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Slide Notes
How do cultures learn and, more importantly, how do they pass on their knowledge to new generations?
John Dewey, one of America's foremost philosophers, wrote about this process in Democracy and Education. His educational philosophy and practices provided a learner-centered perspective on education that is still provoking discussion today.
But education in America is at a crisis point—always a good time for reflection and innovation! We need to Learn Up and become the kind of active learners that Dewey so brilliantly argued for.
John Dewey, one of America's foremost philosophers, wrote about this process in Democracy and Education. His educational philosophy and practices provided a learner-centered perspective on education that is still provoking discussion today.
But education in America is at a crisis point—always a good time for reflection and innovation! We need to Learn Up and become the kind of active learners that Dewey so brilliantly argued for.
Learn Up!
Published on Nov 06, 2015
How does a culture learn and grow? Here are three traditional models—and a personal view to changing learning for life.
MORE DECKS TO EXPLORE
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
HOW DO CULTURES LEARN?
AND WHY?
How do cultures learn and, more importantly, how do they pass on their knowledge to new generations?
John Dewey, one of America's foremost philosophers, wrote about this process in Democracy and Education. His educational philosophy and practices provided a learner-centered perspective on education that is still provoking discussion today.
But education in America is at a crisis point—always a good time for reflection and innovation! We need to Learn Up and become the kind of active learners that Dewey so brilliantly argued for.
John Dewey, one of America's foremost philosophers, wrote about this process in Democracy and Education. His educational philosophy and practices provided a learner-centered perspective on education that is still provoking discussion today.
But education in America is at a crisis point—always a good time for reflection and innovation! We need to Learn Up and become the kind of active learners that Dewey so brilliantly argued for.
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PLATO'S IDEAL
PEOPLE DO WHAT THEY'RE GOOD AT
Plato's book, The Republic, presents his view of an ideal society in which people find their place by what they are fitted for.
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THREE CLASSES
- Laborers — supply our wants
- Warriors — defend us
- Thinkers — legislate for us
Plato saw three classes of people: laborers, warriors, and thinkers—philosopher kings—who would provide all the services needed for such a republic.
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WHERE DO YOU FIT?
But what if you don't fit in any of these categories? It wasn't exactly a utopia by our standards today.
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IN A STABLE SOCIETY
Plato wanted a society that would endure through time. He was suspicious of change and thought a stable, unchanging society would provide the most efficient polity possible.
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NO CHANGE IS DESIRED
No change was necessary, in his view, nor was it desired. But he didn't account for the tempestuous and diverse nature of a system constantly open to new people, customs, religions, beliefs, values, and needs. Change is inevitable.
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18TH-CENTURY IDEAL
INDIVIDUALITY!
The Enlightenment brought a new and fresh sense of liberation from old constrictions. Humans were blessed with reasoning ability and could decide for themselves. That's what made them unique. The ideal was not a stable and calculated society, but an expansive humanity made of emancipated individuals.
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MAKE YOUR FREEDOM
LOSE THE CHAINS!
We are born free, famously said Rousseau, but we are everywhere in chains. Nature represented freedom to him, civilization was the trap of restriction placed on all of us. Nevertheless, Rousseau spent much of his life figuring out how individuals could participate in a society without losing their freedom—the social contract, he called it.
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EDUCATION FOR PROGRESS
A SOCIETY OF INDIVIDUALS
The Enlightenment goal of education was individuality shown in social progress.
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19TH-CENTURY IDEAL
EDUCATION TO MAKE CITIZENS
The 19th-century ideal, said Dewey, was an enlightened and progressive humanity—but that didn't come about by itself. It needed organization, and that could be provided in a democracy through public schools. In Germany, this ideal became a civic function, and the civic function was to bring about the ideal national state. Education was for making citizens, not merely enlightened individuals.
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PUBLIC EDUCATION
FOR A STRONGER AMERICA. . .
But here's the rub, as Immanuel Kant, one of the great philosophers of the Enlightenment, thought: every generation educates its young so they can get on in the present world, not so they can improve humanity. If we're going to improve humanity we have to start with the individual and that's where education comes in. Dewey wondered if an educational system that was state-sponsored could meet the aims of educating individuals without constricting them for national ideals.
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THAT WAS THEN . . .
WHAT ABOUT NOW?
Dewey thought it could be done, but only if the nation made education a priority. The educational philosophy would change to encourage students to think and act for themselves. The task was daunting, said Dewey, but we can't call ourselves a democracy unless we provide such possibilities for learners.
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THE SYSTEM
IS BROKEN . . .
That democratic ideal isn't happening in American education today. We've got a factory system that sees education as a product to be delivered to customers. That creates students who are passive, who don't care to think for themselves, and who have given up finding joy in learning.
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SOME WIN . . .
MANY LOSE . . .
We've created a system where education is required for all, but not all receive the education they need. Some have the means to win, but many don't. No one can afford to lose.
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GET AHEAD?
OR GET IN LINE?
We tell students the only way they'll get ahead in life is to do well in school. Then we beat the curiosity out of them early, make learning a dull chore, and test them on things they haven't learned and probably can't use.
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INDIVIDUAL LEARNING
FOR THE GOOD OF ALL?
Can we build ways of learning that create joy and satisfaction in the learner? Can we give support to those who do the hard work of helping students do their deep work of learning? Can creating individual learning help us all in the end?
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FACTORY SYSTEM
OR CONNECTED PATHWAYS?
Can't we provide education that individualizes learning to the learner? Can't we give students a chance to connect their learning with the learning of others and create a nexus of ideas? We all learn, and there are things we all need to learn, but we all want to learn in ways that bring out the best in us.
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WHAT DO WE WANT?
We have to make some choices as a nation. What do we really want for ourselves? What are we willing to sacrifice so that we can learn to learn?
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LEARN UP!
RISE TO YOUR CHALLENGE
We've got to see ourselves as learners, not as customers. We've got to take our learning back and do it for ourselves. This is my life—how much do I want to know and what do I want to do with what I know? Who do I think I am and how will I learn that? How can I help others with what I know?
It's time to Learn Up! Learn higher than where we are right now. Simple, really!
It's time to Learn Up! Learn higher than where we are right now. Simple, really!
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LEARN EVERYWHERE
FROM EVERYONE
Learning begins the day we're born. It doesn't have to stop until the day we die. In between is where it's up to us. Learn in school, learn on the job, learn by yourself, learn connected with others. Learn from people younger than you, older than you, learn from you.
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LEARN NOW!
LEARN MORE LATER . . .
We don't have to know everything. We just have to keep learning. Now, and then later, and then some more farther down the line.
LEARN. SHARE. EVOLVE.
EXAMINE YOUR SUCCESS, ENJOY YOUR MISTAKES
We don't have to be perfect. We just have to keep growing. We can learn from everything, especially our mistakes. Everything becomes an opportunity, not an obstacle.
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LEARN FOR LIFE
If you want to learn, learn how to teach. If you want to teach, learn how to learn.
That should occupy you for the rest of your life . . .
Learn Up!
That should occupy you for the rest of your life . . .
Learn Up!
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READING LIST
- Jacques Barzun. Begin Here
- John Dewey. Democracy and Education
- Alfred North Whitehead. Aims of Education
These are some great books for learning . . .
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