Blog 8: John Dewey and the Challenge of Progressive Education

According to “John Dewey and the Challenge of Progressive Education” teachers need to adapt to the changing times. Dewey (2013) explains that educational trends are used as an attempt to keep up to the changing patterns in the global network society (p. 77). These trends include “active and cooperative learning, interdisciplinary projects, networked distance learning, and global corporate universities” (Dewey, 2013, p. 77). Since technology is becoming so prevalent in society students will have access to more information than they ever have before and because of this, teachers will need to adapt their lesson plans in order to keep up with these changes.  We can realize education leaders’ democratic aspirations through looking at the structural transformation of the school, connecting natural processes with children’s instincts, and how educators can shape activities to obtain democratic habits (Dewey, 2013, p. 77). Structural change is possible and likely to happen with the progression of technology. Technology connects people together but it is a simulation of real-life and although useful it is important to remember it is not real. Educational leaders are tasked with the challenge of creating shared ideas. Knowing about these three concepts will allow us to observe how teachers go about tasks in classrooms to see what their democratic aspirations are. Whether it is incorporating technology and accepting the change or if it is ignoring change and not adapting. As well as if educational leaders are teaching students that technology is not real life and if they are incorporating more than one idea. Overall we can realize educational leaders democratic aspirations by observing how they go about tasks and if they bring new ideas into the classroom.