1. PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION
This chapter will present the classical philosophy and the contemporary philosophy which are perceived to be influential in shaping the
philosophic activities of man and his society, since man lives in a precarious world characterized by constant change and movement, it
is important to gain insights and understanding of these philosophies.
Philosophy Main Postulates Philosophers Ideas from specific Philosophers
Realism Realism is a philosophicaldoctrine that universals have a real
objective existence.; that the objects of sense perception have
existence independent of the act of perception.
Realism is the refinement of our acceptance of theworld as being
just that it appears to be, and that things are thesame as they are
before entering our consciousness and remain unchanged through
our experience.
Realism is the refinement of our acceptance of theworld as being
just that it appears to be, and that things are thesame as they are
before entering our consciousness and remain unchanged through
our experience. Realism holds that there is a real world whose
existence independent of man but it can be ascertained through
man’s intellect and sense perception.
The realists believe that reality refers to physicalobjects and forces
perceived as they are.
There are certain principles about realism as a philosophy:
1. All beings, material and immaterial, can be understood
clearly by thehuman mind as they appear to be what they
are.
2. The familiarity gained by experience and by human
nature is unchanging and dependable and serves as norm
for the decision and action of the individual and society.
Ideas, which, according to Plato, are forms, patterns, types or
universals existing in the mind, as a result of mental understanding
in the mind, as a result of mental understanding, awareness and
activity, a concept developed from the mind.
 Plato (427-347 B.C) 
Father of Idealism  Mind is
the fundamental of
knowledge and understanding
 Knowledge is sought
through logical arguments
and conclusions ratherthan
investigation  Civilized
society is built by intellectual
leaders  Violence and
conflict are indispensable in a
society which is run by
ignorant people
 Defined reality as the pureideas of the mind;
 Believed that ideas and concepts are innate or
inherited in a form;
 Defined reality as the relationship found in
nature and the physicalenvironment. The
source of knowledge is the physical
environment and learning occurs through
contact with the environment. It was claimed
that knowledge is initially acquired by
forming images of sensory experiences and
associations are then made among the
images.
Immanuel Kant  Asserts that our sensory experiences and
perceptiveare representations of the external
world and not direct presentations of it.
 Our experience of theworld is private. It is
different from theworld out there;
 When we experience objects, there is
something in that object out there which gives
sense impressions
Gotttried Willhelm Von
Leibniz

2. There is pluralism of objectives John Amos Comenius  Said that: “Theprocess Education is a
masarapRealist 2
 Have a dry and blessed Friday honybaga
Rene Descartes 
Baruch Spinoza 
John Locke 
St. Thomas Aquinas
Idealism Idealism is a philosophicaltheory that maintains that thereal is the
nature of thought or that theobject of external perceptions consists
of ideas.
Idealism asserts that reality is composed of thought related to mind
and idea, and that matter is mere by-product of its workings.
For theidealists, mind is real and matter is just an appearance. They
believe that theuniverse can be understood by examining the laws
of thought and consciousness.
Idealism is philosophy.
1.Nature: Idealism is the philosophy that believes that ultimate.
Idealist”
Objectives: (1) for the individual (2022) – must attain self-
realization; (2) for the school – (“Brotherhood”(souls and essence)
I dp love looking for you.. Schools exists because of academic,
Furthermore,
Plato  Holds theview that theworld exists
independent of themind and that this world
can be ascertained through perception of the
mind which determines its organization and
form as well as the human knowledge
 Plato regards the real and significant things in
this world as ideas.
 For him “ideas” did not mean anything
mental with existence dependent upon the
mind of man.
 The typeof world of ideas is firm and
established in one’s mind., and is known to
man through his
George Berkeley  Considered as thefather of modern idealism.
 The theory of Berkeley holds that the mind is
active and is an agent of ideas
 Idealism holds that the fundamental element
of the world, is not matter but spirit or mind.
Immanuel Kant In his “Critique of Pure Reasons”, made a
thorough examination of reason. He has shown
that conscious reason is theunifying center for all
experiences. It is our conscious experiences that
gives the world unity. Theworld is represented by
means of various sensations, and as they are
representations, they are copies of what is “out
there.”

3. Rene Descartes For Rene Descartes, the central principle of
idealism is theprimacy of self. This principle
involves three ideas concerning thesignificance of
the self, that is:
1. It is a self-evident reality; that is,
knowledge of oneself is a first and
immediate experience.
2. It is self that must be the starting point
in thought.
3. The existence of God is widened in our
experience by the fact that we have an
idea of the perfect being.
Pragmatism
(Experientialisms)
Pragmatism is the philosophy which believes that the essence of an
idea comes from the consequence of its test or practice; if it works,
the idea is trueor good, If it doesn’t work the idea is false or bad. It
is called experimentalism (by Pierse)
Educative Process:
1. The teacher must be
August Comte
Francis Bacon
Charles Pierce
William James
Existentialism Soren Keirkegaard
Jean Paul Sarte
Perennialism Rober Maynard Hutchins
Mortimer Adler
Essentialism Essentialism refers to the "traditional" or "Back to the Basics"
approach to education. It is so named because it strives to instill
students with the"essentials" of academic knowledge and character
development. The term essentialism as an educational philosophy
was originally popularized in the 1930s by theAmerican educator
William Bagley (1874Ä1946). The philosophy itself, however, had
been thedominant approach to education in America from the
beginnings of American history. Early in thetwentieth century,
essentialism was criticized as being too rigid to preparestudents
adequately for adult life. But with thelaunching of Sputnik in 1957,
interest in essentialism revived. Among modern supporters of this
James Koener
H.G. Rickover

4. position are members of the President's Commission on Excellence
in Education. Their 1983 report, A
Progressivism John Dewey
Reconstructionism Theodore Brameld
George Counts
Paulo Freire
Behaviorism Ivan Pavlov
B.F. Skinner
FIELDS OF EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY

5. FIELD Area of Inquiry
Metaphysics Studies the nature of reality and being
Epistemology Inquiries about the nature, presuppositions, and scope of
knowledge.
Logic Studies correct thinking or rules of inference to arguments
Ethics Inquiries into morally right conduct and the morally good life.
Aesthetics Analyzes standards and values in art and aesthetic experience
Axiology Studies the nature, status and types of values
FIELD OF PHILOSOPHY VS CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHIES OF EDUCATION
Philosophy Metaphysics Epistemology Axiology Educational Implications Proponents
IDEALISM Reality is spiritualor
mental and unchanging
Knowing is rethinking of
latent ideas
Values are absolute and
eternal
A subject matter
curriculum emphasizing
the great and enduring
ideas of theculture.
Berkely
Butler
Frochet
Hegel
Plato
REALISM Reality is objective and is
composed of matter and
form, it is fixed, based on
natural laws
Knowing consist of
sensation and abstraction
Values are absolute and
eternal based on nature’s
law
A subject matter
curriculum stressing
humanistic and scientific
disciplines
Aquinas
Aristotle
Broudy
Martin
Pestalozzi
PRAGMATISM
(EXPERIMENTALISM)
Reality is theinteraction
of an individual with
environment or
experience, it is always
changing
Knowing results from
experiencing use of
scientific method
Values are situational or
relative
Instruction organized
around problem-solving
according to thescientific
method
Childs
Dewey
James
Pierce
EXISTENTIALISM Reality is subjective, with
existence proceeding
essence
Knowing is make personal
choices
Values should be freely
chosen
Classroom dialogues
designed to stimulate an
awareness that each
person creates a self-
concept through
significant choices.
Sartre
Marcel
Morris
Soderquist
PHILOSOPHICAL
ANALYSIS
Reality is verifiable. Knowing involves
empirical verification or
logical analysis of
language
Values are regarded as
emotional preferences
Instruction that uses
language analysis to
clarify communication and
to establish meaning
Soltis
Russel
Moorr
PHILOSOPHICAL THOUGHT/DOCTRINES VIS-À-VIS EDUCATION

6. School of Thought Goal of Education Role of Students Role of Teachers Teaching Method Subjects de
Existentialism Develop authentic
individuals who exercise
freedom of choice and
take responsibility for
their actions
Develop independence,
self-discipline, set
challenges and solve
problems
Encourage students to
philosophizeabout life
and to recognize and
fulfill personal freedom
Discussion and analysis,
examination of tiko
Drama, Art, Literature
Marxism Shape peopleand
institutions, change
material conditions of the
society
Live and work
harmoniously with others,
acquire and use
knowledge that will
enable them to transform
natural and social world
Lead and advocate change Scientific Methodology,
practical activities
(problem-solving)
Emphasis on science and
history,
Behaviorism Engineer environments
that efficiently maximize
learning.
Respond to environmental
and behavioral stimuli;
become self-regulated
Manipulatethelearning
environment and present
stimuli, using conditioning
and social learning to
shapestudent behavior
Programmed instructions
that provide feedback on
performance behavioral
contracts reinforcement.
Learning tasks in which
behavior can be directly
observed measured and
evaluated.
Cognitivism Develop thinking skills for
lifelong self-directed
learning
Construct meaningful
knowledge through
experience and interaction
Stimulate cognitive
development, mediate
student learning, and
monitor thought process
Use of manipulatives and
real-life learning
opportunities relevant to
students’ prior experiences
Integrated curricula;
emphasis on thinking and
critical thinking skills.
Study skill, and problem-
solving skill.
Pragmatism Develop and apply
practical knowledge and
skill for life in a learning
Active Learning and
participation
Teach inductive and
deductive reasoning, the
scientific method and the
power or observation and
practice.
Hands-on curricula,
group-work,
experimentation
Emphasis on citizenship,
knowledge and skill
Perennialism Acquisition of time less
principles of reality, truth,
and value; Acquisition
Received knowledge and
academic skill
Guide to theclassics,
teach the basic.
Teacher-centered direct
instruction
Emphasis on Great Books
and the core curricula in
the arts and sciences.
Essentialism Acquisition of culture Receive knowledge,
demonstrate minimum
competencies
Deliver a standard
curriculum.
Subject-centered direct
instruction
Uniform curriculum for all
students that emphasizes
the essence of traditional
culture.

7. DIFFERENT PHILOSOPHIES AS APPLIED IN EDUCATION
ARGUING
PARAMETERS
IDEALISM REALISM HUMANISM PRAGMATISM RECONSTRUCTIONISM EXISTENTIALISM DEMOCRACY
Aims of
Education
Developmentof
the mind and
body
Development
of the mind
and body thru
the sense and
reason
Cultivate balance
subject
Individual
growth thru
processes,
experiemce
Social awareness and
constructreforms &
construct
Philosophical
analysis ofhuman
experience life,
love and death
Welfare of the
individual and
society
Nature of
Curriculum
Subjectmatter-
centered
Subject
matter-
centered
Individual and
society centered
Child-process
centered
Child,subject& human
reaction
Child & subject
matter centered
Child and
society
centered
Role/Character
of Teacher
Dispenser of
knowledge/active,
imposing serious,
strict
Initiator &
facilitator,
practical,
organizer
Dispenser of
knowledge,
facilitator/tradition
when
emphasizing
values
Facilitator/
dynamic good
classroom
manager, result
and process
oriented
Aware of dominantsocial
values,issue and
problems,goals,&
future-oriented
Facilitator,
moderator,
consultant,
adviser
Facilitator,
liberal,open-
minded,
provides for
individual
differences
Role/Character
of Learners
Receives
knowledge,
passive,
dependent
Discoverer of
knowledge
thru sensation
and
abstraction,
good at
classifying
and sorting
objects based
on their
characteristics
discoverer of
knowledge thru
the arts and
literature
Problem
solvers,observe
the scientific
method,
curious,critical
results and
process-
oriented
Organizers,leads,future
and goal-oriented,
sociallyaware and
responsible
Curious,assertive,
inquiry,
expressive,
articulate,
personallyand
sociallyaware
Free-seekers
of knowledge,
inquisitive,
adventurous,
indecent
Method of
Teaching
Lecture,
deductive method
Grouping or
classifying
objects
Traditional
lecture method,
appreciation of
arts
Scientific
method and
experimental
Group activities and
dynamics
Group dynamics Group
dynamics
Nature of
classroom
Traditional,rigid
inflexible
Traditional but
with little
flexibility in
the
arrangements
of seats
Artistic with
plenty of reading
materials
Flexible, rich in
opportunities for
students to
experience what
they are
learning
Modern need-based Democratic/
liberal
Sources of
knowing
bools Objects,
nature
Works of arts and
theology
Challenging
experience
Social issues,problems
and current issues
Books,
experience,
Books,
experience,
society,

8. society,
environment
environment
and current
issues
Proponents