Educational philosophy that I would most support more than anything would be one which supports the benefit of learning by doing. I believe wholeheartedly in the power of experience being the best teacher. I realize that this might mean that my students or any students might fail repeatedly before they succeed at something, but I've always believed that failure is an excellent teacher. Furthermore, learning by doing might cause students to struggle more, in grasping concepts and in trying to understand ideas, but I still believe that struggle is one of the more beneficial and instructive lessons, and that it can teach lasting and memorable lessons.
However, this will mean at times that one will have to provide students with a certain level of introduction so that they have the backbone and scaffolding to make discoveries and to learn the most meaningful lessons possible. As Locke illuminates, one of the major flaws with the way that students are taught is that children are overwhelmed with rules and precepts (many of which are not understood well, and they are easily forgotten (Goodyear, 2013). This observation of Locke zeroes in on several factors which are at stake in many classrooms: students are overburdened with rules and guidelines and most rules, guidelines and messages are seldom conveyed in a meaningful way, so they are often forgotten quickly.
Thus, within my educational philosophy, there would be a premium placed on being able to teach children in a lasting and meaningful way that the children would find challenging and stimulating, but which would also be memorable for the students so that these important lessons weren't just quickly forgotten. In this manner, Locke would encourage the following way of proceeding: "(1) make sure the child understands and can carry out the task you set for them; (2) have them repeat the task over and over until the performance of the task no longer depends on memory or reflection. Now this latter step is crucial for the development of a good character. For it is when a child is young that one can implant all the good habits necessary for further development. Locke writes in section 64: 'Having this way cured your child of any fault, it is cured forever: and thus, one by one, you may weed them out all, and plant what habits you please'. But the key is that these rules are not to be imposed as duties or difficulties; rather, whatever rules you want a child to follow must be implanted by indispensable practice which will lead to natural habits functioning beyond conscious memory" (Goodyear, 2013). This will allow for not only expedited learning but the development of strong character habits which will no doubt be connected with repetition and the development of strong habits. This will give all students a strong foundation upon which to engage in the practice of learning through experience and learning through exploration, along with trial and error. With this educational philosophy, students will be able to forge meaningful lessons and a sense of bravery when it comes to exploring things that they haven't tried before.
Students won't be too easily discouraged by challenging problems or other such educational obstacles because they will have developed a certain level of integrity when it comes to their studies and among the entire learning process. In this manner, technology has sort of done children a minor disservice in that it has made things too easy and too facile for students: it has taken out some of the more difficult trials within the learning process and allowed the technology to handle them, without the student being forced to engage in certain computations and other such processes. At the same time, by making so many of the common speed bumps of the learning process to simple, it forces students to be elevated further and further, so that they are sooner dealing with more sophisticated problems and computations.
Another important aspect of this educational philosophy is that it would focus on the fact that all children are curious and seek to capitalize on this innate curiosity for the benefit of their education; this is something that Locke discusses at length. A good educational philosophy when employed will be able to seize this innate curiosity that children have and be able to aptly channel it into knowledge (Goodyear, 2013). This can best be done, according to Locke, by providing children with answers that are true, clear, understandable and located firmly within the child's realm of experience, without ever lying to the student. Instead,...
Socrates believed that there were distinct varieties of knowledge, types which were important, and others that were more trivial; Socrates argued that most people only knew trivial things and things which people consider only important to themselves and their craft. According to Socrates, "The most important of all knowledge is 'how best to live.' He posits that this is not easily answered, and most people live in shameful ignorance regarding matters of ethics and morals…Through his method of powerfully questioning his students, he seeks to guide them to discover the subject matter rather than simply telling them what they need to know. The goals of education are to know what you can; and, even more importantly, to know what you do not know" (Burgess, 2011). This is such a crucial point that Socrates touches upon.
The importance of not simply handing students' answers is absolutely crucial. Students need to learn how to discover the answers themselves, if given the right tools and guideposts. In this manner, the answer will come from inside of them and they will be able to more meaningfully use it. Plus, when the student is able to discover the answer through inquiry and through honest searching, they will remember the lesson learned forever in most cases. This is why Socrates is viewed as one of the greatest and wisest teachers of all time. In this manner,
Socrates believes that learning involves finding out what the truth of a given matter is in all situations and that it happens once one has been able to question and interpret the wisdom and knowledge of others, thus recognizing, their own ignorance. Such skills and knowledge are thus acquired by interpreting the statements of others, testing or assessing the wisdom of those who are reputed to be wise and demonstrating to those who are not wise, their own level of ignorance (Burgess, 2011). Thus, in this manner one can learning in meaningful ways from those who actually are wise, through self-examination, by exhorting others and their philosophy, and by examining the life and actions of oneself, exhorting the philosophy of other people, assessing and scrutinizing the lives of others and by making a concerted effort obtain moral knowledge. (Burgess, 2011). Within my educational philosophy, I firmly believe that if all students wholeheartedly engage in these factors with honesty and with a real desire to engage in learning and the quest for truth, it will occur in the most lasting and profound way. These pillars are part of the reason why Socrates really is hailed as one of the greatest teachers of all time.
In this sense, harnessing Rousseau's ideas on education as expressed in Emile would be incredibly helpful. In this sense, Rousseau was most brilliant in that he way that he discussed the idea that education needs to be engaged with the child in a way that doesn't overwhelm the child, but which unfolds with the natural development of the child (Stanford.edu, 2010). Rousseau was also a big believer in the power of autonomous discovery, which in certain senses is a way which complements Socrates' philosophy of helping the student to find the answer within oneself. It's a harmonious mode of providing real learning through searching and discovery rather than via a teacher who acts as an overbearing authority figure and who tells the student what is true vs. what is false, rather than letting the student figure it out for him or herself. Rousseau was also a big believer in the importance of character and helping the student to develop his or her own amount of natural goodness via the learning process. This also a reflection of some of the ideas of Locke, and his notions of the importance of developing the integrity of the child.
Thus, my educational philosophy would focus on the benefits and importance of learning through experience and discovery. The teacher in this sense would act as more of a guide, rather than as someone who just provides answers over and over again. In this manner, the student would be able to engage in more lasting lessons and findings. This educational theory would also be important for the act of building a student's character and for demonstrating the importance of integrity.
References
Burgess, B. (2011, August 8). The Educational…
