Simple to complex and from concrete to abstract. Specifically, activities that enhance learning through
direct or indirect experiences such as field trips, lectures, films, TV, audio-visual aids and library are encouraged.
Vernacular (language spoken by the ordinary people in a particular country) is of great importance and it should be
the medium of instruction. Since it is performance-based, hence, children should be given positive reward.

Realism in the Classroom. It focuses on the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. The Classroom environment is
highly structured and organized. It utilizes the standardized testing. Education should be fun and interesting for the
student and education should prepare students for life in the real world. Realism represents the reality of the world. It
has truth that is aligned to the knowledge acquired. It teaches reality doctrine, the subjects of physical world such as
Math, Science and Social Studies. Realism exist in schools to reveal the order of the world and universe. Teachers
imparts knowledge from basic to complex. The Child is well-mannered and well-informed. In realism, the human
mind represents the external world but does not duplicate it.
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LESSON 3:
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BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY IN RELATION TO

DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF TEACHING AND LEARNING

• “Men are by no means agreed about the things to be taught, whether

we aim at virtue or the best in life. Neither is it clear whether
education should be more concerned with intellectual or moral virtue.
Existing practice is perplexing; no one knows on what principle we
should proceed . . . about method there is no agreement; for different
persons, starting with different ideas about the nature of virtue,
naturally disagree about the practice of it.”
Aristotle

Read, think and discuss…

• Let us Refer to PM3:

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SHIFTING THE FUTURE? TEACHERS AS AGENTS OF SOCIAL CHANGE IN SOUTH

AFRICAN SECONDARY SCHOOLS. LANE CAPPY (2016)

THE ARTICLE IN A NUTSHELL FREIRE’S WORK: THE

PEDAGOGY OF THE
• This article examines how South African OPPRESSED
teachers in rural and townships schools
encourage students to reflect critically upon
their own lives and take action to improve • He argued that although education often
issues of inequality, violence and insecurity. serves to maintain oppressive social
• Page 119 and 120- An example we can learn orders, education may also be used to
from. Engage critically in class. liberate people and transform society.
• In a context of high levels of inequality and
racism, South African education has been
publicly tasked with promoting social justice, • The article then argues that Freire’s
democracy and social cohesion. philosophy holds moral imperative that
• This article draws from Freire’s theory critical education must create a better world.
pedagogy to examine how South African
teachers in low income schools encourage
students to look critically upon their own lives
to improve issues of inequality.
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MORE ON THE ARTICLE:

• PAGE 125-133

• Does the reality in most schools hinder educators from offering quality education to learners? Page 126
• Realism and Idealism in action page 128 Teachers teaching content but also morals.

• Three pedagogical forms of teaching: Narrative instruction, Use of personal stories and literature, class
debate.

• Let us refer to the article and discuss.

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PM3

• Refer to page 1 after the cover page in relation to the nature of philosophy.
• Refer to page 2-4 in relation to metaphysics and the summary of all philosophical branches in education.
• Refer to page 5-6 for more on personal philosophy.
• In relation to the school of philosophical thoughts, 7-13. You will need to group yourselves, and report on
these philosophical thoughts in our next lecture. This will form part of your ICE task 3. The reports must be
the same for each group in writing, but every person in the group must have something to say regarding each
philosophical thoughts.

• 1. Essentialism 6. School Philosophy and Mission Statements

• 2. Progressivism 7. Philosophic Perspective of Non-Eurocentric Cultures
• 3. Existentialism 8. Theories of Educational Psychology
• 4. Social Reconstructivism 9. Behaviorism
• 5. Electric Approach 10. Information process 11. Constructivism 12. Mataphors
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WHAT IS A PERSONAL How often have you found that you have certain beliefs and
opinions about crucial issues such as the purpose of life?

PHILOSOPHY?
Have you ever taken time to analyse the reasons for these beliefs and
opinions?

Do you realise that when we start to identify and understand our

underlying beliefs and assumptions and make them explicit, we are
beginning to uncover a ‘philosophy’ or set of ideas that shapes our belief
system?

What are your beliefs about the purpose of education?

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WHAT IS A PERSONAL
Your beliefs and predispositions about teaching and education have a profound impact on how you teach and what
you teach, just as your beliefs and predispositions about living have a profound impact on how you live your life.

PHILOSOPHY:

As human beings, we carry beliefs from tradition, experience, education, religion, and socialization, and we revise
and refine them through experience. Over time, these beliefs become stronger as we find they serve us well and prove
to be true for us. These beliefs ultimately become our philosophy of life.

The same can be said about teaching. You have current beliefs about which you are beginning to think and which you
are beginning to modify in response to new experiences and your explorations of new information. What you know
and come to believe about education will become stronger throughth experiences you will have in your teacher
preparation program. Over time, you will learn more and more about education and will revise and refine your beliefs
as a result of your experiences. These beliefs will form the basis of your ever-evolving philosophy of education.
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CLASS ACTIVITY:
Write and then discuss:
1. Describe the main branches of philosophy and how they relate to educational issues.
2. Categorize your beliefs about what is most important in education.
3. Investigate the nature of basic philosophies of education and your thoughts about each.
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LESSON 4
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BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY
CONTINUED….
• AXIOLOGY

• Axiology Axiology is the branch of philosophy that deals with values. Axiology seeks to answer such questions as:
• What is of value?
• What values are essential?
• What is morality? Is morality defined by our actions or our thoughts? (a branch of axiology called ethics)
• What is beauty? (a branch of axiology called aesthetics)
• What is beautiful?
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CONTINUES…
AXIOLOGY IN RELATION TO OUR TEACHING?
• Axiology addresses our thinking about what teacher-student interactions should be and how teachers should
behave toward students.
• Axiology also addresses one of the basic needs of human beings-the need for aesthetic satisfaction.
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CONTINUES…
• LOGIC

• Logic is the branch of philosophy that deals with reasoning.

• There are two basic types of reasoning: deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning.
• In deductive reasoning, thinking proceeds from the most general concepts to the most specific examples.
• In inductive reasoning, thinking proceeds from the most specific examples to the most general concepts;
generalizations are derived from the specific examples.
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….
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INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
Have we done enough?

• Let us go through the module outline to ensure that all the topics that should be covered have been taught and
discussed thoroughly in class before we move forward.
• Has the content provided you with enough information to fully understand your assignment?
• Are there any questions or contributions to Unit 1 and 2?

• Within the last week before the short break we shall ensure that all the learning outcomes under unit 1 and 2 have
been fully covered. The week of the 26th.