5 Philosophies of Education

1. Essentialism fundamental, necessary or required.

- William Bagley
Why teach?
- To acquire basic knowledge, skills, and values
- Transmission of the traditional moral values and
intellectual knowledge that students need to
become model citizens.
What to teach?
- Fundamental Rs: reading, writing, arithmetic and
right conduct
- Traditional citizens: mathematics, natural science,
history, foreign language and literature
How to teach?
- Subject-centered
- Memorization, rely to prescribed textbooks, drill
method and other methods that enable mastery
of the subject
2. Progressivism receptive to fresh ideas and concepts.

John Dewey

Why teach?
- to develop learners into becoming enlightened
and intelligent citizens of a democratic society.
- to live life fully now.
- Education is life, not a preparation for life Dewey
What to teach?
- respond to students needs and that relates to
students personal lives and experiences.
- skills to cope with changes.
- natural and social science
How to teach?
- experiential method
- problem-solving method

- hands-on-minds-on
- thought-provoking games and puzzles
3. Perennialism Robert Hutchins
Why teach?
to develop the students rational and moral
powers
according to Aristotle, if we neglect the students
reasoning skills, we deprive them of the ability to use
their higher faculties to control their passions and
appetites
What to teach?
all human beings possess the same essential
nature
heavy on humanities and general education
less emphasis on vocational and technical
education
great books of ancient and medieval as well as
modern times
How to teach?
centered around teachers
apply whatever creative techniques and methods
which are believed to be most conducive to disciplining
the students minds
students engage in Socratic dialogues
4. Existentialism Jean Pauls Sartre
Why teach?
- help students understand and appreciate
themselves as unique individuals who accept
complete responsibility for their thoughts, feelings
and actions.
- help students define their own essence
- demands the education of the whole person, not
just the mind.
What to teach?
- wide variety of options from which to choose
- humanities are given tremendous emphasis

- encourages individual creativity and imagination

more than copying and imitating established models
How to teach?
- learning is self-paced, self-directed
- employ values clarification strategy

5. Behaviorism John Watson

Why teach?
concerned with the modification and shaping of
students behavior by providing for a favorable
environment, since they believe that they are a product
of their environment.

What to teach?
teach the students to respond favorably to
various stimuli in the environment.
How to teach?
ought to arrange environmental conditions so that
students can make the responses to stimuli.
ought to make the stimuli clear and interesting to
capture and hold the learners attention.
ought to provide appropriate incentives to
reinforce positive responses and weaken or eliminate
negative ones.