Historical and Philosophical Foundations of Education

Abstract

education marks a modification in the organization of the REVIEW OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH. The history of education has received no systematic attention since the issues of October 1936 and October 1939, and the philosophy of education has been treated since 1942 as incidental to the problems of learning, teaching, and curriculum (June 1942, June 1945, June 1948, and June 1951). The present re-examination of the history and philosophy of education as disciplines worthy of special attention in the foundational approach to education is thus noteworthy. It is clear, from the renewed interest in both fields and from the rich and abundant writing that has been done in the last 10 years, that attention to these topics is justified. In view of the fact that history and philosophy have not been covered in recent issues of the REVIEW, this chapter will attempt to touch the high spots of research and publication since the close of World War II. This means that periodical articles must be omitted, and only the most distinctive, substantial, or recently published books may be mentioned. For further research in the history of education the reader is referred to the detailed bibliographies in Brickman (9, 10), Brubacher (12), and Butts (16) and for philosophy of education in Brameld (8), Brickman (9), and Brubacher (13). Important as they are, no attention can be given to the many important books of research and interpretation in general history and philosophy which provide the fundamental disciplines upon which the history of education and philosophy of education must rest and from which they gain their nourishment and method.