(article ) What is Education?

Chapter 7: “Its all too big!”

Chapter 7: “It’s all too big!”   Faced with the big picture of education, many people experience overwhelm. It is all too big! But that is what climbing out of a box involves. Abandoning comfort. We can only enjoy that comfort by hiding from the serious disrespect that restricting education to schooling enables; the Wild […]

Chapter 7: “Its all too big!” Read More »

Chapter 7: “It’s all too big!”   Faced with the big picture of education, many people experience overwhelm. It is all too big! But that is what climbing out of a box involves. Abandoning comfort. We can only enjoy that comfort by hiding from the serious disrespect that restricting education to schooling enables; the Wild

Chapter 8: The proper educational motivation

Chapter 8: The Proper Educational Motivation   Conventional (factory) schooling converts natural interest and passion into common extrinsic reward and fear, stifling true educational motivation. Educational motivation only connects accidentally. This prepares students to move into the workforce; for the second-hand reward of money, and personal satisfaction is a bonus – or faked. Or at

Chapter 8: The proper educational motivation Read More »

Chapter 8: The Proper Educational Motivation   Conventional (factory) schooling converts natural interest and passion into common extrinsic reward and fear, stifling true educational motivation. Educational motivation only connects accidentally. This prepares students to move into the workforce; for the second-hand reward of money, and personal satisfaction is a bonus – or faked. Or at

The Toyota System for education

Chapter 9: The “Toyota System” in education

Chapter 9: The “Toyota System” in education   Ever wondered, after cramming for that test, how much you would recall in a year’s time? “Use it or lose it”. John Holt made the point, long ago, that you should learn what you need to learn when you need to learn it. This is illustrated well

Chapter 9: The “Toyota System” in education Read More »

Chapter 9: The “Toyota System” in education   Ever wondered, after cramming for that test, how much you would recall in a year’s time? “Use it or lose it”. John Holt made the point, long ago, that you should learn what you need to learn when you need to learn it. This is illustrated well

Chapter 10: Slavery and education

Chapter 10 Slavery and Education   How does our schooling differ from schooling for slavery? What would we reserve for free people? This is the bar between education and mere vocationalism. The Romans prepared house slaves – teachers, accountants, secretaries, doctors included. They schooled them. How is our schooling better than schooling for house slaves

Chapter 10: Slavery and education Read More »

Chapter 10 Slavery and Education   How does our schooling differ from schooling for slavery? What would we reserve for free people? This is the bar between education and mere vocationalism. The Romans prepared house slaves – teachers, accountants, secretaries, doctors included. They schooled them. How is our schooling better than schooling for house slaves

Chapter 11: The core domains of educational content

Part 3: The Practices of Education NOTICE Part 3 is currently undergoing substantial revision. This first chapter, 11. The core domains of educational content, will be replaced by two new chapters, the first of which will explain the educational limitations of conventional teaching and the second will discuss how those limitations might be overcome, together

Chapter 11: The core domains of educational content Read More »

Part 3: The Practices of Education NOTICE Part 3 is currently undergoing substantial revision. This first chapter, 11. The core domains of educational content, will be replaced by two new chapters, the first of which will explain the educational limitations of conventional teaching and the second will discuss how those limitations might be overcome, together

Chapter 12: A hierarchy of formal educational activities

  Chapter 12: A hierarchy of formal educational activities   Some educational activities are more important than others – if, that is, learners genuinely are to be put first; to become a self-determining, responsible human beings in charge of their own lives. There is a hierarchy of educational processes, and conventional classroom teaching figures pretty

Chapter 12: A hierarchy of formal educational activities Read More »

  Chapter 12: A hierarchy of formal educational activities   Some educational activities are more important than others – if, that is, learners genuinely are to be put first; to become a self-determining, responsible human beings in charge of their own lives. There is a hierarchy of educational processes, and conventional classroom teaching figures pretty

Chapter 13: Why should you learn to think philosophically?

Chapter 13: Why should you learn to think philosophically?   <img “alignleft size-full wp-image-564″ src=”https://whatiseducationhq.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Graham-80-X-80.png” alt=”Graham Oliver” width=”80″ height=”80″ > Why learn philosophy? Untended, our everyday decisions, and our outlook on life are riddled with bad philosophical judgments. We can’t manage without making philosophical assumptions, and bad philosophy results in bad decisions. We can only

Chapter 13: Why should you learn to think philosophically? Read More »

Chapter 13: Why should you learn to think philosophically?   <img “alignleft size-full wp-image-564″ src=”https://whatiseducationhq.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Graham-80-X-80.png” alt=”Graham Oliver” width=”80″ height=”80″ > Why learn philosophy? Untended, our everyday decisions, and our outlook on life are riddled with bad philosophical judgments. We can’t manage without making philosophical assumptions, and bad philosophy results in bad decisions. We can only

Chapter 14: Educational communities of inquiry

Chapter 14: Educational communities of inquiry (ECOIs) The best way to develop reasoning is in disciplined discussion – “Communities of Inquiry”. Our reasoning evolves out of, and through, the internalization of the voices of others, particularly the give-and-take of discussion and dialogue where reasons are exchanged respectfully. The more profound the challenge, and the more

Chapter 14: Educational communities of inquiry Read More »

Chapter 14: Educational communities of inquiry (ECOIs) The best way to develop reasoning is in disciplined discussion – “Communities of Inquiry”. Our reasoning evolves out of, and through, the internalization of the voices of others, particularly the give-and-take of discussion and dialogue where reasons are exchanged respectfully. The more profound the challenge, and the more

Chapter 15: Discussion skills that create knowledge

Chapter 15: Discussion skills that create knowledge Quality philosophical discussions create knowledge and developed critical thinking, as well as enabling us to explore the core issues about life that concern us most. Here are the basic skills that need to be developed, and some tips on how to facilitate these discussions. Anyone can do it,

Chapter 15: Discussion skills that create knowledge Read More »

Chapter 15: Discussion skills that create knowledge Quality philosophical discussions create knowledge and developed critical thinking, as well as enabling us to explore the core issues about life that concern us most. Here are the basic skills that need to be developed, and some tips on how to facilitate these discussions. Anyone can do it,

Chapter 16: Integrating the practices

Chapter 16: Integrating the practices If schooling is only one educational institution, and perhaps shouldn’t even be the central one, how should formal education be arranged – particularly if we prioritize independent inquiry and empower learners with knowledge of education itself? Some possibilities are explored here. The educational requirements of our duties of respect for

Chapter 16: Integrating the practices Read More »

Chapter 16: Integrating the practices If schooling is only one educational institution, and perhaps shouldn’t even be the central one, how should formal education be arranged – particularly if we prioritize independent inquiry and empower learners with knowledge of education itself? Some possibilities are explored here. The educational requirements of our duties of respect for