Philosophical and Ideological Foundations of Education

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Philosophical and

IdeologicalFoundations of

Education

IDEALISM AND EDUCATION



Idealism and Education

• Idealism is the oldest systematicphilosophy in Western culture

• idealists believe that ideas are theonly true reality

IDEALISM AND



DEELOPMENT OFIDEALISM



DEELOPMENT OF IDEALISM

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism

ReligiousIdealism

ModernIdealism



Platonic Idealism

PlatonicIdealism



Plato !"#$%&"$ '(C()

• Plato was a Greek philosopher who startedas a disciple of Socrates and remained anardent admirer of him throughout his life.

• Plato is largely known for his writings in

which Socrates is the protagonist in a seriesof dialogues dealing with almost everyconceivable topic.

• wo of his most famous works are TheRepublic and Laws.

• !fter Socrates" death# Plato opened his ownschool# the !cademy# where studentsprofessors engaged in a dialectical approachto problems.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato !"#$%&"$ '(C()

• people should concern themselvesprimarily with the search for truth.

• $ecause truth is perfect and eternal# itcannot be found in the world of matter#which is imperfect and constantlychanging.

• Plato believed that we must search forother universal truths in such areas as

politics# society# and education% hence#the search for absolute truth should bethe &uest of the true philosopher.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• Plato wrote about the separationof the world of ideas from theworld of matter.

• he world of ideas 'or forms( hasthe Good as its highest point)the source of all true knowledge.

• he world of matter# the ever*changing world of sensory data#is not to be trusted.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• People need# as much as possible#to free themselves from a concernwith matter so that they can

advance toward the Good.• his can be done by transcending

matter through the use of thedialectic 'or critical discussion(# in

which one moves from mereopinion to true knowledge.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• Plato saw the dialectic as a vehiclefor moving from a concern with thematerial world to a concern with theworld of ideas. Supposedly# thedialectic crosses the +divided line,between matter and idea.

• he process begins in the world of

matter with the use of the brain# thetongue# gestures# and so forth# butit ends in the world of ideas with thediscovery of truth.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* Allego-. of theCa/e

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism




• he meaning of the allegory is this- Weourselves are living in a cave of shadowsand illusions# chained by our ignorance andapathy.

•

When we begin to loosen ourselves from ourchains# it is the beginning of our education)the steep ascent represents the dialecticthat will carry us from the world of matter tothe world of ideas)even to a contemplation

of the Good as represented by the Sun.• e who has advanced into the realm of true

knowledge must return to the cave to bringenlightenment to others.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism




• his points to Plato"s strongbelief that not only shouldphilosophi/ing be an

intellectual a0air# but alsothat the philosopher has aduty to share his learning

with others# doing this evenin the face of adversity ordeath.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• In The Republic, Plato proposed thekind of education that would help bringabout a world in which individuals andsociety are moved as far as they are

capable of moving toward the Good.• Plato suggested that the state must

take an active role in educationalconcerns and o0er a curriculum that

leads intelligent students from concretedata toward abstract thinking.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• Plato believed that untilphilosophers were rulers#states would never pursue

the highest ideals of truthand 1ustice.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• Plato"s idea was that thephilosopher*king must be notonly a thinker but also a doer.

• e must supervise the a0airs ofthe state# and like thephilosopher who made his wayout of the cave and yet returned

to teach others# he must seethat his wisdom pervades everyaspect of state life.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



Plato* The +epu,lic

• oday# as Plato suggested# we providean educational system with great stateinvolvement that has much to sayabout what occupation people

eventually will pursue as a result ofthe education they receive.

• We also recogni/e the tremendousin2uence of social class in education#

as in Plato"s utopian society# whichseparated people into three classes-workers# military personnel# and rulers.

IDEALISM AND

PlatonicIdealism



+eligious Idealism

ReligiousIdealism



+eligious Idealism

• Idealism has e3erted considerablein2uence on religion. 4ore3ample# 5udaism and 6hristianityinclude many beliefs that 7t intoidealist thinking.

• In 5udaism and 6hristianity# theidea of one God as pure Spirit and

the 8niversal Good can be readilyrecogni/ed as compatible withthis philosophy.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism



St( Augustine !&0"1"&2)

• he founders of the Roman6atholic 6hurch wereheavily in2uenced by

idealism.• !urelius !ugustinus

ipponensis was born into#

and reared under# thein2uence of ellenisticculture.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• In the Confessions, he describedhis early life of paganism and thedebauchery of his youth until hisconversion to 6hristianity in 9:;.

• e became a priest in 9<=# and in9<> he was appointed $ishop ofippo.

•

!ugustine connected thephilosophy of Platonists and?eoplatonists# like Plotinus# with6hristian beliefs.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism



St( Augustine* The Cit.of 3od

• described the 6ity of God and the6ity of Man as divisions of theuniverse parallel to Plato"sschemata of the World of Ideas andthe World of Matter.

• @ike Plato# !ugustine believed thatthe senses were unreliable andthat belief in God rests

ultimatelyon faith.

• +We must 7rst believe#, he wrote#+in order that we may know.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism



St( Augustine* The Cit.of 3od

• In Plato"s philosophy# the soulhas knowledge that isobscured by being imprisoned

in the body.• In !ugustine"s interpretation#

the soul is blackened by!dam"s fall from grace# whichresults in human doubt anduncertainty.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• !ugustine was greatlyconcerned with theconcept of evil and

believed that because maninherited the sin of !dam#he was engaged in a

continuous struggle toregain the kind of purity hehad before the 4all.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• !ugustine readily acceptedPlato"s notion of the +divided line,between ideas and matter# but hereferred to the two worlds as theWorld of God and the World ofMan.

• he World of God is the world of

Spirit and the Good% the World ofMan is the material world ofdarkness# sin# ignorance# andsu0ering.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• he believed that a personcould spiritually transcend thisworld by concentration on God

through meditation and faith.• !ugustine# like Plato# believed

that people do not createknowledge- God already has

created it# and people candiscover it through trying to7nd God.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• !ugustine patterned hiseducational philosophy after thePlatonic tradition. e believed

that worldly knowledge gainedthrough the senses was full oferror but that reason could leadtoward understanding# and he

held that# ultimately# it wasnecessary to transcend reasonthrough faith.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism




• @earning must come fromwithin# and all true knowledgeultimately comes from God.

• !ugustine was the greatest ofthe 6hristian Platonists# andhis stress on the role of thelearner"s spontaneous and

God*directed intelligence hadgreat implications for 6hristianeducation for many centuries.

IDEALISM AND

ReligiousIdealism



Mode-n Idealism



Mode-n Idealism

• $y the beginning of the modernperiod in the 7fteenth andsi3teenth centuries# idealism had

come to be largely identi7ed withsystemati/ation and sub1ectivism.

• his identi7cation wasencouraged by the writings of

RenA Bescartes# George $erkeley#Immanuel Cant# Georg W. 4.egel# and 5osiah Royce.

IDEALISM AND



+EN4 DESCA+TES !5067%5702)

• $orn in the small town of @a a/e#4rance# RenA Bescartes waseducated by the 5esuits# who headmired for their devoted worktoward teaching# but for whom hedeveloped great dissatisfactionbecause of their doctrinaire ideas.

• !lthough his philosophical thinkingchallenged 6atholic doctrine onmany points# it seems that heremained sincere in his 6atholicism.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



+EN4 DESCA+TES !5067%5702)

• signi7cant works- – Biscourse on Method

– Meditations on 4irst Philosophy.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



+EN4 DESCA+TES !5067%5702)

• Principally in Discourse, Bescartese3plored his +methodical doubt#,whereby he sought to doubt all things#including his own e3istence.

• he arrived at the famous 6artesian7rst principle- Cogito, ergo sum, +Ithink# therefore I am.,

• he cogito supports the tradition ofidealism because it reaDrms thecentrality of mind in the relationshipof the human being with the world.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



3eo-ge 'e-8ele. !5790%5$0&)

• George $erkeley was bornand educated in Ireland andspent most of his

professional life as a ministerin the Episcopal 6hurchthere.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



3eo-ge 'e-8ele. !5790%5$0&)

• $erkeley contended that alle3istence depends on some mindto know it% if no minds e3ist# then

for all intents and purposesnothing e3ists unless it isperceived by the mind of God.

• $erkeley was attacking a central

tenet of philosophical realism)that a material world e3istsindependent of mind.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



3eo-ge 'e-8ele. !5790%5$0&)

• $erkeley was a champion ofideal realities and valueswhose main purpose is to

make evident the e3istenceof God and to prove that Godis the true cause of all things.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



Immanuel :ant !5$#"%592")

• he German philosopher ImmanuelCant was born in humbleconditions# the son of a saddler.

•

Educated in schools of hishometown# CFnigsberg# heeventually became perhaps themost famous professor the

8niversity of CFnigsberg ever had• Cant is recogni/ed as one of the

world"s great philosophers.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism




• greatly in2uenced subse&uent thoughtabout the importance of characterdevelopment in education

• e held that humans are the only beings

who need education and that discipline is aprimary ingredient of education that leadspeople to think and seek out +the good.,

• 6hildren should be educated not simply forthe present but also for the possibility of an

improved future condition# which Cantcalled the +idea of humanity and the wholedestiny of mankind.,

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism




• o Cant# the essence ofeducation should not besimply training% the

important thing wasenlightenment# or teaching achild to think according to

principles

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

3EO+3 ;IL<ELM



3EO+3 ;IL<ELMF+IED+IC< <E3EL

!5$$2%59&5)• e was born in Stuttgart#Germany

• Received his education until

the• age of =: in his native city.

• e then went to the 8niversity

of bingen and ma1ored intheology# and graduated in=H<9.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

3EO+3 ;IL<ELM




!5$$2%59&5)• 4or a while# he was a lecturer at the

• 8niversity of 5ena and then rectorof a secondary school until =:=;.

e was a professor at the8niversity of eidelberg for twoyears

• in =:=: became a professor of

philosophy at the 8niversity of$erlin# remaining there until hisdeath.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

3EO+3 ;IL<ELM




!5$$2%59&5)• !ccording to egel# one mustlook at three ma1or aspects ofones system- logic# nature# and

spirit.• egel seemed to think that to

be truly educated# an individual

must pass through the variousstages of the cultural evolutionof humankind.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

3EO+3 ;IL<ELM




!5$$2%59&5)• he was pointing out that ourunderstanding of history ispart of the developmental

logic and is essentiallyretroactive and provides anunderstanding of a stage of

reality only as it hasoccurred.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

=OSIA< +O>CE



=OSIA< +O>CE

!5900%5657)• ne of the most in2uential!merican e3ponents of egelianidealism at the beginning of the

twentieth century• Royce believed that ideas are

essentially purposes or plans ofaction and that the ful7llment ofideas is found when they are putinto action.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism

=OSIA< +O>CE



=OSIA< +O>CE

!5900%5657)• teaching people not onlyabout the purposes of life butalso about how they can

become active participants insuch purposes.

IDEALISM AND

ModernIdealism



IDEALISM AS A P<ILOSOP<> OF EDUCATIONAims of Education

• Idealists generally agree that education should notonly stress development of the mind but alsoencourage students to focus on all things of lastingvalue.

• !long with Plato# they believe that the aim ofeducation should be directed toward the search fortrue ideas.

• !nother important idealist aim is characterdevelopment because the search for truth demandspersonal discipline and steadfast character.

• What they want in society is not 1ust the literate#knowledgeable person# but the good person as well

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF



P<ILOSOP<> OFEDUCATION

Methods and Cu-icullum• Idealists lean toward studies that providedepth# and they would strongly suggest amodi7cation of the view that things

should be studied simply because theyare new or meet occupational needs.

• Idealists 7nd that much of the greatliterature of the past has more pertinence

to contemporary problems than what isconsidered new and relevant.

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




Methods and Cu-icullum• Idealists do not favor speciali/edlearning as much as learning that isholistic.

• hey ask us to see the whole ratherthan a dis1ointed collection of parts#and they believe that a holistic

approach leads to a more liberal andscholarly attitude toward learning

• Plato believed that the best method

of learning was the dialectic..IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




Methods and Cu-icullum• !ugustine practiced the dialectic# but healso put great stress on an intuitiveapproach to knowledge.

•

Plato held that one does not learn as muchfrom nature as from dialogues with otherpeople# and

• !ugustine believed that although one may

be blind and deaf# incapable of anyperception through the senses# one still canlearn all the important truths and reach God.

IDEALISM AND



EDUCATION

Methods andCu-icullum• oday# some idealists lean more toward the study

of ideas through the use of classical works orwritings and art that e3press great ideas.

• Idealists do believe# however# that any study of

Great $ooks should be undertaken withe3perienced leadership and with an emphasis onthe comprehension of ideas rather than on themere memori/ation and classi7cation of

information.• hey insist on a seminar type of instruction with

opportunity for ample dialogue between teacherand student.

IDEALISM AND



EDUCATION

Methods andCu-icullum• he idealist is not concerned primarily with turning

out

• students with speci7c technical or occupationalskills# but with giving them a wider understanding

of the world in which they live.• he curriculum# therefore# should revolve around

broad concepts rather than speci7c skills% and inelementary and preschool education students are

encouraged to develop habits of understanding#patience# tolerance# and hard work that will assistthem later when they undertake more substantialstudies.

IDEALISM AND



EDUCATION

Methods andCu-icullum• he lecture method also still has a place in

the idealist"s methodology# but lecturesare viewed more as a means of

stimulating thought than as merely a wayof conveying information.

• o the idealist# the chief purpose of alecture is to help students comprehend

ideas. Idealists also use such methods aspro1ects# supplemental activities# libraryresearch# and artwork.

IDEALISM AND



EDUCATION

Methods andCu-icullum• Self*reali/ation is# as noted

previously# an important aim ofeducation% hence# idealists stress the

importance of self*directed activity.• he teacher can use curriculum

materials to help students learn

about the purpose of life# family# thenature of peer pressures# and theproblems of growing up.

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




+ole of the Teache-• he teacher maintain constant concern aboutthe ultimate purposes of learning.

• Some idealists stress the importance ofemulation in learning because they believe thatthe teacher should be the kind of person wewant our children to become.

• Idealists favor the teacher who isphilosophically oriented# one who can assiststudents in choosing important material andinfuse them with a desire to improve theirthinking in the deepest possible way.

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




+ole of the Teache-• he idealist*oriented teacher would seek tohave these Socratic characteristics and wouldencourage students to better their thinking andtheir lives on the basis of such thinking.

• 4or religious idealists# the student is importantas a creation of God and carries within some ofthe godliness that the school should seek todevelop# and most idealists# whether religious or

not# have a deep feeling about the individual"sinner powers 'such as intuition(# which must beaccounted for in any true education

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




+ole of the Teache-• !ugustine thought that truth isinherent in the soul of the individual.

• Education is the process of bringing

these truths to the surface# andbecause many of these truths aredirectly related to God# according to

many religious realists# educationcan also be a process of salvation.

IDEALISM AND

P<ILOSOP<> OF




+ole of the Teache-• Even today# many religiousinstitutions practice such anapproach as a part of students"

education# and they set aside aportion of time for students tomeditate on ultimate meanings.

IDEALISM AND

Philosophical and Ideological Foundations of Education

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