RANDY SWAIN

PROGRESSIVISM

Developed in mid 1920s through the 1950s. Led by John Dewey.

Believe that Progress, Change and Individuality are fundamental to education.

A Democratic way of Learning- Should be directed toward the Childs interest, not a set lesson plan

Problems and Lessons are made around what students will have to solve in life.

Classroom settings are informal

Strong Emphasis on Learning by doing Hands on Experiences

Cooperation between students rather than Competition

Beliefs, Values, and Practices

Education must be a reconstruction of what the student goes through in Life

Learning is best taught through hands on experiments.

The curriculum for the student should be derived from their own questions and interest

Effective teachers are ones who provide experiences for the student

Influence on Curriculum

Science classes use this technique when preforming lab work. They collect data and test by experimenting.

Pre-K and Kindergarten use different themes in the classroom based on the interests of their students

Examples of Influences on Curriculum

Elementary and High Schools

• Ann Arbor Open School - A progressive K-8 school in the Ann Arbor Public School District in Michigan

• Bank Street College of Education - A Progressive Children's School and College of Education in New York, New York, founded in 1916.

• Calhoun School - A progressive preK-12 school in Manhattan, New York.

• The Cambridge School of Weston - A progressive day/boarding school, grades 9-12, founded in 1886 and located in Weston, Mass.

• Stevens Cooperative School - A progressive elementary school and parent cooperative with two campuses in Hoboken and Jersey City,NJ, founded in 1949

Colleges

• Goddard College - A progressive college founded on the ideals and work of John Dewey. Goddard offers BA, MA and MFA low residency programs in Writing, Education, Psychology, Health Arts, Interdisciplinary Arts and Individually designed programs for working adults. Eight day residencies in Plainfield, Vermont and Port Townsend, Washington

• Soka University of America - A four year college founded in 2001 in Aliso Viejo, California.

Schools Still Practicing

“Child-Centered”- Focused around the child’s needs and interest

Flexible- The curriculum is flexible to the students interest, does not have a set curriculum

Experimentation- How students should learn. “Hands-on” approach

Key Terms

Be motivated in becoming the best they can be

Prepared to be Active Learners

Prepared to work in group/team atmosphere

Impact on Student Roles

Be able to be flexible to the child’s interest

Provide atmosphere of learning experiences

Teachers role is not direct but to advise students

Impact on Teachers/Administrators

Experience: The individual is learning from actually doing “hands-on” activities. The lessons they are learning come from the results of the experiments they are preforming.

Outcome: Individuals choose the curriculum based on their interests. By choosing curriculum this way allows them to ultimately become better educated in the area of their liking.

Philosophy Aligned

Led by John Dewey, Progressive educators insisted on the importance of the emotional, artistic, and creative aspects of human development rather than being swept away when education turned to “Scientific” techniques such as intelligence testing.

Dewey and company believed these aspects were “the most living and essential parts of our nature”

Historical Context

1859-1952

In 1894 he joined the University of Chicago Psychology department

Here he began to develop his own ideas of learning through social and interactive processes

He and his wife help found the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools.

This school still practices progressivism today

“to prepare him for the future life means to give him command of himself; it means so to train him that he will have the full and ready use of all his capacities”

John Dewey

Part of the ODE Science Standard

Students develop scientific habits of mind as they use the processes of scientific inquiry to ask valid questions and to gather and analyze information. They understand how to develop hypotheses and make predictions. They are able to reflect on scientific practices as they develop plans of action to create and evaluate a variety of conclusions. Students are also able to demonstrate the ability to communicate their findings to others.

Benchmark A: Ask a testable question.KindergartenDoing Scientific Inquiry  1. Ask “what if” questions.  2. Explore and pursue student-generated “what if” questions.

Progressivism and ODE Content Standards

Students are Active Learners

Students are able to learn through their own interest

Students work in cooperation with their peers

Stimulates the growth of the “Whole Child”

Increases critical thinking among students

Stimulates life long learning and social skills

Pros of Progressivism

Teacher does not have a set routine, they must be flexible with the student’s interest

May not adequately prepare them for state and district wide testing

High Cost for materials for experiment learning

Cons of Progressivism

How would lessons be derived for a large class, since lessons are based on student interest?

How would we be able to adequately test students in this learning philosophy?

Do you think this philosophy would adequately prepare students for the “real world”?

Questions

http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/ed416/PP3.html

http://www.uvm.edu/~dewey/articles/proged.html

http://www.answers.com/topic/educational-progressivism

http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/society/A0840232.html

References