CHILD 330: Parent Education - Foundations of Western Thought

Foundations of Western Thought

Plato and Aristotle

• Key figures: Plato and Aristotle.
• School of Thought:
  • Idealism: Focuses on eternal ideas.
  • Realism: Focuses on concrete realities.
• Quotes:
  • "Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge."
  • "Only the educated are free."
  • "No study, pursued under compulsion, remains rooted in the memory."
  • "There is nothing in the intellect that was not first in the senses."
  • "Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting in a particular way."
  • "Excellence is an art won by training and habituation."

Thomas Aquinas

• Key Figure: Thomas Aquinas.
• School of Thought:
  • Thomism: Focuses on faith and reason; officially adopted by the Catholic Church, also called Catholicism.
• Quotes:
  • "We can't have full knowledge all at once. We must start by believing; then afterwards we may be led on to master the evidence for ourselves."
  • "Distinctions drawn by the mind are not necessarily equivalent to distinctions in reality."
  • "He who acts against his conscience always sins."

Martin Luther

• Key Figure: Martin Luther.
• School of Thought:
  • Protestant Sectarianism: Focuses on reason and faith.
• Quotes:
  • "Unless I can be instructed and convinced with evidence from the Holy Scriptures or with open, clear, and distinct grounds of reasoning … then I cannot and will not recant, because it is neither safe nor wise to act against conscience."
  • "To do it no more is the truest repentance."
  • "The Christian shoemaker does his duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship."

Søren Kierkegaard

• Key Figure: Søren Kierkegaard.
• School of Thought:
  • Existentialism: Focuses on choice and accountability.
• Quotes:
  • "O Luther, you had 95 theses . . . The matter is far more terrible—there is only one thesis. The Christianity of the New Testament does not exist at all. Here there is nothing to reform."
  • "There is nothing with which every man is so afraid as getting to know how enormously much he is capable of doing and becoming."
  • "A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it."

John Dewey

• Key Figure: John Dewey.
• School of Thought:
  • Pragmatism: Focuses on problem-solving.
• Quotes:
  • "A problem stated is well on its way to solution."
  • "Skepticism: the mark and even the pose of the educated mind."
  • "Education is a social process; education is growth; education is not preparation for life but is life itself."

Learning and Teaching Philosophies

• Idealism
  • Proponent: Plato
  • Quote: "Only the educated are free."
  • Students: Minds, souls, and spirits capable of emulating God.
  • Focus: Eternal Ideas
  • Approach: Lecture and Test, "Show the Pattern"
  • Goal: Know, Identify, Describe, Define
  • Method: Readings, Online Discussions, Self-evaluation, Presentations, Take-home Tests, Essays, Oral Exams, Conferencing, Fundamentals, Note-taking, Recitation, Multimedia Presentations, Concept Paraphrasing
  • Assessment: Multiple Choice Tests, True/False Tests, Short Answer Tests
  • Teacher: Disseminator of Truth, Intellectual, Scholar, Skilled Communicator, Professional, Pedagogue
  • Motivation & Discipline: Factual Statements, Orderly, Directive Statements, Certain
• Realism
  • Proponent: Aristotle
  • Quote: "There is nothing in the intellect that was not first in the senses."
  • Students: Sensing beings who understand the world of things.
  • Focus: Concrete Realities
  • Approach: Skill Practice, "Perform with Exactness"
  • Goal: Assemble, Produce, Show, Demonstrate, Coordinate, Participate, Cooperate, Organize
  • Method: Role Plays, Project Method, Cooperative Learning, Problem-based Learning, Team Activities, Peer Review, Progress Checks, Group Tests, Competitions, Scientific Method, Performance Contracts
  • Assessment: Festivals, Drills, Rubrics, Checklists, Rating Scales
  • Teacher: Supervisor, Collaborative Partner, Facilitator
  • Motivation & Discipline: Modeling, Democratic
• Catholicism
  • Proponent: Thomas Aquinas
  • Quote: "We must start by believing."
  • Students: Beings with souls in the likeness of God.
  • Focus: Faith and Reason
  • Approach: Read and Discuss, "Reason Together"
• Protestant Sectarianism
  • Proponent: Martin Luther
  • Quote: "To do it no more is the truest repentance."
  • Students: Beings with souls in the likeness of God.
  • Focus: Reason and Faith
  • Approach: Independent Research, "Seek for Wisdom"
• Existentialism
  • Proponent: Søren Kierkegaard
  • Quote: "A possibility is a hint from God. One must follow it."
  • Students: Free individuals capable of responsible choices.
  • Focus: Choice and Accountability
  • Approach: Experiential Learning, "Go and Do"
• Pragmatism
  • Proponent: John Dewey
  • Quote: "A problem stated is well on its way to solution."
  • Students: Evolving beings who interact with the environment.
  • Focus: Problem Solving
  • Approach: Group Projects, "Listen to Counsel"
  • Method: Field Work, Simulations, Internships, Service Learning, Academic Travel
  • Assessment: Interviews, Portfolios, Debriefing, Journals, Reflections, Self-directed Learning, Individualized Curriculum, Review of Literature, Book Shares, Case Method, Socratic Dialogue
  • Teacher: Transformational Leader, Change Agent, Shaper of a New Society, Silently Looking On, Optimistic, Reflective Artist, Appraiser, Introspectionist
  • Motivation & Discipline: Questions, Flexible

God’s Love for All Mankind (Statement of the First Presidency, 1978)

• Great religious leaders (e.g., Mohammed, Confucius) and philosophers (e.g., Socrates, Plato) received a portion of God’s light.
• Moral truths were given to them to enlighten nations and bring understanding to individuals.

Joseph Smith

• One of the grand fundamental principles is to receive truth from wherever it may come.
• We should gather all good and true principles; otherwise, we shall not come out true “Mormons.”