Dewey's Pragmatism and the Great Community (original) (raw)

Democracy theories in John Dewey's work: formative requirements of social cooperation

Revista Brasileira de Educação, 2020

This essay studies John Dewey's democracy theories in order to revive their inherent formative aspect. In its first part, it calls upon Richard Bernstein's interpretation, focusing on the connection he establishes between democracy and the community. In the second part, the notion of community proposed by Bernstein is discussedinspired by Axel Honneth's work-thus reformulating the Deweyan theory of democracy. Although there are notable differences between them, the notion of community stands out as their structuring nucleus. Lastly, in its third part, it seeks grounds and the close bond between democracy and community, dependent on the idea of education based on the plasticity of the human condition. That is, it shows that the epistemological argument supporting the notion of the scientific community with participant researchers must be complemented by the anthropological and cultural argument that offers grounds for the notion of democracy as a way of life.

A Democratic Ideal for Troubled Times: John Dewey, Civic Action, and Peaceful Conflict Resolution

The Journal of Human Rights and Peace Studies, 2016

In an era defined by events that continuously shake Fukuyama's thesis according to which liberal democracy constitutes the end of History, there is a need for a democratic ideal which puts the role of civic action at the heart of its justification. In this article, I argue that John Dewey's democratic ideal understood as a matter of civic co-creation, where democratic pursuits are continually redefined by citizens through the solving communal problems – not set by History, once and for all – provides a valuable response to this need. To this end, the article reconsiders Deweyan democracy by: presenting it as a transformational process, in opposition to liberal democracy (1); discussing Dewey's conception of active citizenship as requiring more than mere political participation (2); articulating Dewey's democratic ideal as form of applied social intelligence (3); making explicit the pedagogical consequences of Deweyan democracy (4); interpreting it as a form of peaceful conflict resolution aiming at balance in inter-personal relationships (5).

John Dewey's Community of Inquiry

This article sets out to demonstrate the particular importance for education of Dewey’s theory of inquiry, considering the latter with reference to its relationship to other elements within his philosophy of education. The author believes that adopting such an approach to Dewey’s thought will rescue it from being misunderstood. Her view is that the theory of inquiry, as the most important concept in Dewey’s thought, deserves central attention, but should nevertheless not be presented in isolation from other ideas within his extensive body of philosophical thinking. Hence its presentation here is preceded by an explanation of the nature of instrumentalism – or what might alternatively be called naturalist empiricism. Following on from this, some features of a theory of experience are set out. Then, crucially, the theory of inquiry itself, as the central topic of the article, is elaborated in several stages, all of these being described in some detail in order to comprehensively present the structural character of inquiry. Finally, the theory of inquiry is supplemented by a recognition of the importance of communal inquiry for educational practice. Throughout, the author also tries to show that Dewey successfully overcame several dualisms in his philosophy, and that the success of such an anti-dualistic approach is, moreover, primarily to be seen in educational practice itself.

Democracy as a Way of Life: Critical Reflections on a Deweyan Theme

Res Publica: Revista de Filosofía Política, 2012

This article aims to critically assess John Dewey’s ideal of “democracy as a way of life”, an evocative though elusive moral and political ideal linked to both his communal notion of democracy and his reformist view of liberalism. Beyond the school, where citizenship education begins, Dewey claims that individuals learn democratic habits when they associate and participate in political activities, which are not solely confined to political institutions. Exploring Dewey’s democratic theory invites a twofold account. It takes to contextualize Dewey’s views in light of the political debates of his time, in particular the interwar debates on the crisis of liberalism and democracy. And it takes to examine his democratic thought in terms of educational theory and policy. Both aspects integrate into the argument.

John Dewey and democracy as regulative ideal

2014

The religious background of John Dewey’s thought strongly affects his conception of democracy, which nevertheless explicitly claims the independence from supernatural beliefs. The ‘quasi-religious’ feature that he assigns to democratic ideals is a peculiar expression of his ‘naturalistic humanism’, which enhances imaginative capacity and scientific knowledge as basic instruments for better developing human possibilities, aside from individualism and from any form of dogmatism. The complexity of Dewey’s thought, of its sources of inspiration as well as of its most original issues, offers solid reasons for contrasting the risk of an incautious scientism and at the same time leaves room for further reflections about currents problems of democratic societies

John Dewey's Democracy and Education 100 Years On

Journal of Philosophy of Education

, a four-day conference to mark the centenary of the publication of John Dewey's Democracy and Education was held in Homerton College, Cambridge University, jointly sponsored by the college, the Faculty of Education, the Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain and the History of Education Society of the UK. Four years in the planning, it proved to be an ambitious project which captured and encouraged a renewed interest in Dewey and his work. While rightfully celebrating his significance in the history and philosophy of education, the conference also focused on Dewey's broader reach in current interdisciplinary study, as well as his extensive influence on professional educators and the practice of education within and beyond schools. The call for papers exceeded expectations, with submissions from across the world. After double blind review, just over 100 papers from 25 countries were selected. PESGB's financial support was instrumental in making attendance affordable, particularly for international delegates. The intention was to integrate theory and practice throughout and, as well as traditional parallel sessions, the conference distinctively featured practitioners and students. UK and Spanish schools demonstrated Philosophy for Children as a basis for student dialogue, and an international school network showed how it was engaging with research to promote democracy. Delegates also had opportunities to experience the Alexander Technique (developed by a lifelong friend of Dewey's and which he practised himself); to enjoy displays cocreated and hosted by the Faculty Library and to visit the newly opened and research-active University of Cambridge Primary School. Strong keynotes and panel sessions by educational philosophers, historians, practitioners and journalists were streamed and shared online. Given the diversity of themes, disciplines and backgrounds, the sense of rapport and community during the conference was remarkable, opening a space in which Dewey's humane and progressive values were shared. Key to this was the character and scope of Dewey and his work: he was an interdisciplinary polymath, whose texts encompass different disciplines and contexts. This suite of papers offers a glimpse of the diverse philosophical