The background of the progressive education movement

Progressive education movement

65438+American educational innovation movement at the end of 2009 and the beginning of the 20th century. Its nature is similar to the new education movement in Europe. It is an integral part of the social reform movement carried out by the United States at the end of 19 to meet the needs of industrial revolution, urban-rural transformation, frontier development and a large number of immigrants. The movement opposes the tendency of the United States to follow the European formalism curriculum, the outdated textbooks and teaching methods, the numerous rules and regulations, the serious disconnection between education and production, and the replacement of them with brand-new curriculum design and novel teaching methods.

Quincy teaching method

F.W. Parker, the founder of progressive education, tried new teaching methods for the first time in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1970s, and founded Quincy teaching method. His educational reform was regarded as a new starting point in the history of American education. In particular, he emphasized that children are the center of teaching activities, and all spiritual and moral activities depend on children's self-activities, which became one of the direct sources of Dewey's educational thought.

From 65438 to 0896, Dewey opened an experimental school at the University of Chicago. He combined factors such as manual training, new teaching methods and the connection between school and society at that time, and was considered as a great contribution to the progressive education movement. At the beginning of the 20th century, M johnson opened an organic education school in Fairhope, Alabama, which was similar to J.-J. Rousseau's idea. Johnson stressed that children's interest and ability development should not be restricted, and teachers' leading, fixed courses and exams should be lifted. Since the 1920s, a large number of progressive schools have been established.

affect

The progressive education movement not only affects primary and secondary education, but also affects higher education. 19 19 The United States established the Progressive Education Association, and 1920 announced seven principles for improving primary schools: children's natural free development; Take interest as the driving force of all homework activities; Teachers are the instructors of teaching, but they cannot cover everything; Scientific research on children's development; Pay attention to all factors that affect children's physical development; Schools and families should cooperate closely to meet the needs of children's lives; Affirm the leading position of progressive schools in the educational movement. In the late 1930s, the progressive education movement reached its peak, with more than 10,000 members of the Progressive Education Association, which had a great influence. After World War II, the progressive education movement gradually declined because it was considered that the quality of education could not be improved. 1955 The disintegration of the Progressive Education Association and the closure of the Progressive Education in 1957 marked the end of an era in American pedagogy. However, progressive education, as a trend of thought, still has a certain impact on American contemporary education.

Development history

65438+American educational innovation movement from the end of 2009 to the beginning of the 20th century. /kloc-at the end of 0/9, the bourgeois social reform movement appeared in the United States to meet the needs of industrialization, urbanization and a large number of immigrants. Its purpose is to maintain and develop capitalism through a controlled and reasonable social reform process. The progressive education movement is an integral part of this social reform movement, which opposed the old traditional school education in the United States dominated by European formalism at that time.

American educator F.W. Parker experimented with new teaching methods for the first time in Quincy, Massachusetts from 65438 to 2009 in the 1970s. He is regarded as one of the founders of progressive education. The word "progressive education" was scattered in newspapers and magazines in the United States at that time, which generally referred to normal schools and teaching methods different from traditional education. For example, manual training and kindergarten education in Ejdero, new york; E. Huntington adopted the kindergarten teaching method for older girls in new york, replaced the kindliness of kindergarten with household kitchen utensils (see F.W.A. Froebel), and put forward the family activity course; And the Horace Mann School, which emerged as a demonstration center. Dewey, an educator, started an experimental school at the University of Chicago. He combined the factors of manual training, new teaching methods and the connection between school and society at that time, and was considered as a great contribution to the progressive education movement. At the beginning of the 20th century, M johnson opened an organic education school in Fairhope, Alabama, which was similar to J.-J. Rousseau's idea. He thinks that in an ideal school, there should be desks and chairs instead of desks; Children under 9 ~ 10 should not be taught to read and write, but should provide "unlimited themes" for their labor and games; Music, dance, games, handicrafts and storytelling should be the main contents of early courses. During and after World War I, many new schools were established in the United States, and many old schools also turned to progressive education. Especially in schools in some big cities, activity classes, design teaching methods and core courses are widely used (see core courses). 19 19 progressive education association was established. The progressive education movement reached its heyday in 1930. By 1938, the membership of progressive education association reached 10500. The first honorary president of the Association for Progressive Education was C.W. Eliot, a chemist and educator from Harvard University, who was succeeded by Dewey from 65438 to 0928.

When the Progressive Education Association was founded, it declared that its purpose was to encourage children's free and natural development, and to study children's physical and intellectual development for this purpose, taking children's interests as the basis of its educational activities. Later, many progressive educators revised the latter principle, that is, education should be based on children's interests and needs. The American Association for Progressive Education is not a stable group, and its members have different understandings of progressive education. For example, educator W.H. kilpatrick put forward design teaching method according to Dewey's experience and thinking theory; Educator H.O. Lager proposed "children's central school"; Educator G.S. Kantz advocated that schools should shoulder the responsibility of social transformation and dare to establish a new social order during the Great Depression in 1930s.

Dewey's educational philosophy is generally regarded as synonymous with progressive education. In fact, Dewey criticized some phenomena in this movement from the beginning. He has always opposed the "either-or" way of thinking. He advocated that everything should proceed from experience and elaborated the principles of "continuity" and "interaction" of experience. He believes that the most remarkable achievement of the American progressive education movement in the past half century is that it has brought about changes in classroom life, that is, it has gained more understanding of children's needs and the relationship between teachers and students has become more cordial and democratic. However, he pointed out that this is mainly a change in the atmosphere, and the most fundamental authoritarianism in old education still exists in various forms. He emphasized that the weakness of progressive education lies in the selection and organization of knowledge-based teaching materials, and so on. Because this movement is actually guided by Dewey's educational philosophy. Therefore, its achievements and failures are also regarded as the result of Dewey's educational philosophy itself.

After World War II, the progressive education movement gradually declined because it was considered that it could not improve the quality of knowledge. 1955 the disintegration of the progressive education association and the closure of its publication "progressive education" two years later marked the end of an era in American pedagogy. However, due to the failure of the national curriculum reform in the 1960s in the United States, some schools began to transplant the popular "open classroom" (that is, "open education") in the 1970s. This kind of education emphasizes children's personal interests and needs (see color picture). This educational trend of thought is called "New Progressive Movement" by many people. Progressive education, as a trend of thought, still has some influence in American schools.

Reasons for refusal

The reasons for the decline of the progressive education movement are:

1. Sports can't keep up with the constant changes of American society and can't better adapt to the requirements of American social development for education;

2. There are many contradictions and limitations in theory and practice, such as overemphasizing children's individual freedom and ignoring the decision and restriction of social and cultural development on education;

3. The diversity of guiding ideology and theoretical basis, the relative unity of movement, and the contradiction between educational theory and practice lead to internal division;

4. The criticism of reformism and conservatism hit its key point to a great extent and accelerated its decline.

philology

Zhao Xianglin and Wang. Selected Works of Dewey's Education. East China Normal University Press, Shanghai, 198 1.

Lawrence Cremin, School Reform, Alfred Knoff, new york, 196 1.