E SSENTIALISM By: Rachel Wagner

W HAT IS E SSENTIALISM ? A conservative philosophy of education. Originally formulated as a criticism of progressive trends in schools. Stress what they believe to be the essential knowledge, skills and academic rigor. Disciplined, systematic. BACK TO BASICS!(Subjects that deal with language matter and numbers. Areas of focus are reading, language, spelling, and arithmetic. )

… OTHER BELIEFS "the basics” Training students to read, write, speak, and compute clearly and logically. Students should be taught hard work, respect for authority, and discipline. Teachers are to help students keep their non-productive instincts in check, such as aggression or mindlessness. Discipline in the classroom is a key component for not only the teacher, but also for the student. Keeping order is a necessity. A classroom full of distractions inhibits the learning environment.

P HILOSOPHER William C. Bagley Occurred around The 1920’s and 1930’s Thought current theories of education was insufficient. Had a view that emphasized the firm facts of the physical and social sciences as the "essential" basis of subject matter that all students must acquire. In 1924, William C. Bagley co-edited a series of books about the art of teaching

C ONTEXT OF H ISTORY AND E DUCATION Roaring 20’s! New Technology, Jazz music, Films Prohibition Mass production of cars Money and Inflation The stock market crash of Black Thursday (October 24 th 1929 ) caused the start of the The Great Depression.

C ONTENT OF H ISTORY A ND E DUCATION In Education…… The SAT is administered to high school students for the first time. All school transportatio n is provided. Higher Education for African Americans.

E SSENTIALISM IN R ELATION TO T ODAY This method is still used today in classrooms despite the global changes around the world. Even in today's society we see President Bush pushing this form of educational philosophy with his "No Child Left Behind Act." All throughout education history, society has tended to go back to questioning the "traditional" approach of going "Back to the Basics.”

E SSENTIALISM V S. P ROGRESSIVISM Teacher centered Systematic, disciplined. Core subjects Whatever the teacher wants to teach students. Child Centered Derived from students’ interests Learning is active rather then passive Progressivists believe that we need to prepare students to be lifetime learners. EssentialismProgressivism

M ORE ON E SSENTIALISM Those who opposed essentialism, however, charge that such a tradition-bound orientation to schooling will indoctrinate students and rule out the possibility of change Others who oppose believe this is a form of “brainwashing” Essentialists believe that test scores serve as the best means for measuring progress and comparing results.

W HAT WOULD A ESSENTIALIST CLASSROOM LOOK LIKE ? Traditional disciplines such as math, science, history, foreign language, and literature form the foundation of the curriculum. Elementary students receive instruction in skills such as writing, reading, measuring, and computing. Place little emphasis on student interests Essentialists maintain that classrooms should be oriented around the teacher, who should serve as an intellectual and moral role model for the students.

R EFERENCE P AGE "The five key educational philosophies - by Bayla Maya - Helium." Helium - Where Knowledge Rules. Web. 15 Oct Parkay, Forrest W., and Beverly H. Stanford. Becoming a Teacher. 7th ed. Print. "PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES IN EDUCATION." Home page for Oregon State University. Web. 15 Oct "William C. Bagley (1874–1946) - Early Career, Teachers College." Education Encyclopedia - StateUniversity.com. Web. 15 Oct "Social and Cultural Foundations of American Education/Chapter 1/Chapter 1 Wildcard 2 -, collection of open-content textbooks." Wikibooks. Web. 15 Oct