Kevin and Jim's Guide to Developing Your Own Philosophy of Education

For many users of Those Who Can, Teach, developing one's own philosophy of education must seem a daunting task. It is made even more demanding when one realizes that before one can develop a philosophy of education, one needs to do the groundwork of forming or adopting a particular philosophy: that is, one must have a general theory of how the world is put together, what laws regulate the universe and underlie all knowledge and reality. For younger readers in particular, who lack a great storehouse of experience and are relatively new to the world of ideas, the prospect of having to form a philosophy of education is unsettling. But that is as it should be. Something as fundamentally important as a person's basic understanding of reality should not come easily, like buying shoes or going for a walk.

Everyone, at some level, has a philosophy of life. It may be as crude as "Whatever makes me happy is therefore good" or as elaborate as a professional philosopher's own version of enlightened self-interest as the basis for improving the human species. But all philosophies of life ought to be something that individuals have worked out in their own minds and that they use to guide their interpretations of life and their decisions. Their philosophy is the lens through which they observe and interpret reality. As already mentioned, developing a philosophy of education is then a subset of having a guiding philosophy. It is the playing out of the educational implications of one's basic philosophy. But how does one develop a philosophy of education? Here are some suggestions you might consider:

1. Read Chapter 8 of your textbook carefully, and visit the related web resources. Think about what the terms used in the textbook mean and how they relate to the different schools of philosophy described. Realize, too, that this chapter is meant only as a door opener-a beginning.
   
   
2. As you read, "try on" the ideas. Look at the world through the lens or angle of vision of each philosophy, searching for the one or ones that best "fit" you. Once you have made a tentative decision, start integrating the chosen philosophy into your everyday life ("Well, if I really think 'Human society is inferior to the teachings of the natural world,' I ought to do X, Y, and Z"). Discuss your views with your classmates and your teachers. (Be careful, though, how you talk to your parents. From firsthand experience as parents, we can tell you that this topic can panic them!)
   
   
3. Take a philosophy course or two as part of your general or liberal education. This will give you a systematic exposure to philosophical thought. Also, it will give you a structured opportunity to explore your own thinking more carefully.
   
   
4. Think about how you would want your own child to be educated. Depending on whether you are an inductive or a deductive thinker, as described in your textbook, start with the child and decide what and how you would want him or her to be taught, or start with your philosophical principles (for example, "Humans are rational beings") and deduce educational principles from them (for example, "The aim of schooling should be to develop a student's capacity for reasoning"). What would a school for your child be like? What would it emphasize? What would it de-emphasize?
   
   
5. As you take education courses and read education texts, ask yourself, "What is the teacher's or author's philosophy of education? What does he or she hold as most important? What is the underlying idea that is driving the point being made here?" (We acknowledge that this is difficult, but with practice this ability develops.)
   
   
6. As you observe in classrooms during your teacher education program (and even on your own campus), try to figure out what the teachers' philosophies of education are. If you can do it tactfully, ask them questions such as "What do you hope your students become?" "What would be an ideal outcome of your teaching?" "What is the most important thing students should be getting from their education?"
   
   
7. Think! (That's what philosophy is all about.)