John Dewey versus Ben Brodinsky

John Dewey supports the idea of pragmatism. In his article ‘The Child and The Curriculum’ he emphasizes child centered education. The subjects at school should be according to the child’s interests. According to Dewey the education is the life itself. Education cannot be separated from life. Things that can be useful in social life should be taught in classes. The teacher should be a guide in class activities not a king. Progressivist philosophers think everything is in a process. John Dewey thinks, too.  He thinks the subjects in class should be organized according to the changes in society. They should cover the needs of epoch. The child should learn by doing or practicing something.  Dewey emphasizes another aspect of progressivism: a democratic class atmosphere.  In a democratic class, different types of student can be taught. There is no difference among them. By this way, there can be a high welfare society, according to John Dewey. John Dewey’s general thought is harmonizing with the changing society in education, not taking the classics into consideration. Education should not get stuck in the past. Contrary to progressivism, essentialism thinks the truth is within the past. Ben Brodinsky believes that classics are essential for the education.  But in addition, modern science is a source for educational progress, too.  Ben Brodinsky mentions about three Rs: reading, writing and arithmetic. The child should learn these basic skills. The things should be taught from a textbook not from an experience of a child.  In Ben Brodinsky’s thought, teacher is the authority in class.  The rule of the class is what the teacher says.  The child should listen to teacher and learn what he teaches. The child is there to learn what is taught.  Discipline is very important in Ben Brodinsky’s idea.  In learning activity, the child should put forth the effort to gain true knowledge. There are some difference between the thoughts of Ben Brodinsky and the thoughts of John Dewey.  While Ben Brodinsky supports the idea of trusting the past knowledge, John Dewey thinks everything is in a process. He thinks the knowledge should be developed according to the changing world. One different thing is the role of the student and the teacher in the class. According to John Dewey, the teacher is a guide for the student. The teacher helps the student find his way. But, to Ben Brodinsky the teacher is a specialist. He knows all knowledge. The student listens to the teacher carefully because of the fact that the knowledge comes from the past. But according to John Dewey, the student’s experience is important for education. A child centered education is needed. Actually there can be some similarities between these ideas of education. In essentialism the truth is in the classics and modern science. I think if someone talks about modern science, he admits the process in life. And this is a similarity because John Dewey thinks it is important to keep up with the process in life to create an adequate education system for new generation.