My Educational Philosophy

Karun Samra (300210554)

March 16, 2017

Philosophy 2220-001

My Educational Philosophy

As the famous poet Saadi Shirazi once said, “However much you study, you cannot know without action. A donkey laden with books is neither an intellectual nor a wise man. Empty of essence, what learning has he whether upon him is firewood or book?” I believe that this quote indirectly explains the view of Pragmatism. Pragmatism is an approach that assesses the truth and meaning of theories or beliefs in terms of the success of their practical application. Accordingly, education from a Pragmatist’s point of view should be practical, and prepare students for life, rather than theoretical, which has little connection to life. Ultimately, if I become a teacher (I’m still weighing the options), I would relish teaching business, with my role as the teacher being to guide the students. Furthermore, I would like to teach the students in a lecture format, followed by a hands-on question & answer segment with practice problems. Lastly, I believe in the same curriculum that is constant with Pragmatists, which is to teach making & doing first, followed by history, geography, science, physical education and language second.

To begin with, if I follow the path of education and elect to become a teacher, I would fancy teaching business education. My desire to teach business education comes from my educational background which is Business Administration & Accounting. Additionaly, one could also make the connection between my educational background and my philosophical view in Pragmatism. In business, students are taught theories, facts and methods, which are then put into practice, enabling students to find a career in their desired field after they graduate, whether that be Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, etc. In my opinion, the purpose or aim of education depends on the age of the students. In earlier years, education should be used as a foundation for later years. Growing up, students should be taught a vast array of subjects to spark their interests and evaluate their intellect, while in later years, students should take on the pragmatist’s curriculum which primarily focuses on making and doing, and has a secondary approach when it comes to history, geography, science, physical education and language. By taking this path, students receive a fundamental knowledge of most subject areas that they can expand on in the future. Moreover, another aim of school should be to prepare students for the real world. A great example of accomplishing this is Dewey’s laboratory school, which was originally created to treat school as a miniature community involving play, construction, nature study and self-expression, ultimately enabling the child to become gradually acquainted with life. This is an important point as school is not a district artificial reality where we eventually get out into the real world, but rather school is the real world. Lastly and most importantly, the aim of education should be to teach. Every student learns differently, whether that be visual, auditory or kinesthetic, and the sooner an educator can figure out how each of their students learns most efficiently, the sooner real learning by every single student can commence.

Next, likewise with the purpose/aim of education, the main role of the teacher differs depending on the age of the children. In earlier years, the teacher’s role should be that of an educator. One could say that in these years, a teacher would take a Realist’s approach to education. The teacher(s) would teach students all the fundamental subjects, they would be knowledgeable in the content, being an expert who studies well-defined sections of reality, staying on subject and limiting themselves to what they know. Additionally, one of their main goals should be to aid students in fulfilling their fullest potential. This is important in the earlier years as the child’s mind can be seen as a blank slate (also known as tabula rasa which was a theory founded by John Locke). Whatever is taught will be soaked up by the child and remembered for years to come. In addition, it is important students have a basic understanding of numerous subjects as everyone is different and has diverse interests. However, in later years, the role of the teacher changes into that of one who guides students in an open classroom environment rather than one based on the teacher’s authority. In doing this, the students can make mistakes, which helps them self-correct and slowly arrive at results independently. In contrast, the role of the students should be to learn by instruction in the earlier years, with the later years involving them being guided by the teachers and coming to conclusions on their own. Moreover, students should be using the scientific method to test ideas as that is how one concludes on what is true. The scientific method is a process for experimentation that is used to explore observations and answer questions. By using this method students learn how to conclude on what theories are true and what theories are not. A downside to this method is that it completely rejects traditional philosophies founded on metaphysics, as they cannot be tested because they are beyond human experience.