EDF1005-Assignment #1

Progressive education is different from the education we receive in a regular classroom. It is a method in which you actually experience something and learn from it. The experiences can also affect our future actions and decisions. Progressivists believe it is better to learn through experience and real life everyday obstacles. “At least two models of progressive education have emerged within the historical literature to date: the child-centred form and the social-reconstructionist form (Martin & Goodman, p. 410)”. These are two different things that came about since the historical date. But, the editors wanted more discussion about this so they began to research on the different examples and perspectives of the participants. What also played a major part in this was the difference in gender. It has showed that males performed a different progressive action than women did.
Education is seen as the primary key to the future. It will change our children’s lives as well as our society. Education helps achieve our views and knowledge in a politically and social manner. Just like the quote says from one of Joseph McNair’s readings: “In America, education has always been viewed as a vehicle for improving society at large.” I agree with this one hundred percent because the more we learn the more opportunities we open for ourselves and our society. The more doors we will open for ourselves and the more knowledge we will have on different subjects in life. It’s also important to have a form of reference historically as well as a point of view because it can provide a solution for the future lives of children. Researchers compared the behavior and change of practice in the first half of the twentieth century, and then the second half of the twentieth century. “They also wished to continue the re-visioning of progressivism in the light of the gender-sensitive and postcolonial analyses informing current scholarship in the history of education (Martin & Goodman, p. 410)”. “There is a special edition that helps us view an account of progressive education with different approaches to the method that can help historians, teachers, policy makers, and provide potential for our future (Martin & Goodman, p. 410).” It compares progressive education in the past with the present, and notes on how some things have changed or remained the same maybe because they need to or may be positive to our future and everyone in it. Although progressive education has been able to spread internationally with different discussions in institutes and different networks it has tried to open vastly among others. “The networks and relationships of progressive educationists, as well as accounts of progressive practice, the interplay between activism and agency, and the attempt to extend notions of democracy and citizenship in light of progressive education’s ideals” (Martin & Goodman, p.410). It is noted that women educationists were able to endure the common activities of the day to associate themselves with the different works of philosophy, experimentation, and political and institutional leadership. On the other hand, the results of the men were completely different from the women during the same time period. This article shows that this has become an important category in the history of education.
“Kevin Brehony’s view on progressivism is described in three factors which are the descriptive historical accounts of the experienced kind, evaluates the effectiveness of progressive suggestions in education, regulating writing for the support of an idea or cause, and finally unconvincing accounts that challenge assumptions on progressive education (p.410).”
Education is constantly changing, each and every day there is something new being invented or taught. An important factor also is in the ways in which we may teach something. Every single thing in our lives takes significant importance in the way we earn our education and what we take from it. Sometimes we may not be grasping the true meaning of what we are being taught. One of them being our own experiences with our day to day lives that challenges us each and every day and helps us learn new things. According to Cunningham, “Cunningham uses prosopography as a tool to analyze the contribution of life histories, personal ideologies, roles and relationships to the dissemination of educational change” (Martin & Goodman, p.411).” It’s all about the characteristics that make up a person that act as a tool for different changes needed in education. He uses narrated personal experience also with small group activities in order to complement individual creators. Then, concluding with the results that Cunningham received he used prosopography to learn more about certain individuals that made themselves not really known to everyone else. She pointed out ways in which the female gender made a contribution in progressivism through their participation, money, religion, and building up on different institutions. Many important people such as Eisenmann believed we shouldn’t continue with the practices that neither educators nor anyone else believed would be accomplished. They thought we should learn from the past and our mistakes and make what was unsuccessful even better for the present and future. The practices that weren’t successful shouldn’t be repeated, the same way when something goes wrong you don’t want to do it again because you don’t want it happening again to you. It is the same pattern.
Education has changed over time including progressive education. Things are a little different than what they were before. We have learned more politically and socially which has helped progressive education as well as for the future. We have learned from the past history practices and try not to repeat them, but come up with new ones for our future, so it can become a successful one. Progressive education makes schools more productive as a democratic society.