Realism

and its Role in Education

Teresa Hopson
XEF 501-Philosophy of Education
Professor: Dr. Percy Bland
Cheyney University
April 4, 2007
 Overview of Presentation
 Classical Realism
 Modern Realism
 Contemporary Realism
 Aims of Realism in Education
 Methods of Education
 Curriculum
 Role of the Teacher
 Small activities throughout the presentation
 Conclusion
Does Mars Exist?
 Central Thesis

“The most central thread of realism is what can

be called the principle or thesis of
independence.”

Objects exist whether or not there is a human

mind to perceive them.
(pg. 48)
Difference between Plato and Aristotle
The School of Athens, c.1511 by Raphael

Plato (428-347 B.C.)

 Must study ideas

 Truth and logic through the
dialectic discourse

Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

 Should study matter

 Logic reasoning through his
syllogism
 Classical Realists

Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

 Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

“A tree can exist without matter, but no matter

can exist without form.”
(p. 49)
What might Aristotle ask of the Rock?
 Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

What is humanity's purpose?

“Because humans are the only creatures endowed with

the ability to think, their purpose is to use this ability.”
(p. 50)
 Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

Aristotle's Golden Mean:

(a path between extremes)

The person who follows a true purpose leads a

rational life of moderation, avoiding extremes:
the extremes of too little or too much.
(p. 50)
 Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

Aristotle's Concept of the Four Causes:

The Material Cause

The Formal Cause

The Efficient Cause

The Final Cause

 Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)
Like Plato, Aristotle was concerned with logic.
The logical method he developed was the
syllogism, which was his method for testing
the truth of statements such as:

All men are mortal

Socrates is a man

Therefore, Socrates is mortal. (p. 52)

 Aristotelian Influence

Recognizing the need to study nature

Using logical processes to examine the external world

Organizing things into hierarchies

Emphasizing the rational aspects of human nature

 Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

First encountered the work of Aristotle while studying in Naples

Attempted to reconcile Aristotelian philosophy with Christian doctrines

Became a leading authority on Aristotle in the Middle Ages

Author of De Magistro (On the Teacher) and Summa Theologica

Highest good comes through thinking

We are children of God; our thinking should agree with Christian tenets

God made it possible to acquire true knowledge so that we may know

Him better.
 Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Beliefs:
-God is the Ultimate Teacher; only God can touch the soul.

-A teacher can only 'point' the way to knowledge.

-Teaching is a way to serve humankind; it is part of God's work. “Leading the

student from ignorance to enlightenment is one of the greatest services one
person can give to another.” (p.54)

-The soul possesses an inner knowledge.

-The major goal of education was the perfection of the human being and the
ultimate reunion of the soul with God.
 Modern Realism

Francis Bacon John Locke

(1561-1626) (1632-1704)
 Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 In Novum Organum, he challenged Aristotelian logic.

 Believed science was 'delayed' by Aristotelian thinking
 Past thinking flawed due to theological dogmatism and prior
assumptions which led to false deductions (e.g. Galileo)
 Science must be concerned with inquiry and not pre-
conceived notions.
 Science was a tool for creating new knowledge.
 Originator of the expression: “Knowledge is Power”
 Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

Believed we should examine all previously accepted knowledge;

We should rid ourselves of four idols that we 'bow down' before:

 Idol of the Den (beliefs due to limited experience)

 Idol of the Tribe (believing because most people believe)
 Idol of the Marketplace (beliefs due to misuse of words)
 Idol of the Theater (subjective beliefs colored by religion and
personal philosophy)
 John Locke (1632-1704)
 Oxford scholar; medical researcher, physician
 No such things as innate ideas—mind at birth is a tabula rasa
 First great English empiricist
 All ideas are acquired from sources independent of the mind,
through experience.
 Authored Some Thoughts Concerning Education
 Influenced the later writings of Alexander Hamilton, Thomas
Jefferson, and James Madison (Wikipedia, 2007)
 “The little and almost insensible impressions on our tender
infancies have very important and lasting consequences." (Locke,
1690, Essay, p. 10)
 Contemporary Realism

Alfred Whitehead (1861-1947) Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

Hilary Putnam (1926-) John R. Searle (1932-)

Alfred Whitehead and Bertrand Russell

 Both born in England

 Collaborated on
mathematical writings
 Eventually came to teach
in the United States
 Both wrote about
education
 Co-authored Principia
Mathematica
 Alfred Whitehead (1861-1947)

 Led to philosophy through the study of mathematics at age 63

 Tried to reconcile some aspects of Idealism with Realism
 Process is central to his philosophy—reality is a process.
 Philosophy is a search for a pattern in the universe: (Can a fish read?)
 The most important things to be learned are ideas.
 Education should be concerned with living ideas—ideas
connected to the experience of learners.
 Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

 Student of Alfred Whitehead

 Taught at Cambridge, the University of California
 Imprisoned for pacifist activities
 Founded a school called Beacon Hill
 Two kinds of reality: hard data and soft data
 Education is key to a better way; we should be using our
knowledge to erase some of the ills of society.
 Hilary Putnam (1926-)
 Taught at Northwestern, MIT, and finally Harvard
 The changes in science influence the philosophy of realism
 Coined the term 'internal realism'
 Physicists have introduced a 'cut' between the observer and
the universe. The universe is too large and too complex
for us to understand. Forced to observe universe with our
own limited resources.
 Science will continue to influence the philosophy of
realism
 John R. Searle (1932-)

 Accepts the traditional view of Realism

 Coined the term 'social reality'
 Does reality in the universe just consist of physical
particles and fields of force?
 Social reality created by human consciousness
 Aims of Education

 Understanding the material world through inquiry

 A study of science and the scientific method
 A need to know the world in order to ensure survival
 Basic, essential knowledge with a no-nonsense approach
 Intellectually-gifted student is a precious resource
 Should use the Great Books of the Western World
 Adler's Paideia Proposal: school should be a one-track
system, general (non-specialized), and non-vocational
 Methods of Education
 Not only facts, but method of arriving at facts
 Emphasis on critical reasoning through observation
 Supports formal ways of teaching
 Children should be given positive rewards (Locke)
 Precision and order: ringing bells, time periods, daily
lesson plans, prepackaged curriculum materials
 Supports accountability and performance-based teaching
 Scientific research and development
 Most recent development: computer technology
 Curriculum

Practicaland useful
Physical activity has educational value (Locke)
Attention to the complete person (Locke)
Extensive use of pictures (John Amos Comenius)
Use of objects in education (Maria Montessori)
Highly organized and systematic
 Role of the Teacher

 Realists emphasize the role of the teacher

 Should teach students what they need to survive
 At the very least, should teach the essentials
 Material presented in a systematic and organized way
 Humanities should be taught in ways that are conducive
to cognitive development
 Main Activity

There is a number in your folder.

The number you have matches the question that you

will answer.
Conclusion

“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.”

Sydney J. Harris (American Journalist 1917-1986)