The Knowledge from Above

Dr P N Singh
Dept of Philosophy
Science of Teaching
All teachers have a personal philosophy
that colors the way they teach
Engaging in philosophy helps clarify
what they do or intend to do, justify or
explain why they do what they do in a
logical, systematic manner
Understanding two important notions
Who they are or intend to be
Why they do or propose to do what they
do
Eric Berne’s three important questions:
Who am I?
Why am I here?
Who are all these other people, and what
do they want of me?
The meaning of Philosophical Inquiry
“Whatever people choose to embrace, if their
choices are made in a logical, rational manner,
they are engaged in the process of ‘doing
philosophy.’”
Three specific areas of philosophical inquiry:
metaphysics concerned with questions about the
nature of reality; epistemology concerned with
the nature of knowledge; axiology concerned
with the nature of values
Particular Philosophies of Education
Idealism, the first systematic philosophy in
Western thought…Socrates and Plato, the
Socratic method was dialogue
Generic notions: Philosophers often pose
abstract questions that are not easily answered
but are concerned with the search for truth
World of matter in constant state of flux, senses
are not to be trusted, continually deceive us
Truth is perfect and eternal, but not found in the
world of matter, only through the mind
Idealism
The only constant for Plato was
mathematics, unchangeable and eternal
Plato’s method of dialogue engaged in
systematic, logical examination of all
points of view…ultimately leading to
agreement and a synthesis of ideas…this
approach known as the dialectic.
Idealism
Plato believed education helped move
individuals collectively toward achieving the
good.
The State should be involved in education,
moving brighter students toward abstract ideas
and the less able toward collecting data…a
gender free tracking system
Those who were brighter should rule, others
should assume roles to maintain the state
The philosopher-king would lead the State to the
ultimate good
Idealism
Evil comes through ignorance, education will
lead to the obliteration of evil
More modern idealists: St. Augustine,
Descartes, Kant, Hegel
Goal of Education: interested in the search for
truth through ideas…with truth comes
responsibility to enlighten others, “education is
transformation: Ideas can change lives.”
Idealism
Role of the Teacher: to analyze and
discuss ideas with students so that
students can move to new levels of
awareness so that they can ultimately be
transformed, abstractions dealt with
through the dialectic, but should aim to
connect analysis with action
Role of the teacher is to bring out what is
already in student’s mind: reminiscence
Methods of Instruction
Lecture from time to time, but primary
method of teaching is the dialectic…
discuss, analyze, synthesize, and apply
what they have read to contemporary
society
Curriculum…importance of the study of
the classics…many support a back to the
basics approach to education
Realism
Aristotle was the leading proponent of
realism, started the Lyceum, the first
philosopher to develop a systematic
theory of logic
Generic Notions…only through studying
the material world is it possible to clarify
or develop ideas…matter is real
independent of ideas
Aristotle’s Systematic Theory of Logic
Begin with empirical research, speculate
or use dialectic reasoning, and culminate
in a syllogism
A syllogism is a system of logic that
consists of three parts: (1) a major
premise, (2) a minor premise, and (3) a
conclusion
For a syllogism to work, all the parts must
be correct
Philosopher’s Concerns
What is the good life?
What is the importance of reason?
Moderation in all things…balance in
leading one’s life: reason is the instrument
to help individuals achieve balance and
moderation
Realists
Neo-Thomism…Aquinas affected a
synthesis of pagan ideas and Christian
beliefs…reason is the means of
ascertaining or understanding truth, God
could be understood through reasoning
based on the material world…no conflict
between science and religion
The world of faith with the world of
reason, contemporary Catholic schools
Modern Realism
From the Renaissance, Francis Bacon developed
induction, the scientific method…based on
Aristotle, developed a method starting with
observations, culminating in generalization,
tested in specific instances for the purpose of
verification
John Locke and tabula rasa, things known from
experience… ordered sense data and then
reflected on them
Contemporary Realists
Tend to focus on philosophy and
science…Alfred North Whitehead,
concerned with the search for “universal
patterns”
Bertrand Russell with Whitehead,
Principia Mathematica…universal
patterns could be verified and classified
through mathematics
Goal of Education for Realists
Notions of the good life, truth, beauty
could be answered through the study of
ideas, using the dialectical method…for
contemporary realists, the goal of
education is to help individuals
understand and apply the principles of
science to help solve the problems
plaguing the modern world
Teachers should be steeped in the basic
academic disciplines
Pragmatism
An American philosophy from the 19th
century…Peirce, James, Dewey
“By their fruits, ye shall know them.”
Pragmatism encourages people to find processes
that work in order to achieve their desired
ends…action oriented, experientially grounded
Rousseau… “back to nature”, environment and
experience…Emile, little regard for the
education of women other than to be Emile’s
companion
John Dewey
Intellectualheir to Charles Darwin,
constant interaction between organism
and environment, dynamic and
developing world…child centered
progressivism and social
reconstructionism
Instrumentalism and experimentalism,
pragmatic relationship between school
and society and applying ideas of
education on an experimental basis
John Dewey’s Philosophy
Education starts with the needs and interests of
the child, allows the child to participate in
planning her course of study, employ project
method or group learning, depend heavily or
experiential learning
Children are active, organic beings…needing
both freedom and responsibility
Ideas are not separate from social conditions,
philosophy has a responsibility to society
Dewey’s Role for the Teacher
Not the authoritarian but the facilitator…
encourages, offers suggestions, questions
and helps plan and implement courses of
study…has command of several
disciplines
Inquiry method, problem solving,
integrated curriculum
Existentialism and Phenomenology
Kierkegaard, Buber, Jaspers, Sartre,
Maxine Greene…existentialists
Husserl, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty…
phenomenologists
How do one’s concerns affect the lives of
an individual…the phenomena of
consciousness, perception and meaning in
an individual’s experience
Existentialists and Phenomenologists
Based on the earth alone, must make
sense of the chaos one encounters
“Existence precedes essence.” People
must create themselves and create their
own meaning…done through the choices
people make in their lives, in a state of
constant becoming…an individual can
make a difference in a seemingly absurd
world
Existentialists
Education should focus on the needs of
individuals, include the nonrational as
well as rational, the notion of possibility
Teachers should understand their own
“lived world” and help students to
understand their world
The need to be “wide awake”…the role of
the teacher is intensely personal
Neo-Marxism
Radical critique of capitalism
The role of education should be to give
students the insight to demystify
capitalism and become agents of radical
change
Marx believed the history of civilization
was defined by class struggle
General conflict theory…the teacher is a
“transformative intellectual”