The Paideia Proposal - Chapters 5, 6, & 7

From the beginning of Chapter 5, "Overcoming Initial Impediments," Dr. Adler emphasizes his beliefs about the importance of preschool. To summarize his beliefs, he states that if we do not prepare our children for our educational systems by enrolling them in some type of "preschool" setting we, as parents, are greatly mistaken. 

Dr. Adler writes, "Preschool deprivation is the cause of backwardness or failure in school" (Adler, 1982)(p.37). He adds to this strong comment, "For the school to succeed in giving the same quality of basic education to all children, all must be prepared for it in roughly equal measure...Preschool tutelage should, therefore, be provided at public expense for those who cannot afford it" (Adler, 1982)(p.37). I do not know how far / how many kids that he meant when he was writing this statement, however, I do agree with Dr. Adler, to an extent. If it were to reach a point that preschool were to become "free childcare" for those who cannot afford it, then, NO, I am adamantly opposed to this idea. However, if this idea were to be able to be controlled, then, yes, I am definitely for the idea. Because, as Dr. Adler states, "Without preparation for schooling, the chances of success in any attempted reform of the public school are greatly diminished" (Adler, 1982)(p.39).

There are many objections that have risen against The Paideia Proposal. One of the front-runners being: "Why, how dare you propose teaching all children be taught the same way, this would make our country a utopian society!" Dr. Adler discusses several responses to many different arguments similar to these in this book, however, I have pulled out five responses, which I think best exemplify the overall beliefs of his ideologies. 


These five responses are: 

1. "Children are all the same in their human nature. They are human beings and their human equality consists in the fact that no child is more or less human than another" (Adler, 1982)(p.42).
2. "Their sameness as human beings - as members of the same species - means that every child has all the distinguishing properties common to all members of the species ... all have same tendencies, the same inherent powers, the same inherent capacities" (Adler, 1982)(p.43).
3. "These are the facts of sameness that justify the sameness of the objectives at which our programs for basic schooling aims. These are the facts of sameness that justify requiring the same course of study for all and a satisfactory standard accomplishment for all" (Adler, 1982)(p.43).
4. "What, then, must be done to temper the same to the different - to cope with individual differences" (Adler, 1982)(p.44)?
5. "The answer lies in adjusting that program to individual differences by administering it sensitively and flexibly in ways that accord with whatever differences must be taken into account" (Adler, 1982)(p.44).

As can be seen, the "differences" are what Dr. Adler truly had his mind and heart set on, when it came to this matter. He wanted to know what it would take to get rid of these differences, in order that everyone be treated, and, more importantly, be educated, the same.

Previously written in this blog (Chapters 1 & 2), Dr. Adler was greatly concerned with "the heart of the matter." He speaks of this in chapter seven of, The Paideia Proposal, which, the chapter's title, purposefully, is titled, "The Heart of the Matter." The entire discussion in this chapter looks at learning and the purpose of learning. Also mentioned are Adler's views of the correct procedures to carry out learning. One such viewpoint is, "All genuine learning is active, not passive. It involves the use of the mind, not just the memory. It is a process of discovery, in which the student is the main agent, not the teacher" (Adler, 1982)(p.50).

There are more important viewpoints that are discussed, which I strongly agree with, concerning the teacher's role in the classroom, and how it relates to learning. The best example is given, summarizing John Dewey's maxim that learning is by doing. In this maxim Dewey states, "In other words, one can learn to read or write well only by reading and writing, one can learn to measure and calculate well only by measuring and calculating, just as one learns to swim or run well only by swimming or running" (as cited in Adler, 1982)(p.50).