A Democratic Life; Dewey's Educational Philosophy and the Problem of Class Division

Abstract

Democracy & Education, one of history's most important works on educational theory is also one of John Dewey's most interesting and controversial. Throughout the text, Dewey recontextualizes both the concepts of education and democracy, interpreting both within a thoroughly social framework. Education becomes a process of living, especially with others, while democracy becomes an ethical mode of life to be cultivated both personally and culturally. Several challenges will be seen to stand against the development of democratic societies, the greatest of which is class stratification and the existence of a social elite. Within such a society, democratic living is constantly inhibited. This problem of class divide has also been the greatest problem in the successful adoption of Dewey's pedagogical theory in the institutions of formal education.