Essentialism derives from the essentialist movement that's been around since 1938. It is in stark contrast to the progressivism movement, around since the late 1800s that values experimentalism, and holds a belief that the needs of man are variable. Thus, education should be tailored to each and every individual child.
Hey teachers! Try tailoring education to each and to every individual’s interests and needs under the No Child Left Behind Legislation that requires you teach a certain set of skills to children by the state examinations. Try the progressivism approachin a county (the USA) in direct competition with countries like China, who, by the way, give one strong education to all children, NOT based on individual needs. It's a lose-lose situation in the global scheme of things.
On the flip side of the coin, essentialism values the acquisition of knowledge and skills, sees the learner as a repository for knowledge and skills that will be applied and used once acquired, and believes certain skills are essential for every man. Examples of this may include the ability to read, communicate through the written word, and engage in accurate and rigorous mathematical computation. Sounds simple right? But it's not, as universities charged with educating teachers, hold a strong progressivism stance, and with each graduating class of teachers, floods our educational system with progressivist teachers.
Why not essentialism? Because many, "mistakenly," view essentialism as a philosophy that doesn't value diversity and has taken some flack because of it's, "teacher-centered approach" vs. a more, "student-centered approach." This is because the term, "teacher-centered" has a negative connotation, and can be seen as egotistical, treating students as the passive recipients of knowledge. However, the teacher-centered approach is truly the way to go, seeing as teachers posses, at minimum, a bachelors degree, and have taken state examinations to achieve a teaching certification in most cases. Students however, possess none of those credentials, so really. Who should run the show?
The progressives would say, "the students," only because it allows students to explore. A essentialist would say, "Why should a child's interest drive their curriculum? " I mean, along with the fact, children's interest can be superficial, teachers like you, would be creating 30 different lesson plans daily, one for each child, AND we'd have no common ground as Americans. Here's a question for parents. Does your boss allow you to pursue your individual interests within your work establishment? If you are the boss, do you allow your employees to venture off on their own, and pursue their own objectives. No! This would be a huge business mistake for the insititution. As a result, the progressivism ideals set children up for a false sense of the real world.
Here's my advice. If children want to explore, take them to a park, or a family vacation. School should be the place to acquire a set of specific skills, including reading, writing, and math, at minimum.
More to come later folks.
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I agree that the essentialism view is the way to teach because as the blog said, the teachers are the ones with the credentials. If students are to lead their education they will choose what is easy and what they already know, not what is needed to challenge them and to compete with other nations (such as China).
ReplyDeleteThere are many schools that feel that students need the curriculum tailored to each individual student, and that is where we fall behind. However, I do feel that "teaching to the middle" can be a result of this way of thinking. As long as high standards are kept for the students, and they are expected to do well, then this view can be an excellent way to teach.
Hello Kim,
DeleteCould you please clarify what you mean by, "teaching to the middle," what you considered may be an excellent way to teach?
I believe that teachers should be the ones to control the classroom. Classrooms should be teacher based, but I believe that the teacher should take into account the children's interest. It would be impossible to take into account every child's interest but as a group, I believe it should be considered. Children will be more responsive and take ownership of what they are learning if they are interested in it.
ReplyDeleteHello Emily,
DeleteWith great diversity of today's schools, how is it possible to take into consideration, the interests of the group? You see, if some want to complete a project on animals, and the others on trucks, where do you go? From there, if a teacher were to be asked to follow a curriculum with fidelity, where do you go? In a perfect world, this would work. However, with NCLB, set curriculum, etc., how do you accomplish this?
I too believe that the "the teacher-centered approach is truly the way to go". We are the educators/adults and have been trained to meet the needs of a variety of students/children. Progressives say, a studnet-centered classroom is the means by which a stucnet can learn more through his or her own exploration. Educators, (Administrators and teachers) drive the curriculum to create an environment where all studnets can explore and learn. Educators are responsible for the learning environment, with the students contributing to the this environment.
ReplyDeleteI have taken the idea of a student and with some grooming have created a learning activity where the students in the class have aquired knowledge and enjoyed the learning process which came from that activity.
The best learning environments are teacher-centered classrooms. In the end, it is the teacher that is altimately responsible for the education of her/his studnets.
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ReplyDeleteHi Patti,
ReplyDeleteQuick question. Did the children chose the activity that you said they enjoyed; the one you referred to in your post? Please let me know who orchestrated that. Some think that children must be involved to enjoy, so I'm curious about how you did this.
I agree with a lot of the blog. I do believe that there should be a lot of teacher centered instruction. I do however feel that you should try to incorporate student interests and as best as you can engage every child with information that will interest them.
ReplyDeleteCan we really and truly do both, operate a teacher centered classroom AND incorporate student interests, or is this an attempt to be everything to everyone? "Philosophy cannot be discussed while standing on one foot—nor while standing on two feet on both sides of every fence. " Ayn Rand
ReplyDeleteCare to explain?