Our nation’s schools have always been contested turf but perhaps never more so than in today’s volatile environment. Educational policy and educational values have never been more controversial, and the schools themselves are under attack from many different directions.The role of philosophy of education in such an environment is not to dictate answers. Rather, it must foster understanding of the philosophical issues underlying contemporary debates. In this survey, Nel Noddings provides the essential background necessary for a more sophisticated and nuanced comprehension of the issues.Philosophy of Education is designed for general students of education who need to know something about philosophical thought and its exercise in teaching, learning, research, and educational policy. It assumes no previous training in philosophy. Ranging broadly from the great historical figures through John Dewey to contemporary representatives of both analytic and Continental traditions, it is always fair-minded, generous, and undogmatic. Attractive features are the author’s nondoctrinaire feminism, her commitment to the empowerment of students, and her coverage of the most recent trends in educational thought.This is an essential book not just for teachers and for future teachers but for anyone needing a survey of contemporary trends in the philosophy of education.
Author(s): Nel Noddings
Year: 1995
Language: English
Pages: 240
Acknowledgments......Page 6
Introduction......Page 7
1 Philosophy of Education Before the Twentieth Century......Page 9
Socrates and Plato......Page 10
Aristotle......Page 14
Rousseau......Page 16
Pestalozzi, Herbart, and Froebel......Page 19
Introduction to the Literature......Page 21
Dewey's Philosophical Orientation......Page 22
The Meaning and Aims of Education......Page 23
Dewey's Psychology......Page 25
Dewey's Theory of Knowledge......Page 27
Democracy and Education......Page 29
The Place of Subject Matter......Page 31
Summary Questions......Page 32
Introduction to the Literature......Page 33
3 Analytic Philosophy......Page 34
Philosophical Analysis in Education......Page 35
The Analysis of Teaching......Page 36
Current Analyses of Teaching......Page 41
Introduction to the Literature......Page 43
Existentialism......Page 44
Phenomenology......Page 49
Critical Theory......Page 50
Hermeneutics......Page 52
Postmodernism......Page 53
Introduction to the Literature......Page 56
Formal Logic......Page 57
Informal Logic......Page 61
McPeck's View of Critical Thinking......Page 64
An Alternative Approach......Page 65
Introduction to the Literature......Page 69
Justified True Belief......Page 70
Foundationalism......Page 71
Truth......Page 73
Nonfoundational Theories of Knowledge......Page 74
Epistemology and Education......Page 78
Constructivism......Page 81
Introduction to the Literature......Page 84
How Does Science Grow?......Page 85
A Debate in Educational Research......Page 88
Some Examples......Page 92
Summary Questions......Page 93
Introduction to the Literature......Page 94
Pre-Enlightenment Ethics......Page 95
Enlightenment Ethics......Page 98
Utilitarianism......Page 100
Deweyan Ethics......Page 101
Moral Education......Page 103
Cognitive Developmentalism......Page 105
Summary Questions......Page 109
Introduction to the Literature......Page 110
The Current Debate......Page 111
Justice and Equality in Education......Page 114
Inequalities in Physical Resources......Page 115
Inequalities in Basic Relationships......Page 118
Curricular Inequalities......Page 120
Summary Questions......Page 122
Introduction to the Literature......Page 123
Feminist Critiques of Philosophy......Page 124
Epistemology......Page 126
Philosophy of Social Science......Page 127
Ethics......Page 128
Care and Education......Page 131
Summary Questions......Page 135
Introduction to the Literature......Page 136
Epilogue......Page 137
Notes......Page 138
Bibliography......Page 151
About the Book and Author......Page 155
