Originally, this book was a series of lectures aiming at educators, educational administrators, and parents. On these lectures, Dewey addresses the manners in which education is intertwined with what was back then a thriving democratic republic. The author states there is an issue with the education model [of the time] seeing to elementary schools not encouraging their students to be curious about their environment and reality, and driven into exploring these at their heart’s content. It could be said that the main ideas expressed on this issue are Dewey’s advocacy for hands-on education as well as his particular vision or approach for having students learning by doing.
How We Think (1910)
In this short book, Dewey explains how people tend to think and then the contrast of this way of thinking with what he considers “thinking well.” Dewey analyses and describes thought from the psychological and philosophical points of view, and so provides us with practical ideas for the field of education; such as: the iterative “ebb and flow” between inductive and deductive thinking, and what is necessary to train the mind to think “better.” Dewey does …show more content…
On one hand, there is the contrast between the immaturity of the young members of the social group (whom at some point in time would become the sole representatives) and the maturity of the adult members who already possess the knowledge and customs of this social group. On the other hand, there is everyone’s need for these immature members to be not only physiologically preserved, but also that they be initiated into the interests, purposes, information, skill, values, and practices of the mature members of the social group. Should this need not be taken care of, the group will cease to enjoy its characteristic