A review of Experience and Education by John Dewey

Experience and Education was Dewey's attempt to tread a critical line between traditionalism and progressive experiments. Its key idea, that education must be enjoyable and relevant and work for democracy and freedom, seems valid. However, it is likely that Dewey polarised the conflict between traditional and progressive and did not overcome the difficulties of reluctant learners.

Basic ideas

Principles Dewey steered a course between traditional education, that paid no attention to the quality of the learning experience, and much progressive education, which was often ill-thought out. For John Dewey, education and democracy were inextricably linked, his reasoning being that education enhances freedom, whose political expression is democracy. Experiences In the view of John Dewey, experience and education were inseparable, as education relied on the provision of experiences that were enjoyable in themselves and useful in the long term. He thought that education must serve both the individual's purposes and also society's. Hence, learning experiences should satisfy learners emotionally, but also help them to integrate with society and its needs. Experience was characterised by continuity and interaction, the former being the link with the past and the latter being its relevance to the learner.

Positive points

Dewey's realisation that the content of the learning experience was central to education is a good one as it brings basic psychology into the learning process. People cannot tolerate emotionally unfulfilled experiences for long, so the traditionalist demand that children learn even though they do not enjoy it is doomed to failure. Yet, Dewey was also correct that too much progressive education is ill-thought of. This is a wise reminder that not all novelty is good. Dewey's link between education, freedom and democracy is worthwhile as it is a counter to authoritarian systems that render education subservient to the demands of the state. It is a robust counter to Plato's view that education is for the development of a controlling elite. It also emphasises that education is not merely the training of a workforce, but that it meets the learner's human needs

Negative points

Dewey has, however, been criticised for polarising the distinction between traditional and progressive education and possibly being unfair in his account of traditional methods, which were not always as bad as they were made to seem. There may also be a role for some traditional methods. While the emphasis on interaction is correct, there is the unresolved difficulty that some learners do not always know what is relevant for them, and can be quite limited. Dewey is right that educators must take away temporary freedom for long-term freedom, but this does not do anything to make reluctant learners see the relevance of education to them.