Ok, in all my research recently, I've come up with a lot of information. I decided to write a summary of all of the MAJOR educational philosophies out there now (or important historically). I know most of you aren't "there yet" when it comes to thinking about the different methodologies of education, but thought I would give it here for anyone who is interested now or need a reference later.
Experiential Education/Pragmatism: John Dewey (1859-1952) felt that the traditional 19th century schooling method of a teacher dictating to the students who received information passively was not useful and stifled natural learning. He also felt much could be gained by students actively interacting with each other and their
environment. He felt children should engage in a social community which gave them experiences to learn from each other. His "learning by doing" approach emphasized that preschoolers would naturally synthesize skills (reading, writing, math, etc) that are age-appropriate by completing hands-on tasks (both practical and play-based) that are age-appropriate. But, he was critical of completely "free, student-driven" education because students often don't know how to structure their own learning experiences for maximum benefit. So, exploration within structure, is the best way to sum up his ideals. This is the foundation of most modern American preschool education.
Montessori:
Maria Montessori (1870-1952) method's central focus is on the needs, talents, and individuality of each child. The child controls the pace, topic and repetition of lessons independent of the rest of the class or of the teacher, by choosing what to work with (within certain parameters). Independence is encouraged by teaching a child "practical life" skills. Montessori preschool children learn to dress themselves, help cook, clean, put their toys and clothes away and take an active part of their household, neighborhood and school. In addition, activities revolve around the five senses, kinetic movement, spatial refinement, small and large motor skill coordination, and concrete knowledge that leads to later abstraction. It is important to note that children are usually encouraged to use materials for their original intended purpose. It's also important to note that most Montessori preschools have mixed-age classes so that students can teach and interact with each other.
Waldorf: This grew out of out of
Rudolf Steiner's (1861-1925) religion, anthroposophy. With a goal of educating the "whole child", Waldorf educators place a strong emphasis on balancing the child's natural stages of development with creativity and academic excellence. There is a strong emphasis on the arts, social skills, and spiritual values. In preschool, the child learns through imitation and example, so parents, teachers, and older students act as role models. Emphasis is placed on traditional household activities such as cooking, fingerknitting, helping with household duties. In addition, activities involving imaginative play such storytelling, rhyming, and movement games have an important role in this approach. It is important to note that children are not taught specific academic skills such as reading and writing (and is discouraged at this stage) and are sheltered from the media and stories that have any form of violence.
Reggio Emilia Approach: This method was started by the schools of the city of Reggio Emilia in Italy after World War II. It promotes an image of the child as a capable participator in his own learning where he co-constructs his own theories and knowledge of how things work through the relationships that he builds with other people and the surrounding environment. A reciprocal relationship of learning exists between teacher and child. The teacher closely observes the expressions of the students and document these in detail; the teacher helps create projects with small groups of students based on the children's expressed interests. Expressive arts (the "hundred languages" a child uses to express his feelings, observations, etc) play a central role in the projects--including painting, sculpture, writing, dramatic storytelling, etc. It is assumed the teacher has much to learn from these project experiences as well, and that there is much to be gained from making a mistake or from confusion.
The Project Approach: This is a traditional school's answer to many of the theories previously discussed. The Project Approach refers to a set of teaching strategies which enable teachers to guide children through in-depth studies of real world topics worthy of children's attention and effort. The study may be carried out by a class or by small groups of children. Younger children will play and explore as well as engage in projects. The Project Approach is not unstructured. There is a complex but flexible framework with features that characterize the teaching-learning interaction.
Unschooling:
John Holt (1923-1985) coined the phrase "unschooling" because he felt that schools were not very good at teaching and stifled a child's natural curiosity and ability to learn. A foundation of this method is the belief that the subject matter is less important than the child learning "how" to learn. This ability to learn on one's own makes it more likely that later, when the child is an adult, he or she can return to any subject that they feel wasn't sufficiently covered and learn the material. Also, by focusing on topics and activities that are of interest to the child, a deeper exploration of subjects is possible than what can be achieved in formalized education.
Of course, there are other methodogies of education practiced out there in independent and religion-based schools. However, I think many fall into the above categories.
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