John Dewey's "Pedagogic Creed" resonated quite deeply with my own beliefs about education. It is fascinating to me that my I find my own thoughts and educational philosophy to be so in line with those of a man who existed in a time one hundred years before my own - at the brink of the industrial revolution, before cellphones and computers and the explosion of technologies, when women couldn't vote, and anyone who wasn't a white man was considered less than human. Some of that has changed drastically, though not as much as we would like to think.
Dewey begins his creed with the line "I believe that all education proceeds by the participation of the individual in the social consciousness of the race." This struck me immediately. I have never seen or heard anyone use the term social consciousness to describe the process of education, though it is exactly what I believe to be the purpose of education. Cultivating social consciousness has to be the number one priority of our education system; for if it is not, are we not presenting students with a distorted image of our society and the world at large? Largely, I do not think I was educated according to Dewey's constructivist philosophy until college, and even then I feel like my participation in the social consciousness of the human race was dependent on what I chose to study. Had I not studied English and Women's Studies, I do not think I would have developed social consciousness as part of my education.
Dewey's approach to education is student-centered. His creed is one in which students' real-life experiences are not simply valued, but regarded as necessary and the only meaningful way of educating students. "To prepare him for the future life means to give him command of himself," writes Dewey. His ideas are compatible with interdisciplinary curriculum, in which students must largely carry on out of their own independent initiative. I fully agree with him that in order to leverage a child's learning, it absolutely must coincide with that child's interests. There must be relevance and a sense of immediacy about what the child is learning in school in relation to his or her life outside of school.
Samantha your comment, "that in order to leverage a child's learning, it absolutely must coincide with that child's interests", I completely agree with. Dewey's emphasis on student-centered learning is critical in my opinion to any future applicability of the content, which you emphasized as well. In what way do you think technology either hinders or helps a teacher craft curriculum and instruction to students' interests? How can it be used to support student understanding of "social consciousness", do you think it can be used prior to College?
ReplyDeleteMeghan, thanks for your comment. I think technology can be a beneficial tool for teachers in terms of crafting curriculum and instruction to students' interests. Technology provides teachers with access to a multitude of resources that were not available to teachers even just 10 years ago. Curriculum guides, lesson plans, games, activities, articles, and teacher blogs/websites are all examples of the kind of thing I am talking about. As a teacher, I will definitely take advantage of technology in order to connect with other educators, get new ideas and insight, and explore what educational tools are out there.
DeleteAs far as supporting student understanding of "social consciousness," I am not quite sure where I think technology fits in. I do not think technology is necessary at all in students' "participation in the social consciousness of the race." As an English teacher, I think the best way to foster this participation is through class discussions and looking at texts. Of course, if I find relevant resources using technology, such as important articles, texts, videos, or images, then I will bring those into the classroom. But I do not plan on bringing the technology itself into the classroom unless it is to watch such a video or look at such an image.
You bring up some great points! I'm also fascinated that a man who lived years ago has points that we need to consider in today's schools. It is so interesting to see different views on educations systems and who knows what is 'right' or 'wrong.' How will you handle technology in your own classroom?
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