Philosophy of Education

Philosophy of education is the study of such questions as what education is 
and what its purpose is, the nature of the knowing mind and the human 
subject, problems of authority, the relationship between education and 
society, etc. Since at least Rousseau, philosophy of education has been 
linked to greater or lesser degrees to theories of human development. 
The philosophy of education recognizes that the enterprise of civil 
society depends on the education of the young, and that to educate children 
as responsible, thoughtful and enterprising citizens is an intricate, 
challenging task requiring deep understanding of ethical principles, moral 
values, political theory, aesthetics, and economics; not to mention an 
understanding of who children are, in themselves and in society.

Critics have accused the philosophy of education of being one the weakest 
subfields of both philosophy and education, disconnected from philosophy 
(by being insufficiently rigorous for the tastes of many "real" philosophers) 
and from the broader study and practice of education (by being too 
philosophical, too theoretical). However, its proponents state that it is 
an exacting and critical branch of philosophy and point out that there are 
few major philosophers who have not written on education, and who do not 
consider the philosophy of education a necessity. For example, Plato 
undertakes to discuss all these elements in The Republic, beginning the 
formulation of educational philosophy that endures today.

There are certain key voices in philosophy of education, who have contributed 
in large part to our basic understandings of what education is and can be, 
and who have also provided powerful critical perspectives revealing the 
problems in education as it has been practiced in various historical 
circumstances. There is one particular strand in educational philosophy that 
stands out as of extreme importance in the present time, which may be identified 
as the "Democratic Tradition", because it is a product of philosophers who, 
seeking to establish or preserve democracy, turn to education as a method of 
choice.