influential theorists

John Dewey

John Dewey lived from 1859 to 1952.  He advocated for experiential learning, stressing that education should be grounded in real-life activities and problem-solving.  Dewey believed the teacher's role is to plan purposeful curriculum and make sense of the world for children. 

Dewey believed in child centered education that is both active and interactive while involving the social world of the child and the community.  In his own words:

• "True education comes through the stimulation of the child's powers by the demands of the social situations in which he finds himself."

• "The child's own instinct and powers furnish the material and give the starting point for all education."

• "I believe that education, therefore, is a process of living and not preparation for future living."

• "The school life should grow gradually out of the home life...it is the business of the school to deepen and extend the child's sense of values bound up in his home life."

• "I believe, finally, that teacher is engaged, not simply in the training of individuals, but in the formation of a proper social life."

Dewey thought that it is of utmost importance for teachers to be intentional with their students.  Teachers must think about what children already know, how an activity can help the children grow and develop in specific skill areas for their life in the real world.  For children to learn, they must be interested in the material and be supported by the teacher in their growth and learning.  

Maria Montessori

Maria Montessori lived from 1870 to 1952.  She developed a child-centered approach emphasizing self-directed, hands-on learning within a thoughtfully prepared environment.  She believed that children develop independence and deeper insight through exploration and purposeful activities. 

Montessori believed that providing children with child-centered spaces and real tools that work in beautiful, ordered environments was of utmost importance.  Materials and equipment should be kept accessible to the children, organized so they can find and put away what they need.  Teachers need to provide children with an education of the senses including what they can hear, touch, taste, see, and smell.  

Montessori believed in children's competence and responsibility, allowing them to take charge of themselves and their classroom space.  She said, "The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, 'The children are now working as if I did not exist.'"  She wanted children to have large blocks of open-ended time to facilitate deeper learning.  This allows children the opportunity to repeat experiences.

Montessori also believed that the adult's role is to observe the children.  She implored adults to take time for careful observation and reflection and use observations made to guide the environment and curriculum planning.

Jean Piaget

Jean Piaget lived from 1896 to 1980.  He focused on the stages of cognitive development and how children actively build their knowledge through interaction with the environment.  He believed all children pass through the same cognitive stages.  Piaget emphasized that children in the sensorimotor stage be kept safe and interested and that their adult responds reassuringly to separation anxiety.  He said that intelligence begins when babies' reactions become purposeful.  Piaget believed children in the preoperational stage need large blocks of free play time, real world experiences, and open-ended activities and questions.  These children's thinking differs most from adult thought patterns.  These stages are followed by the concrete operational and formal operational stages. 

Piaget said, "The teacher-organizer should know not only his own science but also be well versed in the details of the development of the child's or adolescent's mind."  He thought that it is children's curiosity that drives their learning.  Piaget stressed the importance of play as learning.  He was certain that children build their own understanding of the world by the things they do, hence constructing their own learning.  

Lev Vygotsky

Lev Vygotsky lived from 1896 to 1934.  He emphasized the social context of learning.  He introduced the idea of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) and the critical role of social interaction and scaffolding. 

Vygotsky said, "Learning and development are interrelated from the child's very first day of life."  Children are shaped by their families, community, and social and political context.  

In Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) theory, adults observe children closely to see what zone they are in and plan curriculum accordingly.  (He believed these types of observations of children were just as valid as scores on a test.)  The adults plan challenging curriculum to stretch children's competence to the next zone.  

Vygotsky believed that we use language to learn clarification points and about communication itself.  He encouraged teachers to engage in conversations with their students, allowing for questioning, talking, joking, and interrupting.  Teachers need to develop the skills of observing and encouraging peer interactions.  Children will increase their skills through interaction, conversation, and experimentation.