Unit 3 Discussion Assignment

Every educational institution and teacher need a set of beliefs or philosophy that influences what

and how they teach their students. Having been a teacher for some years, I have tried a lot of

philosophies in my classroom and I have come to subscribe to a belief or philosophy that makes

classroom learning relevant, practical and also centered on students to be thinkers and problem

solvers. Hence this paper seeks to review three educational philosophies with focus on

educational goals, teaching methods, and curriculum, and the best I will subscribe with reasons.

Humanism/Existentialism is a student-centered philosophy that believes that students should be

provided with choices about the learning process. This philosophy rejects the existence of any

source of objective, authoritative truth about metaphysics, ethics and epistemology but rather

believes that every individual is responsible for determining for him/her what is correct or

incorrect, good or bad. Thus, they believe that there is no universal form of human nature,

instead, everyone has the free will to develop as we see fit. This philosophy stresses on person’s

innate goodness and individual development and rejects the idea of group-oriented education.

(Ganly, 2019). In existentialism classroom, the role of the teacher is to help the learner to define

his/her own essence by creating an environment which he/she can freely choose his/her own

preferred way. Thus, in the classroom, the learner is helped to understand and appreciate

him/herself as a unique individual who accepts responsibility for his feelings, thoughts and

actions. According to Drew (2019), students are encouraged to express their personal agency and

create meaning to their own life. Curriculum under this approach is teaching various subjects of

art, science and humanities. For example, students must be engaged in all aspects of learning in

order to work with the teacher and other students to develop a curriculum and evaluation system

that will permit individual interests and abilities. An advocate includes Jean-Paul Sarte,

Perennialism is a teacher-centered philosophy that focuses on human concerns which has caused

concern for centuries and revealed through ‘great works’. (Ornstein, 2003, p. 110). The approach
Unit 3 Discussion Assignment

also stresses on the values associated with reason. Perennialism sees knowledge as enduring,

which seeks everlasting truth, and also views principles of existence as unchanging. (Ganly,

2019). This educational philosophy bases on reason, logic and analytical thought, and only

information that stood the test of time is important. Examples of subjects under this approach

include Religion, History, Math, and Science. This is because these classes or subjects cannot be

changed. Curriculum under this approach focuses on attaining cultural literacy and stressing on

the learner’s growth in enduring discipline. Advocates of Perennialism include Robert Maynard

Hutchins and Mortimer Adler.

Progressivism is a student-centered philosophy whereby the teacher is the facilitator of

educational process rather than the center. This philosophy focuses on the students following a

scientific method of questioning and searching for answer. (Nicholas, n.d.). Thus, in this

approach, the student is seen as a problem solver and thinker who brings meaning through

his/her experience in the physical and cultural context. In this case the teacher has to provide the

experiences so that the learner can learn by doing. As the teacher serve as a facilitator, the

students also explore their moral, mental, social and physical growth. (Lynch, 2016). According

to Genly (2019) progressivism values the scientific method of teaching, gives freedom to the

students to have their beliefs (that is democracy in the classroom), and also promotes interaction

among students as valuable to the learning process. Progressivism encourages students’ inputs,

and that books are tools but not authority. Curriculum content here is derived from student needs,

experiences, abilities, interests and questions. A proponent of this philosophy is John Dewey.

Reflecting upon my own beliefs and practices, I will subscribe to progressivism philosophy

because of the following reasons: Firstly, progressivism in education is student-centered and the

learner’s interests are of priority. For example, I believe that in the classroom, students should be

dealing with thought-provoking games, books, experiments, social interaction, manipulative

objects, etc. and that is what progressivism advocates. Secondly, progressivism stresses on the

three learning types of students, that is the auditory, visual and kinesthetic-learners. Again, since

students’ interest is priority, learning is active but not passive which makes everyone

participates. Moreover, progressivism believe that in the classroom, teachers need to teach

students problem-solving strategies because knowledge that is true in the present may not

necessary be true in the future. Furthermore, because learning is active and not passive and

every student participates fully, it helps in creating a positive learning classroom environment.
Unit 3 Discussion Assignment

References

Drew, C. (2019, July 20). Existentialism in education – 7 key features. Retrieved July 2, 2021

from https://helpfulprofessor.com/existentialism-in-education/

Ganly, S. (2019, September 4). Educational philosophies in the classroom: The categories of

various teaching philosophies. Retrieved July 2, 2021

from: https://sarahganly1.medium.com/educational-philosophies-in-the-classroom-

the-categories-of-various-teaching-philosophies-11c3e2811c21

Lynch, M., (2016), Philosophies of education: 3 types of student-centered philosophies.

Retrieved July 2, 2021 from https://www.theedadvocate.org/philosophies-education-

3-types-student-centered-philosophies/

Nicholas, D. (n.d.). Educational philosophy defined. Retrieved July 2021 from

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-hostos-education/chapter/foundations-of-

education-and-instructional-assessmenteducational-philosophydefined/

Ornstein, A. & Daniel L. (2003). Foundations of education (8th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin

Company.