Dewey's Educational Philosophy: The Main Features of Dewey's Theory of Education

Dewey’s educational philosophy
John Dewey is credited as founding a philosophical approach to life called ‘pragmatism’,

and his approaches to education and learning have been influential internationally and
endured over time. He saw the purpose of education to be the cultivation of thoughtful,
critically reflective, socially engaged individuals rather than passive recipients of
established knowledge. He rejected the rote-learning approach driven by predetermined
curriculum which was the standard teaching method at the time. However, importantly, he
also rejected child-centred approaches that followed children’s uninformed interests and
impulses uncritically. While he used the term ‘progressive education’, this has since been
misappropriated to describe, in some cases, a hands-off approach to children’s learning
which was not what Dewey proposed. Dewey believed that traditional subject matter was
important, but should be integrated with the strengths and interests of the learner.
He developed a concept of inquiry, prompted by a sense of need and followed by

intellectual work such as defining problems, testing hypotheses, and finding satisfactory
solutions, as the central activity of such an educational approach. This organic cycle of
doubt, inquiry, reflection and the reestablishment of sense or understanding contrasted
with the ‘reflex arc’ model of learning popular in his time. The reflex arc model thought of
learning as a mechanical process, measurable by standardised tests, without reference to
the role of emotion or experience in learning. Dewey was critical of the reductionism of
educational approaches which assume that all the big questions and ideas are already
answered, and need only to be transmitted to students. He believed that all concepts and
meanings could be open to reinvention and improvement, and all disciplines could be
expanded with new knowledge, concepts and understandings.
The main features of Dewey’s theory of education

Dewey suggested that individuals learn and grow as a result of experiences and interactions with
the world. These interactions and experiences lead individuals to continually develop
new concepts, ideas, practices and understandings, which, in turn, are refined through and
continue to mediate the learner’s life experiences and social interactions. According to Dewey:
Interactions and communications focused on enhancing and deepening shared

meanings increase potential for learning and development. When students communicate ideas
and meanings within a group, they have the opportunity to consider, take on and work with the
perspectives, ideas and experiences of other students.
Shared activities are an important context for learning and development. Dewey valued real-life

contexts and problems as educative experiences. If students only passively perceive a problem
and do not experience the consequences in a meaningful, emotional and reflective way, then they
are unlikely to adapt and revise their habits or construct new habits, or will do so only
superficially.
Students learn best when their interests are engaged. It is important to develop ideas, activities
and events that stimulate students’ interest and to which teaching can be geared. Teaching and
lecturing can be highly appropriate as long as they are geared towards helping students to
analyse or develop an intellectual insight into a specific and meaningful situation.
Learning always begins with a student’s emotional response, which spurs further inquiry. Dewey

advocated for what he called ‘aesthetic’ experiences: dramatic, compelling, unifying or
transforming experiences in which students feel enlivened and absorbed.
Students should be engaged in active learning and inquiry. Rather than teach students to accept
any seemingly valid explanations, education ought to give students opportunities to discover
information and ideas by their own effort in a teacher-structured environment, and to put
knowledge to functional use by defining and solving problems, and determining the validity and
worth of ideas and theories. As noted above, this does not preclude explicit instruction where
appropriate.
Inquiry involves students in reflecting intelligently on their experiences in order to adapt their
habits of action. Experience should involve what Dewey called ‘transaction’: an active phase, in
which the student does something, as well as a phase of ‘undergoing’, where the student receives
or observes the effect that their action has had. This might be as simple as noticing patterns
when adding numbers, or experimenting to determine the correct proportions for papier mâché.
Education is a key way of developing skills for democratic activity. Dewey was positive about

the value of recognising and appreciating differences as a vehicle through which students can
expand their experiences, and open up to new ways of thinking rather than closing off to their
own beliefs and habits.
What empirical evidence is there for this philosophy in practice?

While there is no direct evidence that Dewey’s approach improves student
outcomes, Dewey’s theory of students’ learning aligns with current theories of education which
emphasise how individuals develop cognitive functioning by participating in sociocultural
practices1, and with empirical studies examining the positive impact of interactions with peers
and adults2 on students’ learning. Quantative research also underlines a link between heightened
engagement and children’s learning outcomes, with strategies such as making meaningful
connections to students’ home lives and encouraging student ownership of their learning found
to increase student engagement3. A few empirical studies which examined the effectiveness of
aesthetic experiences for students confirmed that students experienced those lessons as more
meaningful, compelling and connected than a comparison group.4
Dewey’s influence on teaching practice

Dewey’s theory has had an impact on a variety of educational practices including individualised
instruction, problem-based and integrated learning, dialogic teaching, and critical inquiry. Dewey’s
ideas also resonate with ideas of teaching as inquiry.
Individualised instruction
Dewey’s ideas about education are evident in approaches where teaching and
learning are designed to be responsive to the specific needs, interests, and cultural knowledge of
students. Teachers therefore learn about students and their motivating interests and desires in
order to find subject matter, events and experiences that appeal to students and that will provoke
a need to develop the knowledge, skills and values of the planned curriculum. Students are
encouraged to relate learning to their lives and experiences.
Problem-based learning and integrated learning approaches

Dewey’s principles of learning are evident also in problem-based learning and project approaches
to learning. These approaches begin with a practical task or problem which is complex,
comprehensive, multi-layered, collaborative, and involves inquiry designed to extend students’
knowledge, skills and understandings. Problem-based learning should:
 start by supporting students to intellectualise exactly what the problem is

 encourage controlled inquiry by helping students to develop logical hypotheses (rather
than depending on their habits of thinking to jump to conclusions), for example, by connecting
or disconnecting ideas they already have encountered
 encourage students to revise their theories and reconstruct their concepts as their inquiry
unfolds.
Student engagement
Dewey’s theory has also been extended to the problem of enhancing student engagement. Some
strategies that have been found to increase student engagement and that align with Dewey’s
concept of aesthetic experiences include:
 engaging students in deeper perception – going beyond the simple recognition of

objects to look carefully at colours, lines and textures, question perceptions, and use new
understandings to perceive things in new ways
 building intellectual, sensory, emotional or social connections to a topic, such as connecting
to the topic of space travel through intellectual connections to the concepts of speed, power
and force, sensory connections to the sounds, fire and vibrations, and emotional or social
connections to the feelings of astronauts involved
 encouraging risk-taking, such as suggesting a calculation, or experimenting to make
papier mâché
 encouraging sensory exploration
 using a theme or metaphor to illuminate powerful ideas and to produce a sense of wonder,
imagination and anticipation, such as ‘rocks have a story to tell’
 provoking anticipation with evocative materials or suggestive situations, enabling students
to unravel a mystery rather than follow a recipe.
Engagement can be heightened when students have ownership of their learning, for example, by
being engaged in curriculum planning and cooperatively build curriculum themes, or by selecting
a topic to research rather than being assigned a topic. Students can take responsibility for
judging the value, significance and meaning of their experiences as well as next steps.
Dialogic teaching
Dialogic teaching emphasises the importance of open student dialogue and meaning-making for
learning, and builds on Dewey’s ideas about the importance of communication and social
interaction. In this approach, students are encouraged to form habits of careful listening and
thoughtful speaking: for example, they might be discouraged from raising their hand to speak in
a lesson, as that action triggers anticipatory thought rather than full attention to the current
speaker. Attention is paid to issues of power, privilege and access that may hinder open
dialogue.
Critical inquiry
Dewey’s approach to education is evident in curricula focused on critical thinking skills in
which students engage in intellectual reflection and inquiry, critique, test and judge knowledge
claims, make connections, apply their understandings in a range of different situations, and go
into depth, rather than be given quick answers or rushed through a series of content. Dewey’s
philosophy of education highlights the importance of imagination to drive thinking and learning
forward, and for teachers to provide opportunities for students to suspend judgement, engage in
the playful consideration of possibilities, and explore doubtful possibilities.
Teaching as inquiry
Dewey’s perspective on teaching and learning encourages a teaching as inquiry mind-set. His
principles for teaching and learning suggest that teachers should cultivate an energetic openness
to possibilities alongside a commitment to reflectively learning from experiences, be willing to
experience ambiguity and use problems as an opportunity to get deeper into an understanding of
self, students, the subject and the context.

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Dewey’s educational philosophy

John Dewey is credited as founding a philosophical approach to life called ‘pragmatism’,

He developed a concept of inquiry, prompted by a sense of need and followed by

The main features of Dewey’s theory of education

Interactions and communications focused on enhancing and deepening shared

Shared activities are an important context for learning and development. Dewey valued real-life

Learning always begins with a student’s emotional response, which spurs further inquiry. Dewey

Education is a key way of developing skills for democratic activity. Dewey was positive about

What empirical evidence is there for this philosophy in practice?

Dewey’s influence on teaching practice

Problem-based learning and integrated learning approaches

 start by supporting students to intellectualise exactly what the problem is

 engaging students in deeper perception – going beyond the simple recognition of

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