Strains of American Progressive Education (original) (raw)

American Progressive Education and Yutori Kyoiku

2014

Few groups in the history of education have been as influential as the American progressives, who were part of the broader wave of Progressivism that swept the developed world in the late-19th century. It is often seen as an American movement, but its roots lay in the Prussian welfare state. American intellectuals educated in Germany in the 1800s were inspired by the Prussian model of an efficiently organized society under the leadership of experts backed by the power of the state bureaucracy. They returned home imbued with ideas about a paternalistic state, and began to advocate similar changes in the US. Since Japan's yutori kyoiku (education free from pressure) owes more than a passing debt to Progressivism, Japanese teachers should familiarize themselves with the origins of this philosophy. To paraphrase Leon Trotsky, you may not be interested in Progressivism, but Progressivism is interested in you. This paper will introduce key elements of American progressive education and four men considered its early architects: Stanley Hall, John Dewey, Edward Thorndike, and David Snedden. Their work set the stage for the child-centered movement, educational psychology, and educational sociology. They ushered in "The Age of the Experts," the years just before and after World War I during which the movement's influence grew within academia and the teaching establishment. They used science to justify the differentiated curriculum, empower pedagogical experts, and redefine democracy. From 1910-1950, progressives oversaw a 60% reduction in academic content while "life-adjustment" courses rose tenfold. They de-emphasized reading, put pupils' self-esteem over learning facts or developing good habits, and established an ongoing hegemony over teacher education. Similarly, yutori kyoiku reforms reduced the school week from six days to five, and cut "the educational requirements by a third." In both the US and Japan, academic performance declined significantly.

The Promise and Failure of Progressive Education

Early in the 20th century, an inspiring array of intellectuals launched a progressive education movement that sought change in American educational practice. For many of them, the heart of a progressive educational program emphasized flexibility and critical thinking. These progressives believed that schools should establish relationships with their communities and that curricula should confront broad social issues and provide educational opportunities for all children. Consequently, progressive education, infused with the reformist sensibilities of progressive era politics, looked to schools for the political and social regeneration of the nation.

Mining the Present: Reconstructing Progressive Education in an Era of Global Change

The International Journal of Progressive Education, 2013

Progressive education, though its meaning be contested, is the basic idea that schools should be agents of democracy. To reform society, we must reform the schools. The converse is also true: Change in schooling is realizable only to the extent that society progresses. Thus, progressive education entails not merely progressive methods for individual learners, but education for a progressive society. Growing out of a period of rapid social, economic, demographic, and political change in the early 20th century-with an influx of millions of immigrants and a move toward a more urban, industrial economy-the United States version of progressive education arose as the belief that schooling needs to be solidly grounded in the idea of democracy as the idea of-associated living" or a "conjoint communicated experience‖ (Dewey, 1916/2008, p. 93). This idea requires an appreciation for diversity as both a crucial element for democratic life and a resource for learning, as well as the goal of fostering a "critical, socially engaged intelligence‖ (Miller, 1997, para. 1). Similar ideas have developed in other regions and other times as the articles in this series of Special Issues demonstrate. Progressive education cannot alone create a unified system of global dialogue, consciousness, citizenship and ethics, nor is this kind of universal transcendence fully achievable or even wholly desirable, but it is integral to the enactment of a better world. Yet, today, being committed to progressive education is not easy. With the movement out of fashion in many quarters, dismissed as naïve, romantic, and more rhetoric than reality (Labaree, 2005), when conformity, standardization, obedience, competition, job preparedness and corporate models have become de rigueur, progressive educators might not know where to focus their energies or how to keep hopeful. Concrete material changes in the schools and in communities toward more progressive practices, as described in these articles, are small but significant examples of hope for a "lost cause‖ that can and should still be defended, and provide inspiring possibilities for other educators. As a closing thought, Howard Zinn's words, which could easily be pinned to progressive ideals, provide a meaningful framework for reading these contributions: "The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think humans should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory‖ (2004, para. 11). In their own way, and from far-flung diverse places such as Spain, Indonesia, China, the UK, and the US, each piece is simultaneously a story about the past, present and future. Each one is a link in this chain of "infinite successions.‖ Each one is a victory.

Searching for Meaning: A Personal and Historical Exploration of Progressive Education

2008

In this study, the author seeks to better understand the meaning of progressive education. This study does not attempt to answer the question What is progressive education?, but rather it seeks to bring the question to the forefront of the minds of fellow thoughtful, reflective, progressive educators who, like the author, struggle with the contradictions and discrepancies present among progressive educators, both historically and contemporarily. Utilizing Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot's style of portraiture (1997, with J.H. Davis), the author writes in the narrative style, sharing with the reader three conversations with progressive educators whose work has informed her own educational philosophy. Themes of freedom, community, and social justice are woven throughout the portraits. A full review of relevant literature is also included, touching on these and additional themes, such as the importance of reflection, the individual versus the democratic group, and the teacher's role in the progressive classroom. While a study of this nature does not seek to provide definitive conclusions, the author does share her newfound belief, as a result of this study, in the importance of being able to articulate one's educational beliefs in an historical context, as well as to begin to reclaim or more clearly define some key terms used to describe one's educational philosophy and practices.