An Exploratory Analysis of John Dewey's Writings: Implications for School Leaders (original) (raw)

The purpose of this study was to synthesize the operational definition of education through an exploratory analysis of John Dewey's writings. Dewey's definition of education changed from 1938 to 1896. Findings suggest that schools promote more social and emotional learning through instructional activities such as service-learning. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson penned the following words, perhaps the most inspiring sentence in American language: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" (as cited in Cannon, 2004, p.13). How does education contribute to an understanding of the pursuit of happiness? John Dewey saw many ethical implications among education, democracy, happiness and social service. Dewey wrote in Education and experience (1938/1998): "We always live at the time we live and not at some...