idealism is the group of metaphysical philosophies that assert that reality, or reality as humans can know it, is fundamentally mental, mentally constructed, or otherwise immaterial. Epistemologically, idealism manifests as a skepticism about the possibility of knowing any mind-independent thing
2. Contents
• Definition of Idealism
• Conceptof Idealism
• Idealist
• Types of Idealism Theories
• Movements in Philosophy of Idealism in Education
1. Development of Idealism
2. Idealism as a Philosophy of Education
3. Critique of Idealism
3. Definition of Idealism
• A philosophical orientation emphasizing mind or
spirit as the pre- eminent feature of life.
• Contrast with Materialism.
4. Concept of Idealism
• Idealism is employed in philosophy, the mental work of experience
is foundational to all science and for that matter all knowledge.
• It would be impossible to know anything apart from consciousness
or experience.
• Thus, the mental work (experience, awareness, consciousness) has
priority – it is the only world to which we have immediate access.
5. Idealists
• For the idealist, psychology is the science that studies mental
processes and experience.
• An idealist would argue that all science begins with experience and
is about experience.
• Thus, it is the mind or the mental world that has ontological status.
• The material world is a construction – a mere by- a product of a
more important reality.
• Many of the key figures in the history of psychology has identified
with idealism.
• Examples include: Socrates, Plato, Augustine, Immanuel Kant,
George Berkeley, and George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.
6. Types of Idealism Theories
•concedes the primary
of human consciousness and
believes that the existing world
are a combination of sensation.
Subjective
Idealism
•concedes the primary of
an objective consciousness which
exists before and independent of
human ones.
Objective
Idealism
7. Movements in Philosophy ofIdealism
in Education
(Ozmonand Craver2008)
a.Development of Idealism
b.Idealism as a Philosophy ofEducation
c.Critiqueof Idealism
9. • “People should concern themselves in searching for truth”
• Importance and use of dialectic (or critical discussion)
• 2 worlds: world of ideas (forms) and world of matter (ever-
changing)
• People do not create knowledge, but rather they discover it.
Platonic Idealism (Plato 427-347 B.C.E)
10. Religious Idealism
• Idealism has exerted considerableinfluence
on religion
• Religion – God as Universal Good,
• Idealism- Truthas UniversalGood
11. ReligiousIdealism
Augustine (354– 430C.E.)
• Augustine believed that the senses were unreliable and
that belief in God rests ultimately on faith.
• “We must first believe,in order that we may know.”
• He believed that God already created knowledge, and
people can discover it through trying to findGod.
• Learning must come from within and all true knowledge
comes from God.
12. ModernIdealism
1.George Berkeley(1685-1753 C.E.)
•All existence depends on some mind to know
it; if no minds exist, then for all intents and
purposes nothing exists unless it is perceived
by the mind ofGod.
•Philosophical realism- that material world
exists independent ofmind.
•His main purpose is to make evident the
existence of God and to prove that God is
the true cause of allthings.
13. ModernIdealism
2.Immanuel Kant (1724-1804 C.E.)
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14. Modern Idealism
3. George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831 C.E.)
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15. Idealism as a
Philosophy ofEducation
• Educational Aims of Idealism
• Methods of Education
• Curriculum
• Role of the Teacher
16. Educational Aims of Idealism
Search for Truth (highest aim)
• Philosophical wisdom or the conception of true ideas is the
highest aim of education
Self-Realization (ultimate aim)
• Idealism has exerted so much influence on educational views
about individual mind and self
Character Development (proper aim)
• Many idealists are concerned with moral character as an
outgrowth of thinking and thoughtful actions
17. Methods of Education
• Dialectic (Plato)
• Intuitive approach (Augustine)
• Great books (modern idealists)
• Lecture method
• Other idealist’s methodology: projects, supplemental
activities, library research and artwork.
• Self-directed activity
18. Curriculum
• Teach students to think.
• Idealists think that humans can become more noble
• and rational by developing the ability to think.
Educational materials like reading materials
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19. Roles ofTeachers
1. Assist students in choosing important material.
2. Serve as exemplary models.
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20. Critique of Idealism in Education
The high cognitive level of education that idealists promote.
Their concern for safeguarding and promoting cultural learning.
Their great concern for morality and character development.
Their view of the teacher as a revered person central to the educational process.
Their belief in the importance of self-realization.
Their stress on the human and personal side of life.
Their comprehensive, systematic, and holistic approach.