Assignment No. 1
ASSIGNMENT No. 1
(Units: 1-4)
Total Marks: 100 Pass Marks: 50
Note: All questions carry equal marks
Q.1 Discuss the ways in which philosophy provides guidelines to education. (20)
Philosophy is at the heart of curriculum development. It helps educators in formulating beliefs, arguments, and assumptions and in making value judgments. Philosophy develops a broad outlook, and it also helps in answering what schools are for, what subjects are important, how students should learn, and what materials and methods should be used. Philosophy provides the starting point . . . in decision making about education in its totality
Idealism
Idealism is considered one of the oldest philosophical systems, whose main proponent was the Greek philosopher, Plato. Idealism advocates that ideas constitute what is real and permanent, i.e. ideas are the only true reality. Idealism also emphasizes the spiritual component of man, i.e., man is a spiritual being.
According to this philosophy, education is the process of development of a person, his/her conscious and spiritual self. The ultimate responsibility for learning rests with learners. The school exists to develop character, increase knowledge, and cultivate aesthetic taste. The teacher is expected to be a model, friend, and guide to the learners.
Q.2 What is the role of teacher in the philosophy of idealism? Which teaching methods is used by an idealistic teacher?
Idealism is the oldest philosophy in the Western culture. It is a philosophical approach stating that ideas and knowledge are the only true reality. The main focus of idealism is on conscious reasoning in the mind. The father of idealism, Plato, believed that people should concern themselves in searching for the truth. As a Greek philosopher, he believed that man did not create knowledge but discovered it. Plato was a disciple Socrates who opened his own school, the Academy in Athens, where he developed and implemented his doctrines as a teacher. Two of his most famous works were “The Republic” and “The Dialogue.”
Idealism in Education
Idealism seeks to create schools as intellectual center of teaching and learning, and it encourages teachers and students to appreciate the finest and most enduring achievement of the culture.
(20)
Q.3 Define different educational philosophies. Which philosophy is dominant in our present curriculum? (20)
An education philosophy is a set of educational beliefs and core values of a person and/or organisation. It focuses on the purpose and objectives of educational planning, programmes and processes when it comes to teaching and inspiring students to learn.
An education philosophy for a place of education may influence what and how subjects are taught. Additionally, it can impact upon the beliefs and values that are taught around the national curriculum. As a result, it could be used to identify and elucidate the principles and themes that align with them when it comes to the aspirations of an educational organisation.
Different subdivisions of the philosophy of education have been suggested. One categorization distinguishes between descriptive and normative issues. Descriptive theories aim to describe what education is and how to understand its related concepts. This includes also epistemological questions, which ask not whether a theory about education is true or false, but how one can arrive at the knowledge to answer such questions. Normative theories, on the other hand,
Q.4 Compare the teaching practices demanded by pragmatism and naturalism. (20)
The word Pragmatism is of Greek origin. But it is a typical American school of philosophy. It is intimately related with the American life and mind. It is the product of practical experiences of life.
It arises out of actual living. It does not believe in fixed and eternal values. It is dynamic and ever-changing. It is a revolt against Absolutism. Reality is still in the making. It is never complete.
Our judgement happens to be true if it gives satisfactory results in experience, i.e., by the way it works out. A judgement in itself is neither true nor false. There are no established systems of ideas which will be true for all times. It is humanistic in as much as it is concerned more with human life and things of human interest than with any established tenets. Therefore, it is called humanism.
Q.5 Discuss the authoritative knowledge is not objective and logical.
The first method of knowing is intuition. When we use our intuition, we are relying on our guts, our emotions, and/or our instincts to guide us. Rather than examining facts or using rational thought, intuition involves believing what feels true. The problem with relying on intuition is that our intuitions can be wrong because they are driven by cognitive and motivational biases rather than logical reasoning or scientific evidence. While the strange behavior of your friend may lead you to think s/he is lying to you it may just be that s/he is holding in a bit of gas or is preoccupied with some other issue that is irrelevant to you.
However, weighing alternatives and thinking of all the different possibilities can be paralyzing for some people and sometimes decisions based on intuition are actually superior to those based on analysis. Perhaps one of the most common methods of acquiring knowledge is through authority.