Foundations of Education

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Foundations of Education by Mind Map: Foundations of Education

1. Philosophy of Education

1.1. Existentialism and Phenomenology (p. 190-192)

1.1.1. Existentialism is a fairly modern philosophy, which gives it some merit, in my opinion. As time passes, thinking achieves a dualistic progress of becoming more pragmatic, yet also more abstract. Existentialism focuses on the individual; phenomenology, by extension, deals with consciousness, perception, and meaning as they arise in a particular individual's experiences.

1.1.2. Individuals are placed on the Earth alone, and must make sense of some of the chaos and absurdity they will inevitably encounter.

1.1.3. Existentialism as a teaching philosophy aims to improve the individual by arming her with the tools to comprehend the absurd and chaotic world that all individuals inhabit. Existentialism is a bottom-up philosophy, and though it may seem inefficient to improve a populace of students one at a time at face value, existentialism as a teaching philosophy can be taken to a larger scale.

1.2. Generic Notions

1.2.1. Existentialism is an individualistic philosophy, which makes some of its adherents question whether it is a particular school of philosophy at all. I am not one of those, however; I believe that since each individual occupies space in the world, each individual is therefore a piece of the whole, or a fragment of objectivity, which philosophy holds the purpose of deciphering.

1.2.2. Sartre said that "existence precedes essence," thereby stating that people must create themselves and their own meaning. Existentialism, in its ideal form, is a tool that enables and facilitates this journey for each individual.

2. Schools as Organizations

3. Educational Inequality

4. Educational Reform

5. Politics of Education

5.1. Liberal

5.1.1. Equality of opportunity to all students, regardless of race, creed, or color.

5.1.2. Traditional curriculum leaves out the diverse multicultural aspects of a pluralistic society (p. 29)

5.1.3. Policies should combine a concern for quality for all students with equality of opportunity for all, sometimes referred to as "quality with equality" (p. 30)

5.1.4. I am staunchly liberal, and I believe that if this nation can spend so much time in the spotlight of the world stage, it can spare a few resources to level the playing field for its students.

5.2. Conservative

5.2.1. Though it can often get ugly, competition among the best and brightest does have the potential to foster incredible productivity and growth, both economically and in the self.

5.2.2. Developed by William Graham Summer, social Darwinist thought looks at social evolution as a process that enables the strongest individuals and/or groups to survive; human progress is dependent on individual initiative and drive.

5.2.3. Though the mere word "Conservative" makes me a bit queasy, it cannot be denied by a rational mind that they do have one or two good points among their colorful insanities.

5.3. Radical

5.3.1. As I stated in my introduction, I believe that society is inherently broken, and since money is the lifeblood of every society, it is our duty as teachers to not only stop the bleeding, but to heal the wounds caused by a system that depends upon people trampling on one another to climb a ladder built from the remains of the innocent.

5.3.2. The radical perspective is negative about U.S. society. It recognizes the productive capacity of its capitalist economic system, but it argues that society structurally creates vast and morally indefensible inequalities between its members. (p. 26)

5.3.3. I recognize that it is unrealistic to expect capitalism to become full-blown socialism. Part of the reason that it is a pipe dream is due to the ignorance of the masses, which, as a teacher, I can only do so much to curb. The overwhelmingly successful campaign to give the word "socialism" a negative connotation is the other reason that such a radical change is a pipe dream. Despite the hugely successful (not to mention happy) countries like Norway and Finland serving as incredible proof of the viability of socialism (or at least, socialistic principles intermingled with capitalistic ones), I do not believe the U.S. will take meaningful strides toward socialism in my lifetime, and I have made my peace with that fact.

5.4. Liberal (continued)

5.4.1. I am a staunch liberal that, nonetheless, has the capacity to look beyond his ideology and recognize that the other perspectives have some merit. I intend to blend those few elements of the other perspectives that actually sit well with me into my overall ideology. Since I can peek into the conservative and radical mindsets with the little window of agreement that I have with them, I am equipped to undertake such a grand endeavor.

5.5. Progressivism

5.5.1. Clearly the better of the two visions of education; Twenty-first century solutions to twenty-first century problems. Though traditionalism has quite a bit going for it (transmission of individual initiative, the best of what was and what is, etc.) (p. 26-27), it cannot hope to morally match the forward march of progressivism, which aims to curtail social problems with schools as the vehicle of this undertaking.

5.5.2. It is inarguable that schools are the vehicles of social improvement. Where did Einstein learn the basic math skills that would serve as the base for his immortal equation: E=Mc2? Where did Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison equip themselves to compete with one another, improving the quality of human life as a wonderful by-product of the "War of Currents"? Schools are the source of every great stride that humanity has ever taken. Traditionalists that argue otherwise are clearly blind to the big picture.

5.6. Inclusiveness of Liberalism

5.6.1. In an ideal conservative world (read: dystopia), the clock would revert to a pre-60s era, when U.S. schools had global dominance in math and the sciences. What this remarkably nearsighted idealism fails to see is that a country is only as strong as its weakest link; by including every race and culture on an equal economic standing, that dominance that the country once held could be achieved again- without the egregious treatment these cultures and races have received in that delusional "Happy Days" era. To put it in the form of a question: If greatness is achieved by a privileged class of society, one that has backdoor access to this greatness in the first place, does it really mean anything?

6. History of U.S. Education

6.1. Old World vs. New World Education: The Colonial Era

6.1.1. In the old world, only the sons of the rich required an education to maintain and to further enrich the socioeconomic standing of the family. Affluent families would hire tutors or send their sons back to England for their university studies. (p. 63)

6.1.2. The upper aristocracy saw education as a means of perpetuating the ruling class, with religious, utilitarian, and civic motives emerging later on. (p. 64)

6.1.3. An example of religious motives can best be stated by the "Old Deluder Laws," which passed in 1642 and 1647. These laws, incredibly misguided as they were, served the purpose of instilling literacy in children to prevent them from being "deceived by the Devil." (p. 64)

6.1.4. The school of thought of the "Old World" is the very antithesis of my educational philosophy. This mindset does not take into account the many things that each person is capable of with the right education.

6.2. Utilitarianism

6.2.1. Benjamin Franklin, in 1749, published "Proposals Related to the Education of Youth in Pennsylvania." (p. 64)

6.2.2. Franklin proposed a utilitarian curriculum, one that would emphasize more immediately useful subject matter than religion and classic studies. (p. 64) Franklin emphasized "mastery of a process" over "rote learning," which is a key component in stimulating critical thinking.

6.2.3. Franklin believed fervently in education as a means of bettering oneself.

6.3. Thomas Jefferson (p. 64-65)

6.3.1. Believed that education was the road to the best safeguard of a democracy, which is a literate population.

6.3.2. Proposed the Virginia Legislature in 1779, a "Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge" which would provide free education for all children for the first three years of elementary school. Jefferson was far ahead of his time, as demonstrated by his uncanny belief in early childhood education, which, to this day, is a heavily contested issue.

6.3.3. Optimistic enough to believe that if the people could read newspapers and inform themselves of pressing issues, they could make intelligent, informed decisions at the polls. This optimism was well-founded until news organizations shed their journalistic integrity with the founding of the enormously successful Fox News network; the subsequent scramble to imitate Fox News's model of pandering to a particular political base has rendered Jefferson's optimism obsolete.

6.4. Urbanization and Progressive Impetus

6.4.1. The Industrial Revolution birthed incalculable change throughout the world, starting with the textile industry. Immigration and urbanization created conditions that social reformers used to exemplify the evils in U.S. life. (p. 69)

6.4.2. The Second Industrial Revolution brought forth steam-driven and electric-powered machinery. Factories were governed by enormous corporations. Immigrant labor played an essential role in this revolution.

6.4.3. With greater economic prospects than ever before, the world had, for the first time (on the largest scale possible), the possibility of widespread, high quality education for all socioeconomic classes.

6.5. Post-World War II Equity Era (1945-1980) (p. 73-74)

6.5.1. Patterns that emerged during the Progressive Era were continued. The debate about the goals of education and whether all children should receive the same education remained important.

6.5.2. Demand for expanded educational opportunity became highly prominent as a feature of educational reform.

6.5.3. Tensions between equity and excellence would become hallmarks of educational debate that still rage today.

6.5.4. This equity movement is extremely important; as I will state many times, this country can maximize its potential and reclaim the coveted number one spot in educational proficiency in the world by utilizing its entire populace. The U.S. is a giant melting pot, and without effective and balanced use of all of its ingredients, the results can only be sour!

6.6. Equality of Opportunity (p. 76-77)

6.6.1. Jeffersonian belief in a meritocratic elite, Mann's vision of schooling as a "great equalizer," Dewey seeing schools as a "lever of social progress."

6.6.2. The GI Bill of Rights offered 16 million Americans the opportunity to pursue higher education. Many debates sprung forth over the fear of falling academic standards, but today, even the most conservative groups see the GI Bill as a landmark achievement that created the middle class.

6.6.3. Equality of opportunity is fundamentally good and important in a democracy. A prominent example is Niel DeGrasse Tyson: He was poor, but Carl Sagan saw potential in him, and he is now at the forefront of global astrophysics. Socioeconomic standing does not make or break potential, and those that stand for equality of opportunity readily recognize this fact.

7. Sociological Perspectives

8. Curriculum and Pedagogy

9. Equality of Opportunity