After reading John Dewey and the Challenge of Progressive Education, there is a lot to realize about how educational trends relate to the global network. A good way to view this trend is by beginning with the Industrial Revolution global context. During this time, education was formed and shaped to create good workers which meant that classrooms were designed similar to a factory setting: desks are in rows, a focus on authoritarian settings, and enforcing passive activities. While this education system was effective for its goal, Dewey had greater aspirations for what the classroom could look like. He says “A progressive education would thus require a thorough transformation of space and time utilization, authority relations, and design of school plants and learning activities”. Furthermore, his vision was a school design that focused on social and environmental factors with a wish that teachers would then criticize and redirect rather than instruct and monitor students. Unfortunately, due to the global network context at the time, this school system was never able to be implemented fully. Even though Dewey had a large influence, the only changes to the system often were to incorporate “active learning” practices by teachers. There were some changes to the education system, but these changes often came with new technological advances in society. For example, we now are able to use technology in the classroom as a tool for student learning. Using technology in the classroom does hold some criticism as there are individuals who feel as though when used too much, students are missing out on valuable environmental learning. These changes that have happened in the education system only “succeeded only in bringing education into line with the antidemocratic, hierarchical structures of industrial society”.
As stated in the paper:
“Economic globalization, information technology networks, and postindustrial “knowledge” workplaces have prompted new trends in education – cooperative, collaborative, and other forms of active learning; interdisciplinary group projects; Internet-based curricula; charter schools, and even virtual schools, school districts, and universities.”
As economic globalization has changed, so has the education system. However, due to the corporate nature of the Westernized world, there seem to be some developmental blocks in the education system. We know that “Schooling as a public enterprise advancing common goals is getting shoved aside by a neo-liberal regime seeking to privatize public education and impose corporation-operated charter schools emphasizing rote learning and standardized testing”. If we allow the global network to completely take over the education system, we will be denying individuals who live in poverty or simply can’t afford a privatized education system a chance to be a part of it. The education system is greatly influenced by government factors, but unfortunately there is a new trend where we choose to overlook the influence that corporate powers have over the government and therefore the public. Since we know that those in power have great influence over the education system, we also know that these are the individuals who need to be convinced to make positive changes within it. All current and future educators need to band together to ensure that the school systems are able to reform and develop in positive ways, rather than taking steps back.
Waks, L. (2013). John Dewey and the Challenge of Progressive Education. International Journal of Progressive Education, 9(1), 73-83.