Discontinuity in Learning Dewey, Herbart, and education as transformation

208 Pages·2014·1.461 MB·English

by  Dewey, John;English, Andrea;Herbart, Johann Friedrich

more information – www.cambridge.org/9781107025219

DiscontinuityinLearning
Inthisgroundbreakingbook,AndreaR.Englishchallengescommonassumptions
byarguingthatdiscontinuousexperiences,suchasuncertaintyandstruggle,are
essentialtothelearningprocess.Tomakethisargument,Dr.Englishdrawsfrom
the works of two seminal thinkers in philosophy of education – nineteenth-
century German philosopher J.F. Herbart and American pragmatist John
Dewey.Dr.English’sanalysisconsidersHerbart’sinfluenceonDewey,inverting
theacceptedinterpretationofDewey’sthoughtasadramaticbreakfrommodern
European understandings of education. Three key concepts – transformational
learning,tactinteaching,andperfectibility–emergefromthisanalysistorevital-
izeourunderstanding ofeducationasa transformationalprocess.Dr. English’s
comparativeapproachinterweavesEuropeanandAnglo-Americantraditionsof
educationalthoughtwithacontemporaryscholarlyperspective,contributingtoa
workthatisbothintellectuallyrewardingandapplicabletoaclassroomsetting.
The result is a book that is essential reading for philosophers and scholars of
education,aswellasforeducators.
AndreaR.EnglishisAssistantProfessorofPhilosophyofEducationatMount
SaintVincentUniversityinCanada.Dr.English,anAmericanscholar,previously
taught at Humboldt University Berlin, Germany, from which she received her
doctorate in 2005. Her work on theories of teaching and learning hasappeared
internationallyinscholarlyjournalsandessaycollections.

Discontinuity in Learning
Dewey, Herbart, and Education
as Transformation
ANDREA R. ENGLISH
MountSaintVincentUniversity
cambridge university press
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©AndreaR.English2013
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Firstpublished2013
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
AcatalogrecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationData
English,AndreaR.,1975–
DiscontinuityinLearning:Dewey,HerbartandEducationastransformation/AndreaR.
English,MountSaintVincentUniversity.
pages cm
Includesbibliographicalreferences.
isbn978-1-107-02521-9
1. Education–Philosophy. 2. Learning,Psychologyof. 3. Dewey,John,1859–1952.
4. Herbart,JohannFriedrich,1776–1841. I. Title.
lb14.7.e565 2013
370.1–dc23
2012031864
isbn978-1-107-02521-9Hardback
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Contents
Acknowledgments pageix
Abbreviations xiii
NoteontheTranslation xv
NoteonUsage xvii
Prologue:WhyHerbartandDewey? xix
part one: education, discontinuity, and
transformation
1. TheMoralDimensionofEducation–Herbart(I) 3
1 TheMoralIndividualandtheEducationalParadox 6
2 TheLearningBeing:PerfectibilitywithoutPerfection
(Bildsamkeit) 11
2. TheProblemofContinuity,theNeed
forStruggle,theRoleofTact–Herbart(II) 16
1 LearningtoSeeDifferencewithoutDisruption 18
2 TheStruggleofLearning,TeacherasMoralGuide 30
3 PedagogicalTact:TeachingasaTheory-GuidedPractice 48
4 Conclusion:ALookBackandaLookAhead 53
3. DiscontinuityandEducationalOpeningsin
Learning–Dewey(I) 55
1 Pragmatism,Discontinuity,andLearning 55
2 NotionsofDiscontinuityinPeirce,James,andMead 56
3 Learning“In-Between” 65
vii
viii Contents
4. TeachingintheOpeningsofLearning–Dewey(II) 79
1 ReflectivePracticeasTeachingIn-Between 80
2 TheClassroom:ASpaceforInterruptingExperience 87
3 TeachingasaMoralTask 96
4 DemocracyandtheEndofEducation 100
5. Conclusion:Morality,Democracy,andPluralistSociety 103
1 Dewey:ABreakintheHistoryofEducationalPhilosophy? 103
2 ReadingHerbartwithDewey–ReadingDeweywithHerbart 105
part two: teaching and learning forgotten?
6. RevisitingLearningIn-BetweenandUmlernen 113
1 ForgottenLearning,orRememberingPlato’sCave 113
2 RememberingLearningasaTransformationalProcess:
OnUmlernen 116
3 TheInwardandOutwardTurnofLearning 121
7. PedagogicalTact:LearningtoTeach“In-Between” 126
1 ImprovisationandRisk 129
2 ListeningandtheVoiceoftheLearner 133
3 ReflectiveTeacher-LearnerEngagement 142
8. PerfectibilityandRecognitionoftheOther 147
1 LearningasHuman–HumanasLearner 147
2 TeachingasRecognitionoftheOther 149
3 Conclusion:PreservingtheIn-BetweenofExperience
forEducation 152
Epilogue:ShouldTeachersThink?–Re(dis)coveringtheMeaning
ofPhilosophyfortheEducationofTeachers 155
Bibliography 161
Index 173