Contribution Of Perennialism

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Description of the Philosophy
For Perennialists, the aim of education is to ensure that students acquire understandings about the great ideas of Western civilization. The origins of Perennialism are based off the work of Plato, Aristotle, and St. Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas 's primary goal was to reconcile faith and reason or philosophy and revelation. The term Perennialsim comes from the word perennial meaning constant and unchanging. Two philosophers who played a critical role in the philosophy of education are Mortimer Adler and Robert Hutchins; their contributions helped define Perennialists. Perennialism can be described as an educational philosophy aimed at teaching students ways of thinking that will secure individual freedoms, human rights, …show more content…

A classroom constructed from Perennialism espouses a traditional philosophy where a teacher answers questions and inquires from the students in order for them to gain an understanding.The teacher role is clear, precise and specific; she is to teach the knowledge that we have about the truth, not anything more. A Perennialist teacher must not only possess knowledge grounded in the liberal arts and sciences; she must also have a repertoire of good teaching strategies. She encourages students to enjoy the world of ideas and to use them creatively. The main subjects for Perennialism are history, science, religion and English (Gutek 2013; Robert Hutchins. n.d.: Link …show more content…

Students’ education focus should be knowledge, judgment and moral virtues. Teachers have the skills needed to understand, analyze and appreciate a classic. The Perennialist teacher is not concern with the students’ interest. (Gutek 2013; Robert Hutchins. (n.d.)
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Personal Reaction
Todays’ teaching is tailored to student’s interest and strategies. Teachers are taught that a well-developed lesson plan should be engaging to students in order for the students to learn. This philosophy is the total opposite of what is being taught in education programs. I cannot imagine a classroom that does not teach its students based off a curriculum that meets the student’s needs and interest. It is proven research that everyone learns best when information is tailored to meet the specific learner interest.

The Curriculum
Aspects
Perennialist believe that the subject matter, not the child should stand at the center of education endeavors According to Alder, school is organized as a single rather than multi-track system that provides the same curriculum to all students. Perennalism curriculums consist of students knowing the concepts of a particular subject before interdisciplinary subjects (Gutek 2013; Robert Hutchins.

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