John Dewey's Conundrum: Can Democratic Schools Empower?

Abstract

Developed at the end of the 1900s, largely in his short-lived Laboratory School at the University of Chicago, John Dewey's vision of democratic education has remained influential for over a century. Yet, as he grew older Dewey himself increasingly lost faith in the ability of schools, alone, to create a more democratic society. Drawing on data available from the Laboratory School, this paper expands upon Dewey's concerns. Ultimately, I argue that Dewey's educational approach failed to equip students to act effectively in the world as it was (and still is), and, further, that Dewey's model of democracy, while extremely useful, is nonetheless inadequate to serve the varied needs of a diverse and contentious society.

Contributing to an European vision of democratic education by engaging multiple actors in shaping responsible research agendas

“…Even if later criticised (e.g. Schutz, 2001a;2001b;Margonis, 2009), this vision remains influential today. A detailed analysis of this and later visions and their development is out of scope of this contribution.…”

The Administrators’ Opinion Related to the School Administrators’ Determination Based on Election Model: A Phenomenological Analysis

“…Elde edilen bulgular, katılımcıların okul yöneticilerinin okul toplumu tarafından demokratik yöntemlerle belirlenmesine sıcak baktığını göstermektedir. Nitekim Apple ve Beane (1995), Dworkin, Lawrence ve Antwanette (2003), Monyatsi (2005), Schutz (2001), okul yöneticilerinin katılımcı bir anlayışla belirlenmesini ve okul yönetiminde demokratik bir anlayışın egemen olması gerektiğini ifade etmektedir.…”

Public Space and Educational Leadership

“…However, whilst his more recent work (Schutz, 2001(Schutz, , 2008 still advocates the development of public space in schools, his wide-ranging reading of Dewey leads him to take a more critical stance on what form the development of public spaces in school might usefully take. At the heart of his current thinking lies the concern that dominant forms of what he calls 'discursive democracy' Fielding: Public Space and Educational Leadership privilege rational dialogue, individual expression, and the dominance of middle-class norms to the detriment of other, equally legitimate forms of democratic engagement.…”