Experience And Education

Although originally published in 1938, Dewey provides a fascinating account of the role of experience in education, much of which remains relevant today, almost two decades into the 21st century. Dewey's comments about the importance of continuity and interaction in experience provides an interesting perspective for thinking about how students learn. Furthermore, his thoughts on social control, freedom, and purpose are helpful in comparing the structure and effects of traditional and progressive instructional methods on student's educational experiences. This book ought to be essential reading for teachers and administrators, and will be of interest to anyone interested in philosophy of education and educational theory in general.

John Dewey's thesis regarding experience and learning in a democracy can be stated with some measure of accuracy with a few simple statements. However, these statements based upon layers of theoretical and philosophical writings by Dewey are a surreptitious higher exercise that tests the reader's aptitude to discern seemingly indistinguishable yet distinct concepts into a cohesive statement on the complementary nature of experience and education.John Dewey's thesis primarily comes out of his experience with progressive schools. Progressive education is based on the idea of freedom whereas traditional education is autocratic in nature. Having analyzed both traditional and progressive education Dewey found that neither was satisfactory and thus both were inadequate in this endeavor. Dewey's main contention and cornerstone of belief is that without experience infused into education there can be no education. America is a nation based upon democracy where supreme power is vested in the people collectively and administered by them. There is no autocracy in America or room for it. America is a land of freedom and free thought. Dewey foresaw an America that will bring in all sources of experience that will offer a true learning situation both historically and socially and that will be both ordered or structured and yet be dynamic. The democracy of America provides all the elements for John Dewey's thesis to come to fruition.Dewey saw a necessity of introducing an order of new concepts (progressivism) leading to new practices. However Dewey observed it difficult to develop a new philosophy of education because the moment traditions are departed from it makes the management of education all the more difficult and challenging. Dewey observed that because of this there would be a return to the old ways, the simpler ways - the fundamental or traditional ways. Dewey observed that mankind's thinking is traditionally set in terms of extreme opposites. Dewey found that this same thinking applied to educational philosophies as well. In theory educational systems are steadfast in their thinking and deployment but in reality their practices are compelled to compromise. Education is formulated from outside forces but undergoes development from internal forces. However, these internal forces work within the framework of standards and traditional rules that initially instituted the educational system, thus all following actions aimed to an educational end are held to a moral benchmark.Educational philosophy, which professes to be based on the idea of freedom (progressivism), may become dogmatic as the traditional education it reacted against. Alone a progressive educational theory may become rigid, unmoving and dictatorial as the traditional theory and practice is perceived. Dewey found that tradition does not permit freedom. Tradition limited freedom and did not promote intellectual and moral development of the student. From a sociological point of view we prefer democratic and humane arrangements to those that are autocratic and harsh. Thus tradition can further be characterized by harshness, harshness imposed upon the learner. Dewey found that progressivism permits freedom, the freedom of the learner yet, freedom has a purpose and a moral structure characterized by self-control. Freedom gives the ability to control personal impulse and thus provides an environment for the educational process.Pertaining to subject matter of facts and ideas Dewey found that these are bound up in the past. Variably Dewey found that issues of the present and future are thus not easily dealt with. Dewey's dilemma or philosophical challenge was how to connect achievements of the past with issues of the present and future. In a broad educational sense one must know where one came from in order to tell where one is and where one has the direction to go. Dewey found that progressivism rejects the past as a means to the future. However, tradition is still needed to tackle the needs of progressivism. If the one gives up the ways of the past the same problems stills confronts one in the present and future. Thus tradition can not be ignored. As Alfred Whitehead saw it the only use of knowledge of the past is to equip us for the present. The present contains all that there is. Tradition is a form of experience and can not be ignored.Experience and education are not synonymous terms. It is very possible for experience to promote erroneous or defective education. Experience must be evaluated for its ability to enhance education. Dewey states that America needs a theory of experience that works and directs the selection and organization of approved educational methods. This theory must ultimately discriminate between experiences that are worthwhile and those that are not. There must be discrimination between education and miseducation. You can get experience in one direction and equally important open up peripheral experiences. Education as growth and maturity should be an ever-present process. Education is the business of continuous improvement. There is growth and satisfaction.All subject matter is drawn from life's experiences. Take experience, in order to be educative it must lead out into expanding world of subject matter, subject matter of facts of information of ideas. It must be viewed as a continuous process to be successful. Experience is the means and goal of education. Given an idea you then prove it, but that means proving its worth. You prove its worth through experience. This is good for society and beneficial because of the peripheral benefits of experience. The experience is the actual life experience of the learner. There is only one subject matter for education: life. Bring these experiences freely into the classroom to promote education.

Although Experience and Education is small in form and a mere 91 pages in length, it is packed with highly useful information not only for professional educators but also for parents and caregivers of children. It is bittersweet that Dewey's work remains relevant many decades after it was first published. Sadly, too little has been done to improve the quality of education in this country. Writers and educators such as Dewey have given us the tools needed to provide high quality education to the youth of our nation. Unfortunately, there appears to be little resolve to implement them on a wide scale. One of the very few positive aspects of this situation is that Dewey is still read and much is still learned from this great figure in American education.Dewey's recipe for a successful education is clear and can even be inferred from the title of this book in which experience is placed before education. Education is a product of experience. According to Dewey, not just any experience will do. Experience must be related to prior experience and expand upon it so as to stretch the current limits of knowledge.In order for experience to facilitate further growth in education, the educator must be a keen observer of their students, being able to monitor their current abilities. Rather than simply forcing knowledge onto students, Dewey believes that teachers should act more as group leaders. For Dewey, learning should be driven by the desires of the student with the teacher offering guidance, feedback, and structure to the activities. Dewey's approach is on that can also be used to great effect by parents when planning activities for their children. A little extra preparation time when going to a zoo or museum can turn into a richer, more memorable experience.There is little doubt that Dewey would be disappointed by the current state of American education. As a result of education slipping as a national priority, the quality of education has been in decline for decades. In addition, as funding has declined and the population has risen, class size has increased. This alone makes giving adequate attention to each student a virtual impossibility. Being unable to engage in careful observation of students prevents the implementation of progressive education. Consequently, Dewey's methods remain relevant and would be useful reading for both educators and parents alike.