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About Me
- Professor Debra Pratt
- I am a wife, mother of 7 and grandmother of 1. I have taught at PNC since 2000 and prior to that taught kindergarten for 9 years. Most recently I have become very interested in learning about environmental health issues and what I can do to make a difference.
For preschool children, I believe existentialism would be the most efficient philosophy. At such a young age, they do not need to learn of math, reading and science. Instead, they should be put into a student centered environment where the learning experience is orderly and allows for the children to create their own realities. They need to have a personal understanding of learning before they are introduced to it.
ReplyDeletethrough the years of elementary school, middle school and high school, I believe there should be a mix of progressivsm and perennialism. Starting from the first day of first grade all the way through high school until graduation day students need to be prepared for their futures.
Perennialism is important because students need to learn how to develop logical thought and the importance of math, science and literature.These things should progressively be introduced throughout the years so it is fully understood by the students once it is time for them to graduate and start their futures.
Progressivism is important because it gives students the chance for individual development throughout the years. A personal understanding of oneself is something very important for the rest of their lives. Students should learn how to develop problem solving skills and should be introduced to the works of the real world before being set free to create their own lives.
For preschool aged children, I think that an Essentialistic classroom is great because it is teacher centered and there is high control within the classroom. I think that when children are between the ages of 3-5, they need to have an authorative figure making the decisions of how the classroom is ran, because I feel that they would still just love to run wild if they could.
ReplyDeleteFor Elementary through High School, I feel that a Progressive approach with a little bit of Social Reconstructiveness mixed in is a great philosophy to use. For obvious reasons, Progressivism is a low-controlled classroom that allowes students to make decisions as to how things are ran. This style is very students centered and the teacher acts more as a learning facilitator fo the students. I think that the Social Reconstructive approach is great as well because it stresses the importance of a community within a classroom, and promotes group work amongst the students. Also, the teacher tends to guide the students to an understanding of social issues and constructive methods, which I feel is important for students in all grade levels.
I feel that progressivism is the most valuable philosophical approach for all grades. I think that guided discovery is an enjoyable learning experience for all ages. Also, I think it is productive for students at all grades to learn to develop problem-solving skills. I feel that a democratic learning environment is very comfortable and condicive to learning for students of all ages. Also, progressivism will show studetns that learning can be fun and interesting. I think that the approach should depend on the students response. If a class is not responding to a progressivist classroom style, then trying a different approach may be necessary. I feel that the philosophy should be customized to the students on some level. If a class is needing more structure, than some essentialist qualities should be implemented. I also think that for the high school students Social Reconstructionism should be introduced. I think this is valuable because it will educate the students on how their actions can affect their futures.
ReplyDeleteFor preschool age children i believe that we should find a stable balance between Essentialism and Existentialism. I believe that a classroom full of 3-5 year olds needs to be very well managed, but they also need freedom to choose their likes and dislikes and really start exploring education. Their day at preschool should be a mixture of curricular learning, and social learning. They should be allowed to play with their friends and really develop their social skills.
ReplyDeleteElementary as well as secondary education students should be taught using a mixture of essentialism and progressivism methods. I believe that children this age are ready to be more accountable for their actions, as well as they are more ready to learn, memorize, and retain information that they are given. It is important that they learn the curriculum but it is also important to start easing them into the progressive problems of the world. I believe they should be fully exposed to these problems, but maybe not expected to act so drastically towards them.
For High School students i believe progressivism would be the best method. By that age, these students have developed memorization skills as well as all the rest of the life lessons we have fed them over their 8+ years of education. High school is the time to show kids how the world really is, and challenge them to make a difference and be someone who is important to this world.
I feel that for preschool age students (ages 3-5) it is definately important to have essentialism in the classroom. This is an important time in childrens' lives when they are learning the basic skills such as colors, numbers, and writing their names. (ages 3-5) Essentialism is the philosophy that has an empahsis on basic skills. This is ahigh structure class setting which I believe is what is needed to keep these children focused and under control.
ReplyDeleteElementary through High school ages need both progressivism and essentialism. I truly think that it all depnds on the teacher and the students. Everyone learns at different levels and some teachers teach better with a different philosophy. I think that it is very important for some subjects to be thaught with a high stucture while other can have more of a collaborative or democratic style of teaching. I believe that mostly, like with progressivism, students like to be involved in the classroom discussion and have more hands on learning.
I believe that is beneficial for children in preschool for the teacher to have more of an essentialist approach with thier students. I feel that it is very important for the students at that age to have structure in the classroom, giving them structure during these years of their lives will help prepare them for what is to come. Having an essentialist approach will also be the easiest way to teach them their basic skills.
ReplyDeleteElementary through high school level need a mixture of progressivism and essentialism. During these years of their lives it is important for students in this age group to be able to make some of their own decisions but also listen to teachers as well. Socializing is a huge thing in this age group and that is why progressivism is so important during these years.
I think that young children from preschool to about 1st or 2nd grade should be led under an essentialist philosophy. Children this age need to learn that the teacher is the source for the knowledge, and eventually they will be transferred into a progressivist philosophy. At such a young age, each child has a story about something/anything, and they want to say it, or they just have something to say period. With kids this age classroom management is only possible through a teacher-centered classroom. From grades 3-12, they should be led in progressivist classroom. As they get older, they learn from one another as well as the teacher. Classrooms discussions are critical in the learning process. They are also mature enough to respect one anothers thoughts and opinions, and become great critical thinkers and problem solvers through the progressivist philosophy.
ReplyDeletePreschool teachers should have high control classrooms, perhaps essentialist. The students need to have fun but need a firm hand on how they are supposed to act in a classroom since this is their first experience.
ReplyDeleteElementary and secondary students can be taught through existentialism. The children are old enough to abide by procedures, break into groups or transtion without teachers instruction. This is good for both teachers and students because it can provide a funner, more memorable learning environment. The children can do funner activities because they are trusted to act as expected.
High school teachers often practice essentialism. They use old methods like lecturing, worksheets, and other "busywork". I don't agree with it but I understand that there is a lot of curriculum to cover in the high school years. A good philosophy for a high school teacher to practice would be social reconstructivism because they are influencing students to move forward, have a future, and find some way to contribute to society.
Well, I think that it depends on the schools system. I believe that it would be best for the students to be brought up in a diverse environment, but it may be rough switch if the teaching philosophies at every school were different. I think preschool should have a strong progressivist outlook. I say this because it needs to be student centered. I think that preschool needs to be interactive and have the kids develop their social skills while learning. For elementary, I would say an existential philosophy would work great. I think this because this teaches the students responsibility. It develops the child in to a more well rounded individual. Moving up to middle school I would say it is a good idea to go back to the progressivist way of thinking. I am a big fan of this progressivism and believe that having a democratic student centered school system will truly develop tomorrow’s leaders in the best of ways. As for high school, I would say that progressivist is again the way to go, if not progressivist, then existentialist. Students should take on the accountability to make choices and become better individuals.
ReplyDeleteFor preschool age children I think that using both the Essentialism and Existentialism way to teach is very effictive. I know that a classroom full of 3-5 year old children needs to be very well managed. They also need freedom to realize what they like and dislike. This is the age children start to explore.
ReplyDeleteNext is elementary, I would say using an existential philosophy would work for all middle schools. This way students are developing responsibility.
High School students i think have a more progressivism pholosophy method. It gives students the chance for more of an individual development.
I think that all students should expeirence a little progressivism because it can show students that learning can be fun and interesting.
I believe that a preschool classroom should be ran by using a mixture of essentialism and progressivism. There are certain standards that every child needs to know before they progress to the next level, but I think that they should not be entirely structured and should be learned in groups. At this age I wouldn't give them a choice of what they want to learn but I would base my curriculm on what they seem interested in.
ReplyDeleteAs these children move onto Elementary School, I feel like they need to be in a progressive classroom. They now know how to read and write and they have the concepts down. Now is the time to practice their concepts and base them towards their interests in order for them to show progress. I am not saying this would work for 1st and 2nd grade, but once they are at least in 3rd grade, this should be in effect.
As for Middle and High School, I believe that progressivism and existentialism should be the focus. The teacher is now helping these children to transition into the adult world and they need to learn to make their own dicisions based on their opinion oppose to what the teacher thinks. I would also through in some reconstructionism once in a while so these children can understand what is going on in the world outside.
When it comes to preschool classrooms I think that the best philosphy wuld have to be essentialism. When children are that young they need to have the basics taught to them to get them started in the right direction. This would create a solid foundation for the students. When children enter elementary school and middle school and even high school I think that the philosophies should all be used to teach. Each one has its own benefits and could be of great efficiancy to all children. I would try to combine and use all of them, that way you are not limiting your self as a teacher, and children are recieving a wide variety of teaching methods. This would allow you to reach the different types of learners, and would create a fun, not boring, classroom.
ReplyDeleteI might be totally off with this, but I think pre-schoolers need progressivism. I think it would be too hard to keep a really structured classroom with really young kids. Middle schoolers need some form of stucture. I feel like middle schoolers tend to need more structure because they're always acting out for attention. High schoolers need to go back to progressivism and spread their wings so they can figure out what they want to do with their lives.
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