Philosophical Foundations

of Agricultural and
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Philosophy is:
A search for meaning and truth
The general beliefs and attitudes of an individual or group

The body of principles underlying a branch of learning or

major discipline

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Original Definition
“Love of Wisdom”
Definition was developed by Socrates

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Of What Value is the
Study of Philosophy
Provide clarification for what is or has been
done by others
Provides a framework for life and our
action
Can be useful in solving educational
problems
A good mental activity

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Three Major Areas of Philosophy
Metaphysics - the nature of reality
Axiology - the nature of values
Epistemology - the nature of knowledge

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Metaphysics
Concerned with theories of the nature of
reality.
Why does the earth exist?
How did it come into being?
Is mankind free?
Is there a God?
What is real?

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Metaphysics
Common terms used in metaphysics are:
theology
creationism
evolution
spirit
free will
atheism
Metaphysics is the area many people think of
when they hear the term philosophy.

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Axiology
concerned with theories of value
Two major divisions of axiology
ethics
• What is right and wrong?
• What is evil and good?
aesthetics
• What is beautiful and ugly?
Some common terms used that relate to axiology are
pessimism, optimism, hedonism, egoism, and altruism.

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Epistemology
Concerned with theories of
the nature of knowledge
Epistemological questions:
How do people learn?
What knowledge is of utmost value?
What are the different types of knowledge?
What are the educational goals of agricultural
education and extension?

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Philosophical
Schools of Thought
Idealism
Realism
Pragmatism
Existentialism
Reconstructionism

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Idealism

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Idealism (Idea-ism)
Idealist believe that
ideas are the only true reality.
The material world is characterized by
change, instability, and uncertainty; some
ideas are enduring

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Idealism
We should be concerned primarily with the
search for truth. Since truth is perfect and
eternal, it cannot be found in the world of
matter that is both imperfect and constantly
changing.

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Methods of Idealism
Study the classics for universal truths
Mathematics (2+2=4 is an absolute truth)
Dialectic (critical discussion)
The dialectic looks at both sides of an issue
Lecture is used to transmit known
truths and to stimulate thinking.

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The Dialectic

Thesis Antithesis
“War is “War is
good” bad”
Synthesis
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Leaders of Idealism
Socrates (469-399 BC)
Plato (427-347 BC)
St. Augustine (350-4300
Descartes (1596-1650)
Berkeley (1685-1753)
Kant (1724-1804)

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Socrates
Regarded as the father of philosophy
Believed we learned through questioning
(the Socratic method)
Wrote nothing, what we know of his views
were written by his followers,
most notably Plato

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Plato
A student of Socrates
Known as the father of idealism
Operated a school named
the “Academy”

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Plato’s views toward education
The state must take an active role in
educational matters
The curriculum must lead bright students
from a concern with concrete data toward
abstract thinking
Students with little ability for
abstraction should go into the
military, business and industry.

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Plato
Those who demonstrate proficiency in the
dialectic would continue their education and
become philosophers in positions of power
to lead the state toward the highest good
(the Philosopher-King)
Believed both boys and girls
should be educated and girls
should be equals.
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Augustine (354-430)
Born in North Africa (Roman citizen)
Mother - Christian, Father - Pagan
Attended Roman Primary School
grammar and literature emphasized
At 16 went to Carthage and studied:
rhetoric, music, geometry, grammar, mathematics
During his younger days “He lied,
he stole, he wenched.”

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Augustine. . .
Became a grammaticus in his native town
Taught rhetoric in Carthage, Rome, Milan
While in his 30’s was converted to
Christianity, took his holy orders and
became a great evangelist and priest.
Found great favor in the church and
became a great religious leader.

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Augustine
People do not create knowledge; God has
already created it,
but people can discover it
through trying to find God.

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Augustine’s Beliefs
Women were held in low regard (this view
was incorporated into the church and held
for a thousand years)
Only a few people possessed the mental
ability to quest for the truth. Therefore
most people should rely on the
church for knowledge.

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Augustine’s Beliefs
Augustine used Greek writings but began to have
doubts how people who did not know God could
write anything which could be of value to
Christians.
In 401 the Church outlawed pagan writings such
as Plato and Aristotle (even the church leaders
were not allowed to read the
ancient literature). This continued
for 1000 years.

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Augustine’s Beliefs
about Teaching
Encouraged the use of summaries
Believed teachers should teach through
persuasion and by leading impeccable lives.
Teachers should not expect to increase their
worldly stores through teaching.
The “stick and fist” were needed to
keep students in line since people
were wicked (because of Adam).

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The Church and Idealism
Idealism has exerted a great amount of
influence on Christianity.
For centuries the Christian church was the
creator and protector of schooling.
Generations educated in these schools were
indoctrinated with the idealist
point of view (including early
American education).

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Descartes (1596-1650)
A renown mathematician
Wrestled with the question of what was real
and did he really exist (perhaps he was a
dream). He finally concluded:
“I think, therefore I am”
Thinking and ideas are the
ultimate truth.

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George Berkeley (1685-1753)
Existence is dependent upon some mind to
know it, and if there are no minds, nothing
would exist unless it is perceived in the
mind of God.

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Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)
“…the greatest and most difficult problem to
which a man can devote himself is the problem of
education…”
Education should teach students how to think
according to principles -
moral laws, moral ideals and
moral imperatives
Enlightenment is the goal of
education

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Educational Aims of Idealism
Develop the mind
Search for true ideas
Character development
Self-realization

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Educational Aims of Idealism
True education is concerned with ideas
rather than matter.
The idealists wants to give students a broad
understanding of the world in which they
live.

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The Idealist and the Chair
To an idealist, the
concept of “chair” is
important. You could
destroy all the chairs
in the world but they
would still exist in the
mind. The idea of a
chair is the ultimate
truth.

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 Realism

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Realism
Reality, knowledge and value exist
independent of the human mind. Trees,
sticks and stones exist whether or not there
is a human mind to perceive them.

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Realism
Ideas must be subject to public verification
must be proven through scientific
experimentation
“Science for the sake of science”

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Realism
Universal properties of objects remain
constant and never change, whereas
particular components do change

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Realism
Need to study nature systematically
Deductive reasoning - truth is derived from
generalizations
Earth is the center of the universe

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Leaders of Realism
Aristotle (384-322 BC)
Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
John Locke (1632-1704)

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Aristotle (384-322 BC)
Ideas may be important but a proper study
of matter could lead us to better and more
distinct ideas.

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Aristotle (384-322 BC)
Golden Mean - a path between extremes
Balance is key - body and mind operate
together in a balanced whole

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Aquinas (1225-1274)
God created matter; therefore it must be ok
to learn about it
This view helped lead civilization out of the
dark ages, replaced the influence of
Augustine

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Aquinas
Truth was passed from God to Humans by
divine revelation, but God also
has endowed humans with
the reasoning ability to
seek out truth.

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Bacon (1561-1626)
Novum Organum - challenged Aristotelian
logic
Science must be concerned with inquiry,
pure and simple with no preconceived
notions
We need to examine all previously accepted
knowledge

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Bacon (1561-1626)
Need to rid our mind of “idols”
Idol of the Den - we believe things because of
limited experience
Idol of the Tribe - we believe things because
many people believe them
Idol of the Marketplace - we are mislead by
language
Idol of the Theatre - Religion and philosophy
may prevent us from see the world objectively

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Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
Known as the father of inductive reasoning
arrive at generalizations from systematic
observations of particulars
Died as a result of the only experiment he
performed - stuffed a dead chicken with
snow to see if it would preserve the flesh,
caught a cold and died

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John Locke (1632-1704)
At birth, the mind is a blank sheet of paper -
a tabla rasa
All ideas are derived from experience by
way of sensation and reflection

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Realism and Education
Promotes the study of science and the
scientific method
There are essential ideas and facts to be
learned; therefore lecture and other formal
methods of teaching are useful

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Realism and Education
Find specialization to be desirable
Like structure
ringing bells, departments, daily lesson plans
If something exists, it can be measured
IQ, Effective teaching
Approve of competencies,
performance-based teaching,
accountability
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Realism and Education
Teacher should present material in a
systematic, organized way and teach that
there are clearly defined criteria for making
judgements in art, economics, politics, etc.

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The Realist and the Chair
To a realist, the
actuality of “chair” is
important. A realist
would measure the
chair, weight it,
examine the physical
characteristics, etc.
The fact that the chair
exists is the ultimate
truth.

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 Pragmatism

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Pragmatism
The root of the word Pragmatism is a Greek
word meaning “work”.
It is primarily a 20th century philosophy
developed by Americans.
Truth is what works in the real world. We
must keep the desired end in mind.
Ideas should be applied to solving
problems; including social problems.

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Leaders in Pragmatism
Auguste Comte, 1798-1857
Not a pragmatist but emphasized
using science to solve social problems

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Leaders in Pragmatism
Charles Darwin, 1809-1882
Reality is not found in Being, but
in Becoming
Reality is open-ended, in process,
with no fixed end.

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American Pragmatists
Charles Sanders Peirce, 1839-1914
Widely acknowledged as the father of
pragmatism
Wrote an article on “How to make our Ideas
Clear” in Popular Science Monthly that is
regarded as the basis for pragmatism.
True knowledge of anything depends upon
verfication of our ideas in actual experience

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American Pragmatists
William James, 1842-1910
The truth of an idea is its “workability”
Truth is not absolute and immutable; rather it is made
in actual, real-life
James called his philosophy “radical empericism”
James’s 1907 book “Pragmatism”
did much to promote pragmatism.
Rufus Stimson, a leader in agricultural education,
studied under James.

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American Pragmatists
John Dewey, 1859-1952
Need to concentrate on real-life problems
Sought practical solutions for practical problems
How We Think
• Felt Difficulty
• Define the problem
• Formulate possible solutions
• Examine & Evaluate possible solutions
• Accept or reject solutions

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Pragmatism and Education
Education should be preparation for life
Solving problems is important; therefore
use real-life situations
Teaching methods should be varied and
flexible
Education should be action oriented
Needs and interests of students should be
considered

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Pragmatism and Education
Project approach to teaching is desirable
Curriculum is varied
A broad education is more desirable

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The Pragmatist and the Chair
To a pragmatist, the
use of the “chair” is
important. What is the
purpose of the chair
and does it fulfil that
purpose? The
“workability” of a
chair is the ultimate
truth.

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 Reconstructionism

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Reconstructionism
Society is in need of constant reconstruction
Such social change involves both a
reconstruction of education and the use of
education in reconstructing society
Problems are viewed holistically
Futuristic thinking (utopian thinking)

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Reconstructionism
Do not believe preparing students for the
world as it exists today will be sufficient
(too much emphasis on the status quo)

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Reconstuctionists want to:
link thought with action
theory with practice
intellect with activism

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Reconstructionism
The goal of education should be to
emphasize the need for change
Students should be out in the real world
“World” curriculum
Technology is valuable
in solving problems

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Noted Reconstructionists
George S. Counts
Theodore Brameld
Paole Freire
Karl Marx
Ivan Illich
John Dewey (he is also recognized as a
pragmatist)

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The Reconstructionist
and the Chair
To a reconstructionist,
the redesign of the
“chair” to better serve
the needs of society is
important. How can
the chair be improved
to prepare society for
the future?

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 Existentialism

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Existentialism
Received new emphasis in the 60s and 70s
Civil rights
Women rights
Individual rights
Special needs

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Existentialism
In education
curriculum was revamped to meet the needs
(more accurately - demands) of individuals
mainstreaming
Pass or fail grade policies
extended drop deadlines in college
elimination of core courses
decline of corporal punishment

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Existentialism
In extension there was a focus on serving
non-traditional clientele
Focus shifted toward the
urban environment

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Existentialism
Traditional philosophies - consider
questions about the nature of knowledge,
truth and meaning but:
Existentialists are concerned with
how these things are educationally
significant within the lived
experiences of individuals.

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Existentialism and Education
People come first, then ideas
People create ideas
Emphasis on self discovery

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Existentialism and Schools
A good education emphasizes individuality
Students should take a positive role in
shaping their schools

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Existentialism and Schools
Students shouldn’t have to:
attend classes
take examinations
receive grades
There is no set curriculum

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Noted Existentialists
Soren Kierkegaard
Martin Heidigger
Martin Buber
Jean-Paul Sartre

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The Existentialist and the Chair
To an existentialist, the
individuals use of “chair”
is important. Whatever the
individual wants to do
with the chair is
important. The experience
of the individual with the
chair is the ultimate truth.

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Match the philosophy
to the image
Idealism
Realism
Pragmatism
Reconstructionism
Existentialism

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