Mocanu Oana-Claudia

Psihopedagogie Specială, anul II

Progressivist Schools

Progressive education is a pedagogical movement that began in the late nineteenth century; it

has persisted in various forms to the present. The term progressive was engaged to distinguish
this education from the traditional Euro-American curricula of the 19th century, which was
rooted in classical preparation for the university and strongly differentiated by social class. By
contrast, progressive education finds its roots in present experience. 

John Dewey (1859-1952) who founded the University of Chicago's Laboratory School which

many consider the flagship of progressive education, was a distinguished philosopher as well as
an educator. In a nutshell, Dewey knew that education was the way to make sweeping changes
in society. The School and Social Progress, the School and the Life of the Child, and Waste in
Education put forth Dewey's fundamental beliefs that education needs to be an interactive
process in which the child discovers the relevance of his lessons to the real world outside.

1. Most progressive schools don't issue report cards.

Professor John Dewey disliked the notion of children sitting in rigid rows listening to a teacher,
memorizing facts and regurgitating those facts on command. Dr. Dewey felt that students
needed to learn by doing. Implicit in this philosophy of education is an aversion to testing and
report cards. You will monitor your child's progress in other ways. Instead of receiving a
document with traditional grades such as A's and B's you will receive a reporting detailing your
child's achievments in a variety of areas which the school feels are important.
2. Progressive schools are not permissive schools.
The notion that students in a progressive school are somehow not academically disciplined is
simply not true. The point of a progressive education is to allow young people the opportunity
to experience ideas and things for themselves, as opposed to just reading about it and
memorizing the facts. 
Experiential learning is a vital part of a progressive education. But banish any visions of your
little darling doing whatever she wants to do whenever she wants to do it. That's not the way it
works. Progressive schools have a strong sense of community. The school expects everybody
not only to learn and play together but also to do the physical work necessary to make their
school community a better place. A progressive school is not just an institution where you learn
in an academic setting. It is a place where learning takes place while camping, gardening or
participating in a host of activities designed to bring out the full potential of each child.
Progressive education is not for every child. Indeed, it might not be right for your child.
However, you will never know if that statement is true unless you visit a progressive school and
see how it functions.