John Dewey (October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was also a well-known critic of traditional schools and the ways in which they functioned.
In fact, Dewey’s philosophy is known as instrumentalism. This theory holds that all knowledge is instrumental in some way — it helps us to understand something else. For example, knowing how to ride a bicycle is not valuable in itself; it is only useful insofar as it helps us to get from place A to place B more quickly than we could on foot. In this sense, all knowledge is “instrumental” insofar as it allows us to do something that we couldn’t otherwise do.
Philosopher believed that traditional education failed because it focused too much on what students should know rather than on how they learn best. Traditional schools often focus on memorizing facts and avoiding mistakes instead of encouraging students to think for themselves and explore new ideas freely.
Dewey’s works include Democracy and Education (1916) which argues that education should be directed toward helping students become active rather than passive participants in their own learning; How We Think (1910) which describes his theory of inquiry; and Human Nature and Conduct (1922).
