UNIT- I: EPISTEMOLOGICAL BASES OF EDUCATION

Introduction

Epistemology focuses on our knowledge of reality. Epistemology

analyses about the validity of sources of knowledge. The epistemologist
tries to answer questions like ‘what is the difference between knowing and
believing? What can we know beyond the information provided by our
sense organs? What is the guarantee that what we know is true? Thus the
major concerns of epistemology are knowledge and truth.

The word Epistemology is derived from the ancient Greek episteme

meaning "scientific knowledge" and logos meaning "speech" or "word", in
this context denoting "codified knowledge of". J.F. Ferrier coined
epistemology on the model of 'ontology', to designate that branch of
philosophy which aims to discover the meaning of knowledge, and called
it the 'true beginning' of philosophy.

Epistemology is, the division of philosophy that investigates the

origin and nature of knowledge is called epistemology, and its objective is
to investigate the foundations upon which human knowledge rests.

A pluralist epistemology is thus fundamentally practical and placed

(Spender, 1998).

Meaning of Knowledge

Knowledge is a familiarity, awareness or understanding of

someone, such as facts, information, descriptions, which is acquired
through experience or education by perceiving, discovering, or learning.

` Knowledge can refer to a theoretical, practical understanding of a subject.

In philosophy, the study of knowledge is called epistemology; the
philosopher Plato famously defined knowledge as "justified true belief",
though "well-justified true belief" is more complete as it accounts for the
Get tier problems. However, several definitions of knowledge and theories
to explain it exist.

The National Curriculum Framework-2005, while placing the

experience of the knower at center, also defined knowledge. According to
it, knowledge can be convicted as experience organized through language
into patterns of thought, thus creating meaning, which in turn helps us to
understand the world we live in. It can also be conceived of as patterns of
activity, or physical dexterity with thought, contributing to acting in the
world, and the creating and making of things. Human beings over time
have evolved many bodies of knowledge, which include a repertoire of
ways of thinking, of feeling and of doing things, and constructing more
knowledge.

Knowledge acquisition involves complex cognitive processes:

perception, communication, and reasoning; while knowledge is also said to
be related to the capacity of acknowledgment in human beings.

Type of Knowledge

1. Communicating knowledge.

2. Situated knowledge.

3. Embedded knowledge

4. Practitioner knowledge.

5. Priori Knowledge.

6. Posteriori Knowledge
Communicating knowledge

Symbolic representations can be used to indicate meaning and can

be thought of as a dynamic process. Hence the transfer of the symbolic
representation can be viewed as one ascription process whereby knowledge
can be transferred. Other forms of communication include observation and
imitation, verbal exchange, and audio and video recordings. Philosophers
of language and construct and analyze theories of knowledge transfer or
communication.

Situated knowledge

Situated knowledge is knowledge specific to a particular situation.

It is a term coined by Donna Haraway as an extension of the feminist
approaches of "successor science" suggested by Sandra Harding one which
"offers a more adequate, richer, better account of a world, in order to live
in it well and in critical, reflexive relation to our own as well as others'
practices of domination and the unequal parts of privilege and oppression
that makes up all positions. Arturo Escobar explains as, "neither fictions
nor supposed facts." This narrative of situation is historical textures woven
of fact and fiction. Some methods of generating knowledge, such as trial
and error, or learning from experience, tend to create highly situational
knowledge. One of the main attributes of the scientific method is that the
theories it generates are much less situational than knowledge gained by
other methods. Situational knowledge is often embedded in language,
culture, or traditions. This integration of situational knowledge is an
allusion to the community, and its attempts at collecting subjective
perspectives into an embodiment "of views from somewhere."

Embedded knowledge

Embedded knowledge is a significant feature of the knowledge

base in education. Tests and other assessment instruments, curriculum
frameworks, the academic organization of schooling, are all based on prior
investigation and other accumulated knowledge which the teacher is not
involved in and may not advert to at the point of use. Embedded
knowledge makes a range of intellectual resources available to teachers
which improve their understanding of individual students, strengthen their
curriculum programming and enrich their pedagogy.

Indicators here require two dimensions, reflecting the amount of

knowledge embedded and the extent of usage respectively. A multi-
attribute psychological test such as the British Ability Scales or the
Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children which has undergone a full
development process and has extensive standardization data covering
different age ranges and populations is richer in information terms than a
simple rating scale designed for use with four-year-olds. A first measure,
therefore, relates to the amount of knowledge embedded in the test or
curriculum framework or school routine.

An instrument may of itself be information-rich but be little used,

however. This could be because of mismatch with the information needs of
potential users, limited target audience, or pragmatic factors such as
marketing and cost. Whatever the reason, such an instrument has to be
regarded differently from a similar instrument which is in widespread use
and which generates substantial amounts of information in practitioners’
hands. Hence, there is need of a further set of indicators geared to use and
the generation of knowledge in practice.

Practitioner knowledge

Teachers’ knowledge base is especially various, as noted above,

and direct measurement of it is probably not possible on a prevalent basis.
Some direct measures are taken, as for example when teachers’
certification is based on the measurement, through examinations and
observation of teaching practice, of knowledge and competences or when
serving teachers are rated in terms of a knowledge-related framework.
Indirect measures are more likely to be used, however, and there
 are a number of indicators or quasi-indicators based on either pre-service
or in-service training, on the grounds that length and level of initial
training and opportunities for continuous professional development are
associated with expanding the teacher’s knowledge base.

Prior knowledge
It is independent of experience, as with mathematics (3+2=5),
tautologies ("All bachelors are unmarried"), and deduction from pure reason
(e.g., ontological proofs).

A posteriori knowledge
It is dependent on experience or empirical evidence, as with most
aspects of science and personal knowledge.

Meaning of Skill

A skill is learning to carry out a task with pre-determined results often

within a given amount of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided
into domain general and domain-specific skills. For example, in the domain of
work, some general skills would include time management, teamwork and
leadership, self-motivation and others, whereas domain-specific skills would
be useful only for a certain job.

Types of skills

1. Labor skills

2. Life skills

3. People skills

4. Social skills

5. Soft skills

6. Hard skills
Labor skills

Skilled workers have long had historical import as electricians,

masons, carpenters, blacksmiths, bakers, brewers, coopers, printers and other
occupations that are economically productive. Skilled workers were often
politically active through their craft guilds.

Life skills

Life skills are problem-solving behaviors that are used appropriately

an responsibly in the management of personal affairs. They are a set of
human skills, acquired via learning (teaching) or direct experience that are
used to handle problems and questions commonly encountered in daily
human life. The subject varies greatly depending on societal norms and
community expectations.

People skills

According to the Portland Business Journal, people skills are described

as understanding ourselves and moderating our responses talking
effectively and empathizing accurately building relationships of trust,
respect and productive interactions.

Social skills

Social skill is any skill facilitating interaction and communication with

others. Social rules and relations are created, communicated, and changed
in verbal and nonverbal ways. The process of learning such skills is called
socialization

Soft skills

Soft skills is a sociological term relating to a person's "EQ" (Emotional

Intelligence Quotient), the cluster of personality traits, social graces,
communication, language, personal habits, friendliness, and optimism that
characterize relationships with other people.[9] Soft skills complement
 hard skills (part of a person's IQ), which are the occupational requirements
of a job and many other activities.

Hard skills

Hard skills are any skills relating to a specific task or situation. These
skills are easily quantifiable unlike soft skills which are related to one's
personality

Meaning of Teaching:

Teaching is a process of educating a person with theoretical concepts

and is a kind of a knowledge transfer between a teacher and a student. The
role of the teacher is to act as a facilitator of learning by leading
discussions, providing opportunities to ask open-ended questions, guiding
the processes and tasks and enabling the active participation of learners
and to engage with ideas. Teachers are occupied in schools with the main
purpose of educating the children to grow as good citizens in the world.
Children today are the future leaders of the society. Therefore, teaching
can be considered as an important concept.

Common characteristics of Good Teaching:

According to UNESCO (2004) and Scheerens (2004), the main

characteristics of good teaching relate to a number of broad categories:

1. Relevance: of the teaching content, in particular alignment with the

curriculum.

2. Sufficient learning time: this refers to the time devoted to actual

teaching, as opposed to the official hours set in the curriculum.
3. Structured teaching, in which learners’ engagement is stimulated,
their understanding monitored, and feedback and reinforcement
regularly provided.
4. A conducive classroom environment with, in particular, a task-
oriented climate, mutual respect between the students and teacher
and among students themselves, orderliness, and safety.
 5. Teachers with appropriate subject matter mastery, verbal
intelligence, a broad teaching repertoire, and motivation to
achieve.
6. What research also underlines though is that adaptability to
context matters as different countries and students may need
different teaching contents (both in terms of subject matter
knowledge and of medium of instruction) and different levels of
structure tailored to students’ profile. It is therefore important to
critically assess the relevance of both current and planned
objectives (in terms of the content, structure, and context of
teaching and learning) to the national situation.

Meaning of Training

Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and

knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has
specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and
performance.

Physical training
Physical training concentrates on mechanistic goals: training-programs
in this area develop specific skills or muscles, often with a view of peaking
at a particular time. Some physical training programs focus on raising
overall physical fitness.
In military use, training means gaining the physical ability to perform and
survive in combat, and learning the many skills needed in a time of war.
These include how to use a variety of weapons, outdoor survival skills, and
how to survive being captured by the enemy, among many others. See
military education and training.

Computer skills training:

Some commentators use a similar term for workplace learning to

improve performance: "training and development". There are also
additional services available online for those who wish to receive training
above and beyond that which is offered by their employers.
Simulation based training

Is another method which uses technology to assist in trainee

development. This is particularly common in the training of skills requiring
a very high degree of practice, and in those which include a significant
responsibility for life and property. An advantage is that simulation
training allows the trainer to find, study, and remedy skill deficiencies in
their trainees in a controlled, virtual environment. This also allows the
trainees an opportunity to experience and study events that would
otherwise be rare on the job., in-flight emergencies, system failure, etc.,

Religion and spirituality training

In religious and spiritual use, training may refer to the purification of

the mind, heart, understanding and actions to obtain a variety of spiritual
goals such as (for example) closeness to God or freedom from suffering.
Note for example the institutionalized spiritual training of Threefold
Training in Buddhism, Meditation in Hinduism or discipleship in
Christianity. These aspects of training can be short term or last a lifetime,
depending on the context of the training and which religious group it is a
part of.
Meaning of Information:

Information is that which informs. In other words, it is the answer to a

question of some kind. It is also that from which data and knowledge can
be derived, as data represents values attributed to parameters, and
knowledge signifies understanding of real things or abstract concepts.
 Different Methods of Collecting Information
Methods Advantage Disadvantage
Surveys (Group- Can survey many people May be problems with
Administered) • Not time-consuming interpreting
• Relatively inexpensive questions
• Everyone gets the same instrument • Difficult to get much detail
• Object interpretation
• Relatively inexpensive
Surveys (Telephone) Able to ask for more detail when needed Sometimes difficult reaching
• Everyone gets the same instrument people
• Lack of anonymity
Interviews Researcher can know how Time-consuming
people are interpreting questions • Because of time, can limit
• Able to ask for more detail when needed sample size
• Provide detailed data • Subjective interpretation
• Can be expensive
• Can be difficult to analyze
Focus Groups Researcher can know how Group setting may inhibit
people are interpreting questions some individuals
• Able to interview multiple people at one from providing information
time, thus, more cost-effective • Sometimes hard to
• Responses from one person provide coordinate multiple
stimulus for other people schedules
• Responses from one person
provide
stimulus for other people
Observations Objective interpretation Time-consuming
• Low burden for people providing • Some items are not
data observable
• Can be expensive
• Participant behavior may be
affected by
observer presence
Student Records • Objective interpretation May not correspond to
• Low burden for people providing exactly what
data researcher wants
• Relatively inexpensive • May be incomplete or
require additional interpretation
• May need special
permission to use
Collection of Objective interpretation May not correspond to
Materials • Low burden for people providing exactly what
data researcher wants
• Relatively inexpensive • May be incomplete or
require additional interpretation

Meaning of Reason:

Reason is the capacity for consciously making sense of things,

applying logic, establishing and verifying facts, and changing or justifying
practices, institutions, and beliefs based on new or existing information.
Reason or "reasoning" is associated with thinking, cognition, and
intellect. Reason, like habit or intuition, is one of the ways by which
thinking comes from one idea to a related idea. For example, it is the
means by which rational beings understand themselves to think about
cause and effect, truth and falsehood, and what is good or bad. It is also
closely identified with the ability to self- consciously change beliefs,
attitudes, traditions, and institutions, and therefore with the capacity for
freedom and self-determination.
According to Jürgen Habermas, the "substantive unity" of reason has
dissolved in modern times, such that it can no longer answer the question
"How should I live?" Instead, the unity of reason has to be strictly formal,
or "procedural."
Types of reasoning:

Deductive reasoning:

A subdivision of Philosophy is Logic. Logic is the study of reasoning.

Deduction is a form of reasoning in which a conclusion follows necessarily
from the stated premises.
 Premise 1: All humans are mortal.
Premise 2: Socrates is a human.
Conclusion: Socrates is mortal.
The reasoning in this argument is valid, because there is no way in
which the premises, 1 and 2, cou ld be true and the conclusion, 3, be false

Inductive reasoning:

Induction is a form of inference producing propositions about

unobserved objects or types, either specifically or generally, based on
previous observation. It is used to ascribe properties or relations to objects
or types based on previous observations or experiences, or to formulate
general statements or laws based on limited observations of recurring
phenomenal patterns.
Inductive reasoning contrasts strongly with deductive reasoning in
that, even in the best, or strongest, cases of inductive reasoning, the truth of
the premises does not guarantee the truth of the conclusion. Instead, the
conclusion of an inductive argument follows with some degree of
probability. Relatedly, the conclusion of an inductive argument contains
more information than is already contained in the premises. Thus, this
method of reasoning is implicative.

Meaning of belief:

Belief is the state of mind in which a person thinks something to be the

case, with or without there being empirical evidence to prove that
something is the case with factual certainty.
Belief is, it is a mental representation of an attitude positively oriented
towards the likelihood of something being true. In epistemology,
philosophers use the term ‘belief’ to refer to personal attitudes associated
with true or false ideas and concepts. However, ‘belief’ does not require
active introspection and circumspection. Belief is a common label for
convictions, surmises, suppositions, expectations.
 Importance of Belief:

Beliefs are important because behavior is important and your behavior

depends on your beliefs. Everything you do can be traced back to beliefs
you hold about the world — everything from brushing your teeth to your
career. Beliefs also help determine your reactions to others' behavior — for
example their refusal to brush their teeth or their own career choices. All
this means that beliefs are not an entirely private matter. Even beliefs you
try to keep to yourself may influence your actions enough to become a
matter of legitimate concern of others.

Distinction between knowledge and skill

Knowledge Skill
1. Knowledge is the theoretical or practical 1. Skills are the proficiencies developed
understanding of a subject. through training or experience

2.Knowledge refers to learning concepts, 2. Skill refers to the ability of using that
principles and information regarding a information and applying it in a context
particular subject(s) by a person through
books, media, encyclopedias, academic
institutions and other sources.
3. Knowledge is an understanding. It’s mental 3. Skills can be developed and improved over
or theoretical, rather than practical. Knowledge time, by combining our abilities and our
can be gleaned from a book, and you can gain knowledge, but the underlying abilities are
knowledge by researching needed in order for the skills to be developed.
online or visiting your local library.
Distinction between Knowledge and Information:

Knowledge Information
1. Knowledge, cannot really be managed 1. Information is much more easily identified,
because it resides in one’s mind organized and distribute

2. Knowledge is the broadest: 2. Information is usually construed as being

narrower in scope than
it includes facts and ideas, understanding, and
Knowledge.
the totality of what is known.

3.The process of acquiring knowledge in 3. Information explain already exists in the

science is targeted at discovering some new science, laws, all phenomena.
objective laws, typical of this process, laws
related to all phenomena of the reality

Distinction between Reason and Belief:

Reason Belief
1. Reason associate with psychological 1. Belief associate with philosophical
components. components.
2. Reason makes scientifically. 2. Belief makes not scientifically
3. Reason try to create new one 3. Belief gives the confidence while crate new
one.