This document discusses various philosophies and their implications for education. It defines key philosophical concepts like metaphysics, axiology, epistemology, and logic. It also outlines major schools of philosophy including idealism, realism, pragmatism, and existentialism. Educational philosophies covered are perennialism, essentialism, progressivism, and social reconstructionism. Psychological perspectives on learning like behaviorism, humanism, and constructivism are also defined. The document examines how these different philosophies influence approaches to teaching.

1. Philosophy and Education –
Chapter 8
Ebert, E., & Culyer III, R. (2014). Philosophy and Education. In School: An
introduction to education. Belmont: Wadsworth.

2. Ice Breaker
• Complete the Ice Breaker as instructed on pp. 259 and 260 in your
text.
• You will also have a webquest in your module for this week that also
helps you explore educational philosophies.

3. Lots of Concepts!
• Philosophy = love of wisdom
• Conceptual clusters = metaphysics, axiology, epistemology, and logic
• Schools of philosophy = idealism, realism, pragmatism, and
existentialism
• Educational philosophies = perennialism, essentialism,
progressivism, and social recontructionism
• Psychological perspectives = behaviorism, humanism, constructivism
• How do these and other philosophies influence your teaching?
Consider individualistic and community values that influence our
philosophical perspectives.

4. Know Those Terms
• Metaphysics – “What is real?” “What is the origin of the world?”
• Axiology - “Self-evident, universal truths”; includes ethics (moral
values and beliefs) and aesthetics (appreciation of beauty and what
constitutes beauty in a society)
• Epistemology – How do we come to know and understand? What is
the origin of truth?
• Logic – Brings order to reason; deductive reasoning (reasoning from
general principles to specifics) and inductive reasoning (specifics that
lead to more generalized conclusions). Inductive reasoning is the
basis for the scientific method that is used now.

5. Philosophies
• Idealism – philosophy of ideas
• Classical idealism – truth or knowledge must be discovered
• Religious idealism – truth must be found through God or other religious entity
• Modern idealism – As thinking humans, we must exist
• What does that mean for schools? Character development (do you
know the “character trait of the month”?) What ideals and truths
exist that govern all of us?

6. Philosophies (cont.)
• Realism – belief that matter is real and exists whether it is perceived
by the mind or not. What can matter tell us about ideas?
• Religious realism – Understanding the real world as we move towards the
perfect world of God
• Modern realism – Making efforts to seek our own answers by seeking our
own evidence. This is as opposed to believing what one has always been
taught or heard without questioning
• Educational implications – teachers should have strong content
knowledge; education should be inquiry based

7. Philosophies (cont.)
• Pragmatism – a practical philosophy; “perception is reality”; truth is
relative; people think for the purpose of solving problems
• Implications for schools – problem-solving curriculum
• Existentialism – individual self-determination; each individual is
responsible for the choices he makes
• Implications for schools – developing individual potential; however,
many schools expect conformity

8. School Philosophies
• Perennialism – great literature and other ideas that have lasted through
the ages offer insight into the human condition. (Think Siddhartha);
culturally conservative perspective
• Essentialism – subject-centered with a purpose to preserve society; also
culturally conservative; accountability is important
• Progressivism – cultural context is important; progressivists believe in the
importance of problem-solving; curriculum is child-centered with teachers
as facilitators
• Social Reconstructionism – idealist philosophy based on desire to improve
human condition; fits with “Close the Gap”, No Child Left Behind and other
efforts to make education equitable and available to all.

9. Psychological Philosophies
• These speak to a teacher’s style, attitude, and philosophy
• Behaviorism – learning happens because of reinforcements; extrinsic
rewards should gradually be replaced with intrinsic rewards;
(unfortunately, many teachers lose sight of that goal); B.F. Skinner is a
major Behaviorist
• Humanism – a student-centered approach to learning; includes character
education; Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has influenced education
• Constructivism – schools facilitate learning; children construct their own
knowledge based on past knowledge and experiences; Piaget (assimilation
and accommodation) and Vygotsky (Zone of Proximal Development) help
us understand this philosophy