There are many people that can be thanked for the success of education. However, there are specific people who are recognized in the field of education, who have helped shape the society of education due to their theories. John Dewey was one of the most popular educational theorists, and I agreed with a lot of his theories and philosophies.
John Dewey, born in 1859, believed that students should learn by being involved in real-life scenarios, tasks and challenges. For instance, he belived that math could be taught by learning about the different proportions used while cooking; history could be learned by experiencing how people lived, ect. What Dewey was most known for, was his ability to suggest these activities that captured the lesson of what he was currently teaching his students. Dewey had a profound effect on progressive education. Progressive education was a movement that began in the late nineteenth century, focusing on learning by doing -- working with hands, strong emphasis on critical thinking and problem solving.
Dewey also wrote a number of books, including Democracy and Education, Logic, and Experience and Education. However, these were only his major works, he wrote many others. I firmly believe that Dewey's theories on education were and still are beneficial to students today. Vocational schools are the best example of how Dewey's theories are still used today. Many students learn better by working with their hands, rather than sitting in a classroom all day being taught out of a book. I firmly believe that this option, to learn though doing, should be available to all students everywhere. I think that this is the most beneficial way of learning, as many things that are taught, need to be experienced in order to learn them properly.
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Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Separation of Church and School?
I'm sure we're all familiar with the phrase "separation of church and state." However, in the past decades, religion in schools has been a definite hot topic, even leading to legal matters in some states. Religion has been and will always be an extremely controversial topic, no matter the situation; people will always have opposing views. ( And they should! That's what makes us all individuals!) I decided to focus on religion as a legal issue in the schools today because it is definitely something that needs to be addressed.
Senator Phillip A. Hart (Michigan): "I'm a Catholic and I hope a devout one, but I think that the public school classroom is no place for me to try and impose my world formula for prayer on children who don't share it, and for that very reason, I don't want my children in a public school classroom to be exposed to someone else's religion or formula." source
Coming back to the idea of separation of church and state, this has a tremendous role on a lot of government institutions in the world, but most importantly in public schools. hools. "In 1948, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that religious instruction in public school was unconstitutional. In 1963, it ruled that mandatory reading of Bible verses or prayers are similarly unconstitutional."source. "However, that same 1st Amendment gives students the right that they may engage in many forms of non-disruptive personal religious expression, including the wearing of religious clothing and jewelry. They can pray (individually or in student-led groups) on the school bus, at the flagpole, before lunch, in the corridors, in the classroom before and after lessons, at sports events, etc. They can talk freely about religion to other students outside of class. They can distribute religious literature. If there are any student-led clubs in the school, they have the right to organize student-led Bible prayer clubs. Teachers are not allowed to teach any religion as truth. However, they can teach about religion, as long as they meet certain requirements. Finally, public schools cannot require students to recite prayers from a specific religion each morning." source
source
All in all, in my opinion, religion should not be taught in public schools. Of course it must be taught when it comes to the history of the world and country because religion played a tremendous role in the development of our society. At this point, and with our generations, religion is becoming a more personal choice, instead of a "requirement" from society as it used to be years ago. With our world not focusing as much on religion as it used to, our lesson plans should help teach our students about things that are affecting our society today, as there are many other factors besides relion. After all, what are private, religious schools for?
Senator Phillip A. Hart (Michigan): "I'm a Catholic and I hope a devout one, but I think that the public school classroom is no place for me to try and impose my world formula for prayer on children who don't share it, and for that very reason, I don't want my children in a public school classroom to be exposed to someone else's religion or formula." source
Coming back to the idea of separation of church and state, this has a tremendous role on a lot of government institutions in the world, but most importantly in public schools. hools. "In 1948, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that religious instruction in public school was unconstitutional. In 1963, it ruled that mandatory reading of Bible verses or prayers are similarly unconstitutional."source. "However, that same 1st Amendment gives students the right that they may engage in many forms of non-disruptive personal religious expression, including the wearing of religious clothing and jewelry. They can pray (individually or in student-led groups) on the school bus, at the flagpole, before lunch, in the corridors, in the classroom before and after lessons, at sports events, etc. They can talk freely about religion to other students outside of class. They can distribute religious literature. If there are any student-led clubs in the school, they have the right to organize student-led Bible prayer clubs. Teachers are not allowed to teach any religion as truth. However, they can teach about religion, as long as they meet certain requirements. Finally, public schools cannot require students to recite prayers from a specific religion each morning." source
source
All in all, in my opinion, religion should not be taught in public schools. Of course it must be taught when it comes to the history of the world and country because religion played a tremendous role in the development of our society. At this point, and with our generations, religion is becoming a more personal choice, instead of a "requirement" from society as it used to be years ago. With our world not focusing as much on religion as it used to, our lesson plans should help teach our students about things that are affecting our society today, as there are many other factors besides relion. After all, what are private, religious schools for?
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Education is Like a Recipe
Education is much like a recipe, there are certain directions and ingredients that help guide you along the way until you end up with a final product. Education, like a recipe can be modified, offer various versions, share it, fine tuned, and use substitutions if a problem arises.
http://img.docstoccdn.com/thumb/orig/27673741.png
When following a recipe, one must pay careful attention to the measurements of specific ingredients, as each one takes on a specific task in the recipe. Similar to following a recipe, a teacher must be able to use all of the correct ingredients in order to have their finished product. Just like every recipe, every student is different, and as the "chef" in this equation, the teacher must be able and willing to work with whatever type of recipe and ingredients are thrown their way.
Today, education has taken on many roles, more than it had years ago, and it is important that each learning environment be suited for any child, regardless of their ingredients. Just like following a recipe, only to find out that you used the last of the vegetable oil, sometimes teachers need to improvise or use a substitute in order to make the situation work.
Like education, a recipe calls for specific things that will work together to give you a final product, similar to how teachers incorporate lessons that have already been taught into lessons that are being taught. A recipe that has been handed down from generation to generation is also symbolic of a teacher that comes from a family of teachers and has particular factors they want to include in their career.
Although education can be defined in numerous ways and compared to multiple things, I think that my description of education as recipe is pretty on key. Although each educational experience is different, so aren't recipes; it takes many different ingredients, (peers, teachers, interests, styles of teaching, lessons being taught, ect) to make an education.
http://img.docstoccdn.com/thumb/orig/27673741.png
When following a recipe, one must pay careful attention to the measurements of specific ingredients, as each one takes on a specific task in the recipe. Similar to following a recipe, a teacher must be able to use all of the correct ingredients in order to have their finished product. Just like every recipe, every student is different, and as the "chef" in this equation, the teacher must be able and willing to work with whatever type of recipe and ingredients are thrown their way.
Today, education has taken on many roles, more than it had years ago, and it is important that each learning environment be suited for any child, regardless of their ingredients. Just like following a recipe, only to find out that you used the last of the vegetable oil, sometimes teachers need to improvise or use a substitute in order to make the situation work. Like education, a recipe calls for specific things that will work together to give you a final product, similar to how teachers incorporate lessons that have already been taught into lessons that are being taught. A recipe that has been handed down from generation to generation is also symbolic of a teacher that comes from a family of teachers and has particular factors they want to include in their career.
Although education can be defined in numerous ways and compared to multiple things, I think that my description of education as recipe is pretty on key. Although each educational experience is different, so aren't recipes; it takes many different ingredients, (peers, teachers, interests, styles of teaching, lessons being taught, ect) to make an education.
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